Pinterest! What’s It All About?

You are hearing it all the time. Pinterest is fantastic, it’s amazing, I just love it, it has increased traffic to my blog, online store and products. And here you are left shaking your head and saying, I haven’t got a clue. So if you are wondering how Pinterest works or have an idea about how it works but want to know more? Well, I am going to let you in on a little secret, Pinterest has been one of the most successful ways I have been able to generate traffic and sales to my Etsy products and store and I am going to share with you what I have learnt and how you can do it too.

SO WHAT IS PINTEREST?

With over 175 million active users there must be something to this Pinterest thing. Basically Pinterest is a giant web based visual search engine where pinners come together to share their interests, ideas, products, blogs, recipes, DIY projects and the list goes on. Think of it as a big vision or pin board to create a visual display. A bit like the old fashioned mood board.

Not only is Pinterest a great medium for everyday people, Pinterest is also a fantastic tool for business owners to promote their ideas and products. If you want to get your products, business and blog in front of a potential audience of millions of people and drive tons of traffic to your shop, website or products without spending a cent, then read on.

When you pin something to one of your boards your pin is immediately viewable by your followers and people searching on Pinterest. When someone else pins your pin to one of their boards that’s called a repin and then their followers will see that pin and so on and so on. This can create a ripple affect where your pin can be discovered by many people.

BUT WHERE DO I START?

If you want to use Pinterest as part of your online marketing strategy, I would strongly recommend you sign up for a business account. It’s completely free. Even if you already have a personal account, you can convert it to a business account without too much fuss.

With a business account you have access to analytics, can create rich pins and you can also have the ability to create ads with promoted pins, not that I have ever paid to promote any of my pins but I will never say never.

Use the “about you” field to let people know about your business. Remember, these words will not only tell people what you do when visiting your profile page, they can also help people find you by using terms that people might search for. Upload your business logo as your profile image and you can have your website, online store or blog URL as a clickable link from your profile page. All of these things can be set up in your profile.

Here is a link to getting started Create A Pinterest Business Account

WHY DO I NEED TO CREATE SEPARATE BOARDS?

You will need to create one board before you can get started. As you add boards, think about your niche products and what topics would best fit your business and brand personality. I also try to name my boards using keywords and phrases that might show up in searches. If your name your board by your business name, unless you are a well known brand, you probably won’t get much traffic. Try thinking of each individual board as ways of grouping together your products and ideas.

As a marketing strategy, add the URL link, email address and any other information you want to tell people about in the description part of the board. You can do this by editing the board and adding these details. Be sure to use keywords and phrases in the board description. This will also help people looking for items like yours to find you.

LET’S PIN IT!

Pins are visual ideas, recipes, products, DIY inspiration people find and save to Pinterest from all around the web.

Each pin has a clickable link which will take you back to the origin of the website it was saved from. If you click through the pin you can learn more about it, how to make it or where to buy it.

The ideal pin size for your images are. Drum role please….

• Profile images: 165 x 165 pixels.
• Pins in feed: 238 pixels x adjusted to height.
• Expanded pin size: 735 pixels x adjusted to height.
• Pin boards complete size: 238 x 284 pixels.
• Cover image: 217 x 146 pixels.
• Tiny thumbnails: 51 x 51 pixels.

Of course you can use any image to make a pin. You can even pin directly from your Etsy or Ebay listings on your computer or by clicking the Pinterest logo on the actual listing. It will open a new window where you have the opportunity to select (or create) a board to pin to. That’s it. The main image and description comes across, and the link is automatically created.

You can also use the Etsy selling app to pin items by going to your active listings, selecting a product, clicking on the share tab bottom right, and then the share tab top right. From there you can share to your social media platforms like Pinterest, Twitter and Facebook.

The pictorial tutorials below will take you through how you can create pins directly from your Etsy listings and how you can create a manual pin from the Pinterest home page or your profile page.

CREATING A PIN DIRECTLY FROM YOUR ETSY LISTING

Click the Pinterest icon from your Etsy listing

Go to your actual listing on Etsy, the view that a potential buyer will see when looking at your item, and click on the Pinterest social share button at the top as shown below.

Select the board you want to pin to

This window will open after you click the Pinterest icon as shown in the graphic above. Select the board you want to pin to and that’s it.

CREATING A MANUAL PIN ON PINTEREST

Click on the red circle with the WHITE cross

You can create a manual pin directly from Pinterest. Just go to either the Pinterest home page or your profile page and click on the red circle with a cross in it on the top right hand side of the page and select create pin. See image below.

