How To Get More Sales on Etsy: 12 Tried-and-Tested Strategies

If your business involves handmade arts and crafts or vintage goods, you should be on Etsy.

If you haven’t joined this platform yet, now is the time to create an Etsy seller account and earn 40 listings for free.

However, if you’re already on Etsy, you might be looking for ways to boost your sales.

Well, you're in the right place since we'll talk about how to get more sales on Etsy.

We've rounded up the best strategies that successful businesses and marketers swear by, plus insights into tools like Alura that can help you grow your Etsy business.

How To Create an Etsy Seller Account

Let’s start with the basics: create an Etsy seller account.

If you already have one, you can skip this part. But if you’re still contemplating whether or not you should join Etsy, keep reading.

Why join Etsy? Etsy is the fifth most visited online retail website.

If you're passionate about handmade crafts and vintage items and want to monetize your creations or collections, then you should join Etsy. Whether you're looking for a side hustle or want to transition to a full-time e-commerce business, opening an Etsy shop can be a rewarding and lucrative experience.

The average successful seller earns anywhere from $43,000 to $46,000 per year, while top sellers make over $65,000. It's free to open a shop on Etsy. If you join today, your first 40 listings are free.

How To Get More Sales on Etsy

After opening an Etsy seller account, the next thing to do is optimize your shop to gain more customers and generate sales.

This guide on how to get more sales on Etsy involves increasing the visibility of your listings and promoting your brand.

Ready to get down to business? Let’s get started.

1. Optimize Your Product Descriptions

Product descriptions help customers make informed buying decisions. They also make your Etsy shop look professional, which helps shoppers trust you more.

More importantly, well-written and keyword-rich product descriptions help you generate more sales because they help the audience connect with your brand better.

Here are some tips for creating captivating product descriptions:

• Focus on benefits, not features. Instead of saying that this pillow is 100% cotton (feature), mention that it's super soft, comfy, breathable, and hypoallergenic (benefits).

• Mention the most important details at the beginning. Grab shoppers' attention by telling them the best thing about your product.

• Break up your text. Make your product descriptions more readable by breaking them into shorter paragraphs.

• Link to your other products. You can add URLs in an item's description. Take this opportunity to promote your other listings.

2. Use the Most Searched Keywords

People shop on Etsy because they know they will find something special.

To find the perfect product, they use keywords to prompt Etsy to show the most relevant listings. Hence, the keywords you use in your description, titles, tags, and categories are essential in generating more sales on Etsy.

Thorough keyword research will help you select better keywords and increase visibility on your listings. Leverage Google Console to look for trending terms.

3. Take Captivating Product Photos

Your photos are the first thing shoppers see when browsing. Hence, it can make or break your brand.

Great products will exude the vibe of your brand and grab the attention of people who want to buy your products.

The good news is you don't need an expensive DSLR to take eye-catching photos that sell.

Here are some tips when taking photos for your Etsy store:

• Define Your Style

Your shop imagery represents what people can expect from your business. The more cohesive your listings look, the more likely shoppers will browse through your items and buy.

• Select Visual Elements That Reflect Your Brand and Style

Choose props and backgrounds that complement your item.

• Use Good Lighting

You can express different moods according to the time you shoot. For example, morning light can look soft and cheerful, while evening light can be more mysterious and romantic.

4. Develop New Products

Listing fresh products can benefit your shop greatly.

If you have less than 50 items, one of the best things you can do to improve your shop is to list more products.

You probably have some best sellers that many customers love.

These products constantly generate sales and have good reviews and feedback.

Examine why these products stand out and create similar products with variations in color or materials, for example.

Bonus Tip: Use Alura

Another way to create new products is to use a product research tool like Alura.

Using this tool, you can see what's selling on Etsy and uncover high-demand yet low-competition keywords.

Finally, creating seasonal items is a brilliant way to attract new customers.

You can make special versions of your popular products for Holidays like Christmas or Easter.

By doing so, you can boost your Etsy sales during these seasons.

5. Focus on Product Reviews

Having positive reviews on Etsy is another way to boost your sales.

According to Etsy, reviews are a significant factor that impacts customer and market experience scores.

Etsy uses your shop's score to rank listings in search placements. As such, it won't recommend products with bad or no reviews.

Moreover, online reviews influence a customer's buying decision. Research says that 84% of consumers find reviews indispensable when purchasing.

Naturally, people will favor stores that have blockbuster reviews.

Meanwhile, reading about a seemingly minor issue, such as unresponsive customer support, can give your Etsy shop a bad rap.

How do you generate more positive reviews?

• Ask, Ask, and Ask

Whenever you interact with customers, ask them to leave you a review.

Tell them how important reviews are in helping future customers find the right products.

However, be careful not to sound spammy. Use a friendly tone if you're making follow-ups or sending an email to ask for a review.

• Offer Incentives

Leaving reviews can be time-consuming, so you should offer a cool reward for your customers.

Consider incentivizing them through discounts, freebies, or even sneak peeks at your newest products.

