# Etsy? Worth it or no?



## Rchickenlady (Sep 1, 2014)

Hi folks. I'd like to ask the opinion of some more experienced sellers. I've read previous posts on selling and am reluctant to try eBay or Amazon, and had an unsuccessful run at an antique mall. Have you folks had good luck with etsy? I have books, and a large variety of depression era stuff. Thanks!!


----------



## BlackFeather (Jun 17, 2014)

My daughter has sold some stuff on etsy, I wouldn't depend on it for a living but it is one outlet to sell things, doesn't hurt to have several outlets for selling.


----------



## sisterpine (May 9, 2004)

I agree with having more than once selling source. I use ebay, my own webstore, farmers and craft markets and street fairs. I also sell eggs and produce from my little farm.


----------



## romysbaskets (Aug 29, 2009)

I tried Etsy some years back and was a bit discouraged. I found out by talking to others on there, one is a family member, another a friend. They have sold very little but you could still try it. I sell my hand made items, seeds, plants etc on several sites as well as Craigslist. I was listing things on ebay but the fees can be hard to absorb for small sellers, however you reach a wide audience and the initial listing costs are minimal. I sold a lot of things on ebay but the nature of what I offer, I haven't been lately. I sell by word of mouth too. You can always run a test market, throw up an etsy storefront and then list a small number of your items and do the same thing with ebay with just listings. It will cost very little to try them out together.


----------



## Jakobud (Jun 24, 2013)

Etsy is an online store for selling homemade items. It's not a "sell anything" website like ebay or craigslist.


----------



## Elie May (Apr 24, 2008)

I have two shops on Etsy. They both do fairly well. The bead shop is about a year old. The jewelry shop is older but I have only really been working it steady since past October. 

It pays for my hobby and then some. No complaints here!~


----------



## HighCountryMan (Mar 14, 2015)

My reflexology therapist seems to do well on Etsy. She has about 650 items currently listed. She previously used EBay but it wasn't working well enough for her. I'm not promoting but check it out.....pretty cool stuff.


https://www.etsy.com/shop/AspenRidge

Best of luck.


----------



## romysbaskets (Aug 29, 2009)

I did see a fair number of antiques listed. One was a spinning wheel missing the flyer, which is a hard to replace item unless a woodworker buddy is around or you are one. That sold pretty fast, so they must have antique lookie loos on there. The handmade items are what Etsy is known for but..depends on what you list on there. A young lady I know sold 3 items in a year's time. That wasn't worth her listing her store for. She however sold handmade things that there were a large number of duplicates of. Competition on some things there can seem like you get lost. I would do a search for what you have! See what is there and then decide as 20 cents a listing that lasts 4 months as a test run is a good way to find out.


----------



## spotteddogfarm (Jan 17, 2009)

I've had a vintage shop on Etsy for a long time (things just have to be 20+ years old to be considered "vintage" there), and also a handmade shop where I've sold handspun yarn and fiber. The shops there do well as long as you take time and care with them. It's all about making the stuff look pretty - getting good photos especially. It's not as much about the value of collectibles on Etsy as on eBay - it's more about styling. I do know some vintage/antiquarian book sellers who have done well there, and dishware too. eBay is great for newer things and certain types of merchandise, and there is definitely more traffic, but I enjoy Etsy and get out what I put in. Best of luck with it!


----------



## homesteadingmom (Dec 1, 2009)

This is my second Etsy shop. I don't sell vintage items but I do upcycle vintage fabric to create Traveler's Notebook Covers in my new shop on Etsy and they sell particularly well versus the new fabric items. It really is all about the photos, styling, keywords and titles you use in your listings. Also cross posting in multiple social media sites is a big part of my business. I previously sold in groups on facebook. I like Etsy a lot better. You can check out my shop at www.toadstudio.etsy.com


----------



## MorganBella1 (Feb 11, 2016)

Yes I think so, I enjoy it, I like old/vintage things, it's a nice hobby


----------



## tjlmama (Apr 26, 2016)

I see a lot of sellers use Etsy as advertising for their own website. When you order from them on Etsy, they'll send you their business card with a coupon code for their web site.


----------



## romysbaskets (Aug 29, 2009)

Another aspect of Etsy is that you create a "storefront" and the only cost is the 20 cent per listing fee which lasts 4 months. Then you absolutely advertise your Etsy shop on facebook and other forms of social media including here. This is very easy to create on Etsy and you can use it as a type of mini website kind of. I did a test market with some of my seeds I sell after I set up my simple store. I posted beautiful pictures with a lovely description of where they were from. I chose three types of seeds I have with me in enough abundance and also listed a set of beautiful 1920's rare demitasse cups with a lot of gold encrusted on the rims and a beautiful really elegant Calla Lily pattern. After a month on Etsy, I had no sales but on Ebay I had $150 worth of just the seeds! I did try the Demitasse cups on ebay as well but decided I liked them too much when they didn't sell right away and kept them. That is quite a difference 0 to $150 as I put no more effort into ebay as I did on etsy....I did not advertise either one. I don't have my business cards with me but people have started asking me for them because I make so many different things. I agree you get out of Etsy what you put in it appears you must bring people to your shop at first...after that happy customers will come back I am sure. In addition to advertising that Etsy shop all different ways including business cards.


----------