Click on Create Pin in the drop down box

This is the drop down box that will appear after clicking on the red circle with white cross button on the home or your profile page.

Create Pin window

This window will open once you click on the Create Pin button above. Click on the image icon box to upload your image. Copy and paste the URL from your listing into the Website section and add your description to the description section.

Just a little tip. To add the website or product URL, go to the item you want to pin, open the listing and copy the URL at the top of the page in the search bar and paste into the website section. Voila. You have created a pin with a direct link and that’s how you can drive traffic to your products.

TAKING YOUR PIN IMAGES TO THE NEXT LEVEL

You can keep it that easy but if you want to take your pins to the next level, I use a photo editor like Ipiccy or Canva to make my pin images stand out and get noticed. It is a known fact that the most clicked on image size are the long skinny pins. They drive traffic because you need to click on them to see the full size, they just look better, they are more noticeable and look more professional. I will give you an example below of the standard image with the listing and the created image using a photo editor.

Standard Image

No photo editing or adjustments.

Created Collage Image

This image was created using a collage tool with addition of graphics in Ipiccy

Have a play around with it. Find out which ones drive the most traffic which you will be able to monitor in your analytics. If you can adapt your pins, try out the longer, skinnier type.

TIMING IS EVERYTHING!

One of the downsides of Pinterest is your pin has a very short shelf life. Once you post a pin it is immediately available to view by your followers and from searches on Pinterest. I have even heard your pin is most visible and has the best chance of being discovered in the first 20-30 minutes but I am not 100% sure about this as I have had people repining my pins from months ago. Having said that, your pin is always visible in searches and people looking through your boards so don’t despair too much.

You need to think strategically about when you post your pins and pin when there is the greatest number of people who will see them, which is usually between 6am and 6pm.

KEEP IT FRESH

People love new and original content and so does Pinterest, just like other social media platforms.

If you are pinning new, interesting and engaging content to Pinterest every day, you will  get new followers and in turn your Pinterest platform will grow. Why is this important, the bigger your Pinterest platform, more people will click on your links to your website, products and ideas and most importantly, the more traffic you will get from Pinterest.

SHARING IS CARING!

If you begin your Pinterest journey with the thought that you will create boards for your content and products only,  think again. Unfortunately you will not be a successful pinner and your pins will probably not be seen. This is the reason why many people who try Pinterest who adopt this strategy don’t see any increase in traffic and ultimately give up.

It is really important to pin not only your own product pins but other pins to your boards. This is called repining. Like everything else in social media marketing, it is driven by popularity and algorithms. Pinterest rewards pinners that continually repin popular pins that other people like and repin to their boards. It is a bit like a ripple affect. The more people repining your pins, the more your pins and boards show up in searches and the more chance someone has to discover you and click on the link in your profile.

You can use pinning tools like Tailwind (sign up for a free trial), but for me I like to do manual pinning. In my opinion it is important to know exactly the type of pins that are being pinned to my boards and the time they are being pinned. It doesn’t take too long. Each time I list a new item in my Etsy or Ebay store I pin it. I also spend a few times a day visiting Pinterest to discover other popular pins to repin to my boards. Each time I visit Pinterest I would probably repin 5 pins at a time.

BUILD YOUR PROFILE

If you want to create lots of traffic from Pinterest you need to have followers. You can attract followers by pining a little bit every day, preferably at peak traffic times. Find other interesting people to follow by going to the “Popular” or “Everything” tab on your Pinterest navigation bar. Don’t just pin things that relate to your niche or products. Start thinking outside of the box and pin things that are interesting to you or things you like. Chances are if you find them interesting, other pinners will find them interesting as well. If you visit my profile I have boards not only for my business niche but my interests and loves.

Check out my Pinterest profile here Rhinestone Mumma Pinterest Profile

IT PAYS TO BE A GROUPIE!

A group board works the same as a regular board, the only difference is that along with the board creator, other invited collaborators can also contribute pins and add categories. Group boards are a great way of getting your product recognised among other like minded pinners. Usually these boards have a lot of followers and contributors and your pin will have a much better chance of being noticed and getting traffic from that pin.

If you want to find Group Boards to join, you can simply type in what you are looking for in the Pinterest search bar and a see what drops down. The first part will be search terms, then People/Profiles and then Boards. Just click on the boards you are interested in, follow the board or if it is a group or collaborative board just follow the instructions on the board. Usually you only need to follow the board and send a message to the admin or creator of the board so they can send you an invitation to join.

Here’s your personal invite to join my group board Etsy Sellers Promote.

There is also a great website where you can discover group boards to join called Pingroupie. A bit like a online directory for group boards on Pinterest.

This is also a great list for finding group boards to join.

WHAT’S A RICH PIN?

There are four types of Rich Pins, app, product, recipe and article. Rich pins have more context about an idea, product, recipe or article because they show extra information about your pin.

When you set up Rich Pins (using the link below), your items will have real time pricing, availability and where to buy your product.

When you add Rich Pins to your account, all your future pins will be enabled. That means you only need to do it once.

If this is something you would like to do, here is a link to Create Rich Pins

SHOULD I DELETE PINS?

In my opinion you should absolutely delete underperforming pins and pins with links that go nowhere. As we discussed before, pins can have a very short shelf life so if it’s under performing get rid of it. You may have pinned something a while back that has now sold out or been relisted with a different URL. Delete the old pin and pin the new pin with the fresh URL. It brings me back to the social media machine favouring the popular pins as well as other forms of social media like Instagram and Facebook. Like everything, you need to work at it, tweaking and adjusting.

When I started deleting underperforming pins my unique monthly visitors shot up by 50,000.  I am guilty of looking at pins before I repin them to my boards to see how many times they have been repined.

So yes, deleting pins helps you to get noticed on Pinterest.

THAT’S A WRAP!

I hope I have been able to shed some light on how Pinterest works and how you can use it effectively to create traffic to your online store or blog.

If you have any questions or would like to add anything you think is relevant please don’t be shy and leave a comment.

As I am an avid Etsy Seller, most of my posts are geared to Etsy Success although many of my guides and tutorials will be useful for if you use other platforms to sell your products. You can visit my Etsy Store at Rhinestone Mumma

Here are some of my recent blog posts you might be interested in;

How To Get More Etsy Sales

Etsy SEO! What’s It All About?

Instagram Product Tagging! What’s It All About?

Etsy Hyperlinks! What’s It All About?

Etsy Shop Policies! What’s It All About?

If you want to join our community on Facebook Etsy Sellers Promote & Help we would love to have you on board. We are always discussing ways to improve our Etsy experience and grow our sales.

Have a great day 🙂

Advertisement

Etsy SEO! What’s It All About?

Everyone is talking about it but just exactly what is it and what do I need to know to improve it. Well, that is the question.

I am going to list some key points of simple strategies you can use to understand what Etsy SEO is all about and how you can implement them into your listings to increase views and ultimately sales.

So, why does it matter?

SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) is basically how potential buyers find you in Etsy searches and off Etsy searches like Google. It is really important to have top notch Etsy SEO. Etsy will reward shops and listings with a boost in searches with good SEO optimisation and unfortunately will leave you behind if you don’t.

The keywords and phrases in your tags, title, categories and attributes all play a part in getting your items in front of potential buyers. Simply, Etsy will look at all of these things in determining whether your item is listed in searches for a particular buyers query.

So let’s start at the very beginning.

Keywords

You can have the best product ever created on Etsy but without good keywords in your titles and tags, nobody is going to find you and guess what, no cha-chings. So what do they mean when they say keywords? Keywords are a one to three word phrases that describe your product.

You firstly need to stand back from your product and start thinking like a buyer. What would buyers search for when looking for my item? As a strategy, I right down a list of keywords and short two to three word phrases that best describes my item. This gives me a basis to start using some tools to test if they would be good keywords and what words might be useful.

So here we go….

• Etsy Rank – my personal favourite. It not only gives you brilliant tools to discover keywords and phrases in real time of what is being searched for on Etsy, it can check for spelling mistakes and give you detailed analysis on your listings and spot issues and opportunities that can improve your SEO.
• Marmalead – gives you the tools to help you find the keywords real shoppers on Etsy are using to find listings like yours. It is also super easy to use and understand.
• Google Keyword Planner – gives you the tools to research the current industry standard for keywords not just for Etsy but for off Etsy searches like Google and Bing.
• Pinterest – this is probably not one you would associate with when looking for keywords. It’s a bit like using the Etsy search bar method by typing in keywords and phrases that you think a buyer might use to find products like yours and the words and phrases that drop down ARE the words and phrases people are searching for to find items. Why is Pinterest important? In my opinion, the good utilisation of Pinterest to promote your Etsy products is a game changer. I literally generate 1000’s and 1000′ of views through my pins.
• Etsy – This is another good way of finding keywords and phrases that potential buyers are using right now to find products like yours. I can’t stress this enough the right now bit, Etsy and algorithms are a funny thing. They are constantly changing and evolving. If you use this method it is always a good idea to give your listings a check up and see if there is anything you can change on a regular basis.

Titles

So you have done your research and have great keywords and phrases ready to go, so what now? There are 140 characters available to you in your title, but that doesn’t mean you need to use them all. Contrary to popular belief, and as reported in the Etsy Seller handbook, when writing titles, use your most descriptive keywords and keep a buyer in mind, not a computer. The first 40 characters are the most important for your SEO optimisation for Etsy search. Focus on writing short, clear and descriptive titles getting your message across using the best keywords in this space but at the same time constructing a sentence that is easy for a buyer to read. Lead with the keywords that best describe your item and don’t just jam pack your title full of the same keyword phrases as your tags. I can hear you ask why;

• Buyers only get a sneak peak of what you have to offer when they search for products so it’s a good idea to get your message out on what you are selling at this crucial stage especially on mobile devices.
• The first 40 characters are more relevant as they are at the beginning of your title. So basically if you want to get found in searches for a particular keyword phrase, put this in the first 40 characters.
• If you want to appear in searches on Etsy and in Google/Bing searches, keep your title simple, easy to read and understand.

You should also try to use general keyword phrases and targeted keyword phrases. Not sure what that means. Here is an example of a general keyword  phrase crochet pattern and a targeted keyword phrase could be crochet beach bag pattern.  Include spaces/separators (/ , | – ~) if you like between your keywords and phrases but as mentioned before, try to make a sentence that makes sense the flows without too much punctuation. Let me state right up front, punctuation does not affect your Etsy SEO in a negative way, in fact it makes no difference.  What is does do is break down your title into to easy to read phrases that actually makes sense.  Just for the record I prefer the vertical bar | as my separator.

Tags

Tags are very important in getting your items found in searches. We have all seen the items listed that show up on the first page of searches that only have a basic three or four word title. Well guess what, they have awesome tags.

I used to be of the belief that your title keywords and phrases have to match your tags, which is how we used to write our titles and yes, there will still be an overlap with some of your keyword phrases in both your title and your tags. If you are using the best keywords and phrases in your more simplified title than yes, use these in your tags.

Here is a little run down on good and bad tag choices;

• Use all 13 tag spaces.
• Check your spelling. Incorrect spelling will not get your items in front of anyone. You can use tools like erank that will alert you of any spelling mistakes so you can correct.
• Tags can be up to 20 characters long. Use phrases and avoid using one word tags if you can.
• Have a look at shop stats to discover keyword phrases buyers are using to find your items and add these to your tags. Alternately, you can remove tags that are not very popular.
• Use the Etsy search bar to see what naturally drops down when you start typing in a keyword. These are the keyword phrases buyers are using to find items like yours. Alternately, you can also use Pinterest in the same way.
• Your tags should be as unique as possible and repeating the same words throughout is just a wasted opportunity. The more unique tags you use, the more chances your item has to show up in many searches.
• Don’t repeat words you have selected in your category and attributes, they act like tags in a search as well. If an exact term appears in your category or attributes you don’t need to repeat it. For example colour.
• Don’t add tags in multiple languages. Your tags should be in the language you set your shop up in.
• No need to worry about plurals. Etsy looks at the root words and your listing will still be considered for a buyers query with or without.

Here is an example of one of my listings, crochet bag pattern. Obviously I am going to list the obvious, crochet bag pattern as a tag, but I could add other tags like crochet bag tutorial, handbag pattern pdf, digital bag pattern, bag making, diy crochet bag, just to name a few.

A great resource to give you an overview of your tags and where you need to make some improvements is in erank. Their listing grade section will give an insight into not only your tags but other ways you can make improvements.

Categories and Attributes

The category and the attributes associated with the category your item is in also play a part in the algorithm when a buyer makes a query in search. They basically act as an extension of your tags. You should always try to assign attributes where applicable and if there is not an exact match, try to pick something that is as close as possible.

Descriptions

This is your chance to tell the world all about the product you are selling. List all the information relating to your item, the colours available, the materials and the size. This is also a good place to take advantage of using keywords and phrases to aid in helping your listing being discovered in off Etsy searches. The first 160 characters of your description is used to create the meta description for your listing page. The meta description is the wording that shows under your title in search engine results.

Listing Consistency

So there is truth in the theory list more items and the sales will come but, I don’t think there is a magic number of listings that turns on a switch to more sales. What is true, when you list a new item or an item is sold and renews Etsy rewards you with a boost in your search ranking.

You can trick Etsy into ranking you higher by renewing your listings manually before the 4 months is up which will give it a boost but of course this will cost you 20 cents. If you do plan to try this method make sure you are renewing at peak traffic times, times your target audience is online and shopping which can be hard to pinpoint if you sell your products all around the world. I am in Australia and I get most of my Etsy sales in the early morning, when it is evening in the United States. You just have to work out what’s best for you.

The Etsy algorithm rewards listings that get sales and will show these listings to more buyers in search. As a general rule, if your listing has been renewed on more than 2 occasions without a sale, it’s time to look at why you are not getting any sales and either fix the problems or remove it.

Set and Forget?

I think as a general rule it always good to check in with your listings every 4-6 months to see how they are going. Things are constantly changing and it’s a good idea to keep up with those changes. I would also keep an eye on under performing listings and listings that have had an unexpected drop in views and sales and see what might be the issue.

Let’s Get Social

OK. So you have put in the hard yards and optimised your listings for SEO so now what? This is not a time to sit back and wait for the sales. You need to be spreading your wings and promoting your listings all over social media platforms like Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter using all those keywords and hashtags. In a future blog I will tackle strategies and tips to use on different social media platforms so watch this space.

Here are some more in depth resources you can use to improve your social media visibility;

Pinterest – What’s It All About

Updating Your Titles and Tags

There are a few ways you can make quick updates and changes to your listings. You can add or remove a tag from multiple listings at once by checking the box on those listings in your Shop Manager, click Editing Option and select Edit Tags from the drop down. You can also edit your titles, tags, price and shipping profiles in the Quick Edit Tool without having to open up each listing one at a time.

Be Patient

All of the strategies listed above are not a quick fix although you may see a rise in search ranking in a few minutes, chances are that you’re going to have to wait for a couple of days for a more established shop with high views and lots of sales or a few weeks for newer shops with less views and sales. In off Etsy searches it can take anywhere up to 30 days.

Have a great day and any feedback, comments or questions are welcomed.

If you wanted to download my Etsy SEO Workbook & Planner you can work through my step by step guide on the strategies and resources I use when listing an item. This workbook and planner can be used again and again.

Once you have your SEO rocking, I also have a great Etsy Social Media Planner Kit that covers Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter that you can use again and again, track your posts and identify trends of what is working and what is not.

As I am an Etsy Seller, most of my posts are geared to Etsy Success although any of my guides and tutorials will be useful for if you use other platforms to sell your products. You can visit my Etsy Store at Rhinestone Mumma

Here are some of my recent blog posts you might be interested in;

How To Get More Etsy Sales

Pinterest! What’s It All About?

Etsy Hyperlinks! What’s It All About?

Etsy Shop Policies! What’s It All About?

If you want to join our community on Facebook Etsy Sellers Promote & Help we would love to have you on board. We are always discussing ways to improve our Etsy experience and grow our sales.

Have a great day 🙂

How To Get More Etsy Sales

Things You Can Do Right Now For Free To Get More Sales On Etsy!

Have an Etsy Shop and want more sales? Silly question really. We all want more sales and anything we can do to improve those sales we want to know.

Read on to discover simple, free and plain English no nonsense easy ways to make more sales in your Etsy Shop and make your sales go through the roof.

PLEASE NOTE: This article is constantly updated to keep in line with Etsy policies and the changing algorithms.

Keywords

You can have the best product ever created on Etsy but without good keywords in your titles and tags, nobody is going to find you and guess what, no cha-chings. So what do they mean when they say keywords? Keywords are a one to three word phrases that describe your product.

You firstly need to stand back from your product and start thinking like a buyer. What would buyers search for when looking for my item? As a strategy, I right down a list of keywords and short two to three word phrases that best describes my item. This gives me a basis to start using some tools to test if they would be good keywords and what words might be useful.

So here we go….

• Etsy Rank – my personal favourite. It not only gives you brilliant tools to discover keywords and phrases in real time of what is being searched for on Etsy, it can check for spelling mistakes and give you detailed analysis on your listings and spot issues and opportunities that can improve your SEO.
• Marmalead – gives you the tools to help you find the keywords real shoppers on Etsy are using to find listings like yours. It is also super easy to use and understand.
• Google Keyword Planner – gives you the tools to research the current industry standard for keywords not just for Etsy but for off Etsy searches like Google and Bing.
• Pinterest – this is probably not one you would associate with when looking for keywords. It’s a bit like using the Etsy search bar method by typing in keywords and phrases that you think a buyer might use to find products like yours and the words and phrases that drop down ARE the words and phrases people are searching for to find items. Why is Pinterest important? In my opinion, the good utilisation of Pinterest to promote your Etsy products is a game changer. I literally generate 1000’s and 1000′ of views through my pins.
• Etsy – This is another good way of finding keywords and phrases that potential buyers are using right now to find products like yours. I can’t stress this enough the right now bit, Etsy and algorithms are a funny thing. They are constantly changing and evolving. If you use this method it is always a good idea to give your listings a check up and see if there is anything you can change on a regular basis.

It’s All In A Title

So you have done your research and have great keywords and phrases ready to go, so what now? There are 140 characters available to you in your title, but that doesn’t mean you need to use them all. Contrary to popular belief, and as reported in the Etsy KEYWORDS 101: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW, when writing titles, use your most descriptive keywords and keep a buyer in mind, not a computer. The first 40 characters are the most important for your SEO optimisation for Etsy search anyway, so focus on getting your message across using the best keywords in this space but at the same time constructing a sentence that makes sense. I can hear you ask why.

• Buyers only get a sneak peak of what you have to offer when they search for products so it’s a good idea to get your message out on what you are selling at this crucial should I click or scroll on by stage.
• But really, the most important reason is, Etsy ranks the first 40 characters as the most relevant as they are at the beginning of your title. So basically if you want to get found in searches for a particular keyword phrase, put these keywords in the first 40 characters.

You should also try to use general keyword phrases and targeted keyword phrases in the first 40 characters. Not sure what that means. Here is an example of a general keyword  phrase crochet pattern and a targeted keyword phrase could be crochet beach bag pattern.  Include spaces/separators (/ , | – ~) if you like between your keywords and phrases but as mentioned before, try to make a sentence that makes sense that flows without too much punctuation. Let me state right up front, punctuation does not affect your Etsy SEO in a negative way, in fact it makes no difference.  What it does do is break down your title into easy to read phrases that actually makes sense.  Just for the record I prefer the vertical bar | as my separator.

Tag That

Tags are very important in getting your items found in searches. We have all seen the items listed that show up on the first page of searches that only have a basic three or four word title. Well guess what, they have awesome tags.

I used to be of the belief that your title keywords and phrases have to match your tags, which is how we used to write our titles and yes, there will still be an overlap with some of your keyword phrases in both your title and your tags. If you are using the best keywords and phrases in your more simplified title than yes, use these in your tags.

Here is a little run down on good and bad tag choices;

• Use all 13 tag spaces.
• Check your spelling. Incorrect spelling will not get your items in front of anyone. You can use tools like erank that will alert you of any spelling mistakes so you can correct.
• Tags can be up to 20 characters long. Use phrases and avoid using one word tags if you can.
• Have a look at shop stats to discover keyword phrases buyers are using to find your items and add these to your tags. Alternately, you can remove tags that are not very popular.
• Use the Etsy search bar to see what naturally drops down when you start typing in a keyword. These are the keyword phrases buyers are using to find items like yours. Alternately, you can also use Pinterest in the same way.
• Your tags should be as unique as possible and repeating the same words throughout is just a wasted opportunity. The more unique tags you use, the more chances your item has to show up in many searches.
• Don’t repeat words you have selected in your category and attributes, they act like tags in a search as well. If an exact term appears in your category or attributes you don’t need to repeat it. For example colour.
• Don’t add tags in multiple languages. Your tags should be in the language you set your shop up in.
• No need to worry about plurals. Etsy looks at the root words and your listing will still be considered for a buyers query with or without.

Here is an example of one of my listings, crochet bag pattern. Obviously I am going to list the obvious, crochet bag pattern as a tag, but I could add other tags like crochet bag tutorial, handbag pattern pdf, digital bag pattern, bag making, diy crochet bag, just to name a few.

A great resource to give you an overview of your tags and where you need to make some improvements is in erank. Their listing grade section will give an insight into not only your tags but other ways you can make improvements.

Going Going Gone

Only you know the time, effort and cost that goes into creating your pieces. Sit down with yourself and work out your time, materials, expenses, shipping costs (if you are offering free shipping), packaging and fees to come up with a realistic price structure.

Take the time to compare your prices with other sellers in your niche. How do you compare? If you find your price is slightly higher you can offer things like free shipping, multiple item purchase discounts and gift wrapping to entice the sale.

A Picture Tells A Thousand Words

Think of your photos as the window of your shop front inviting buyers to come on in and have a look.

You have 10 photo spaces to use so use as many of the photo spaces provided you can to show buyers what you are selling. I like using a plain white or pale background for my main photo but that’s just my personal preference as I like a clean uniform look in my shop. Google search is also moving towards a clean background where you can search similar items just on image alone. Pinterest is already utilising this type of search. Ever noticed the little square top right of an image? Click on that and it will take you to similar items. You can jazz up your photos with backgrounds and scenes, perspective and situation shots with the other 9 photo spaces.

I use an inexpensive lightbox that came with lights and I bought a piece of white gloss Perspex to place items on as the direct background. You could also set up your own photo studio using white cardboard or a white sheet as a backdrop.

If you want to buy a Light Box in Australia  Click Here

If you want to buy a Light Box in the United States Click Here

To give your photos that professional edge use a photo editor. There are many options available. Some are easy, some are not so easy. Some cost money, some are free to use. I personally like free. One of the best sites to do this is Canva. I also like and use a program called Ipiccy. You can edit photos and save them to your computer. You can make collages to promote your products on Social Media and there is simple design tools to add text and other images.

Item Categories and Specifics

When searching for items on Etsy there are a number of ways buyers can “drill down” the search criteria for a more specific search. When listing an item make sure you use the best category for your listing so you will be found by a potential buyer.

Depending on what category your items appear in there are also other options you can select to increase the chance of somebody finding your item like colour, occasion, style, recipient, theme, material etc.

It doesn’t hurt to take the extra time to fill in this additional information. It all helps.

Product Descriptions

This is your chance to tell the world all about the product you are selling. List all the information relating to your item, the colours available, the materials and the size. This is also a good place to take advantage of using keywords and phrases to help your products be discovered in the big bad world.

You can also provide links to other items in your store that relate to a product. For example, you may be selling bracelets and you could direct buyers to other bracelets you are selling in your store they might be interested in. Remember, once somebody is interested enough to click through to see your detailed description you want to keep them there.

Store Sections – Get Your Ducks In A Row

It’s good to group what you are selling in your store. This can also help with another boost of using keywords in your shop.

Be specific and general in what you are selling in your store and group together like minded products. I find this is also a good way of directing people back to specific pages with easily created URL links. You can use these in your descriptions to encourage more sales.

You can create sections by going to your Shop Manager > Listings and on the right hand side find Sections and click on Manage. You can create new sections here and change the order of how you would like them to appear in your store. Once you have created your sections you can add your products when you are listing your items.

Keywords and Your Profile

As well as telling the World about you and your passion, use your profile page to add keywords. People love to read about sellers and why not add in keywords and phrases in your profile that will help Etsy shoppers and Google searchers find you.

You can also add a link to your store and your Social Media pages.

Try adding keywords to your Shop Announcements and Updates as well. Just like your own little blog letting people know when you list new products or lines or just to let people know about what you do and how you do it.

I know I have had trouble accessing Updates before which can only be accessed through the mobile Etsy Shopping App by clicking on More > Social Media > Shop Updates.

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PSST….if you’re planning to open an Etsy Store, click on this link and get 40 free listings to get you started!

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Offer Free Shipping and Quick Handling

If possible why not offer free shipping on your items. Obviously there will be a cost to you for shipping but if you incorporate the cost into your pricing you should be fine. People love something for free and it’s just another way to attract buyers to your items.

If you items are ready made and waiting to be shipped, consider selecting 1 day handling time by going to Shop Manager > Settings > Shipping Settings and create shipping rules here.

Etsy also offer an option of selecting items that have free shipping and have either 1 or 3 day handling times on the left hand side when searching, so you may as well be amongst them.

Sales and Coupons

Everybody loves a sale. Create a sale or a special coupon offer for your customers. Whether you want a buy a certain quantity and receive a percentage off or buy a certain dollar amount and receive a discount. You are in control.

Sales you create show up on the Etsy search pages in green below your item and encourages buyers to have a look. You can also create special coupon offers to send to certain customers, use on your Social Media platforms and include in your invoices that you send to customers.

Buyers can also select as a search option items on sale (visible to click on the left hand side when searching Etsy) so you definitely want to be part of this.

To access sales and coupons go to your Shop Manager > Marketing > Sales and Coupons and follow the preferred method of promotion from there.

Are You Being Served?

Just because you are running an online business doesn’t mean you can’t offer excellent customer service. Answer any questions quickly and thoroughly. Show your customers that they are valuable to you. Try to respond to any reviews that are left to let the customer know that you have read their review and appreciate that they have taken the time to respond. God forbid if you do get an unsavoury review (and hopefully there are not too many of them), I go out of my way to contact the customer to see what I can do to rectify the problem to ensure their experience is the best it can be.

Do You Want Wrapping With That?

As you are already the creative type, why not create a unique way of wrapping everything with love. I think this is just as important as the actual item. Customers get the feeling that you care and will probably remember you. It could be as simple as wrapping items in tissue paper and sealing with a heart shaped sticker or you could source or design packaging to suit your products.

Etsy sellers are a creative bunch so why not check out what’s on offer in Etsy Packaging Products to see what you might find to suit your products.

Research, Research, Research

I cant’ say this enough….research. It is so important to have a look at the competition. How are they doing it. Ask yourself….what keywords and tags are they using. What do their photos look like. What are they saying about their product in their description? You can learn a wealth of information from what other people are doing and hey, people might just start looking at you for inspiration.

Add More Listings

What can I say but Etsy gets a warm fuzzy feeling when you add more listings to your shop.

Quite simply, the more items you have out there, the more chance someone will discover you and buy something from your shop and come back for more.

If you have a well-stocked shop it’s more likely that you will get multiple sales in one transaction and people are more likely to follow your shop to get updates on new arrivals. Throw in a buy a certain amount and get a percentage off sale then the sky is the limit.

Happy listing.

Thank you

Include a thank you card with every order. These are great because you are giving your customers something tangible they can keep. It will make it easier to find you again when they want to order next time and they can share with their friends and family.

You could include information like your Etsy Shop URL and Social Media pages like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest. You could also encourage buyers to leave you a review. This is the message I print on my thank you cards;

Take a look at some of the inspiring designs available to purchase on Thank You Cards on Etsy right now.

Let’s Get Social

This is a whole can of worms and really deserves its’ own blog post which I will tackle at a later date. Watch this space.

Social Media promotion is where it’s at. Set aside some time every day to get social. If you haven’t already, set up Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Etsy have made it a lot easier with their new Social Media interface found under marketing. They provide some great tools to share shop milestones, products, sales and promotions. It’s all at your fingertips. My personal favourite is Pinterest. Whenever I list a new product, I Pin it.

Here’s your personal invite to come and collaborate on my Pinterest group board Etsy Sellers Promote

If you want to find out how Pinterest can generate more traffic to your Etsy items read more here Pinterest – What’s It All About

Branding

Having a logo and a memorable header/banner image in your Etsy Shop looks professional and will stay in someone’s mind over a shop with limited branding.

It’s not hard to incorporate a logo (come on, you’re creative) and a header image on your shop. Just as an idea for your header/banner image, you could use 4 or 5 images of your best selling products and place them together in one long image. The size to work towards for your Etsy banner is 760 pixels x 100 pixels. If you want something a little more professional, there are some great resources available online to help you.

Once you have your signature brand you can use these on your Social Media platforms, your business and thank you cards, anywhere you want to promote yourself.

Build A Blog Around Your Brand

This can be daunting, it was for me. Where to start, what to write about, how to do it. All I can say is, just start. You have nothing to lose.

To give you an example of how to go about writing a blog post encompassing your brand, my first blog post was about Chakra Healing. Not only is this one of my passions but I sell Chakra Healing Bracelets in my Etsy Shop. Some of the topics I discussed in the blog are the Chakra Meanings, what the Chakra colours mean and issues in your body and how it might relate to your Chakras. At the end of the blog I provided a link to my Etsy Shop section where I sell Chakra Beaded Bracelets. Now, you might think this is a shameless plug but I believe in what I am selling and I believe my bracelets if worn can help you. It all works hand in hand.

When you realise how you can blog about your niche products you will have so much to blog about, you won’t know when to stop.

Last But Not Least….

If you want to download my Etsy SEO Workbook & Planner you can work through my step by step guide on the strategies and resources I use when listing an item. This workbook and planner can be used by you again and again.

If you want to check out my Etsy Shop you can have a look here Rhinestone Mumma

I am always looking for ways to improve and “tweak” things in my Shop and in my listings.

Some more resources you might be interested in;

Etsy SEO! What’s It All About?

Pinterest! What’s It All About?

Etsy Hyperlinks! What’s It All About?

Etsy Shop Policies! What’s It All About?

If you want to join our community on Facebook Etsy Sellers Promote & Help we would love to have you on board. We are always discussing ways to improve our Etsy experience and grow our sales.

Have a great day 🙂