6. Leverage Etsy Advertising

Yes, it costs money, but Etsy advertising is one of the easiest ways to increase sales.

With the stiff competition on the platform, it's crucial to use a mix of organic and paid advertising methods to promote your store.

Etsy offers several opportunities to promote your store. First, you can pay per click to get your item at the top of the search results.

Your promoted listing will have the word "ad" in it to show that it's a sponsored campaign.

You can also fine-tune your ad to target a specific demographic.

Besides pay-per-click advertising, you can do offsite ads work. Etsy works with partner sites to promote your listings on their pages.

7. Use Email Marketing to Build Customer Relationships

Email marketing might be old. However, it remains one of the most powerful ways to build strong customer relationships.

Many sellers don't take advantage of it, leaving money on the table.

Email marketing involves sending emails to customers to build customer relationships, generate brand awareness, turn shoppers into customers, promote your listings, and increase long-term profits.

However, note that you cannot add your customers' emails from Etsy directly to your mailing list.

Either message them directly on Etsy or add a newsletter subscription link to your product description.

8. Run a Sale

Etsy offers sellers three strategies to discount items: sales, targeted offers, and promo codes.

Generally speaking, running a sale won't boost your sales quickly. However, it can drive more traffic to your store.

When you offer promotions, consider bundling your products to boost sales.

It's one of the best ways to cross-sell items in your listing. Plus, it might lead to shoppers buying products in your store that aren't discounted.

Another way sales and promotions can help you boost your profit is through word-of-mouth marketing.

Everyone loves promotions. When people see that your products are on sale, they will likely share the news with their friends.

Depending on how well you price your products, getting more sales will instantly boost your revenues.

By the way, Etsy periodically offers site-side sales events that you can participate in.

This is a great opportunity to generate more sales.

9. Offer Multiple Payment Options

In a study by Paypal, 42% of shoppers say that having multiple payment options positively influences their buying decisions.

Moreover, many online shoppers abandon their carts due to limited payment options.

Shoppers want flexibility in terms of payment methods. Hence, the more options you offer them, the better your conversion rate on Etsy.

Besides conversion increases, multiple payment options make the checkout process easy for your customers.

A hassle-free purchase increases customer experience and encourages shoppers to return and buy again.

10. Use Social Media

Social media is undoubtedly one of the most important marketing platforms, offering a great way to reach out to more people.

One of the best ways to increase your sales on Etsy is to put your shop handles on your social media profile.

You can add photos while creating a listing on your social media account.

Doing so can drive more traffic to your shop and make it more visible outside Etsy.

Here are some tips when using social media to boost your Etsy sales:

• Use Facebook to connect with buyers. Facebook is a great place to connect with shoppers who may already be familiar with your brand or products.

• Utilize Facebook tools like FB Live and "My Day" to start a conversation with your customers.

• Leverage Instagram for brand storytelling. IG is a platform where you can share your story behind the walls and establish a connection with your buyers.

• Use hashtags and mentions. Make it easy for people to find your content through mentions and hashtags. As an Etsy seller, you can use hashtags for your product, store name, or target audience.

• Be consistent on social media. You have to keep your social media profile active by posting regularly. Also, make sure to respond to customers' messages promptly.

11. Earn Etsy’s Star Seller Badge

Star Seller is Etsy's way of rewarding shops that consistently provide excellent customer service.

Earning Etsy's Star Seller badge makes it easier for shoppers to connect with you.

According to Etsy, Star sellers also make more sales and get more listing views.

Etsy determines a store's monthly eligibility for Star Seller by looking at your shop's performance for the past three months. To earn the badge, you must:

• Respond to messages quickly. Aim to respond to customers' messages within 24 hours or less.

• Establish your return and exchange policies.

• While it doesn't impact your Star Seller eligibility, creating a clear policy on returns and exchanges encourages positive reviews by setting clear expectations with customers.

• Ship on time. To qualify for Star Seller, 95% of your orders should be shipped within your stated processing time.

12. Work With Influencers

Even though influencer marketing on Etsy isn't as huge as other social media platforms, it's still a powerful method of promoting your brand.

How can you utilize influencer marketing to boost your sales on Etsy?

First, use the Favorites feature. In 2020, Etsy released a tool that allows influencers to curate their top picks on the platform as their "Favorite Item."

Similarly, influencers can include a list of their Favorite Etsy Shops. These features help you promote your products on the platform.

Another way influencer marketing works on Etsy is through the Etsy Edit.

Here, influencers can market their favorite items and discuss products they enjoy using.

The Etsy Edit acts like an online catalog that shoppers and visitors can browse.

Increase Your Etsy Sales Today

This concludes our fool-proof strategies to get more sales on Etsy. Sure, there are a lot more strategies out there.

Yet, the key to getting more sales on Etsy isn't how many tips and tricks you know but how many you try.

Which of these strategies are you going to try?

We recommend picking two or three at a time and testing them out.

Finally, note that it takes consistency and hard work to get better results with your marketing strategy.

Seeing your numbers multiply will take some time, but sticking to these techniques will yield amazing results.

Ready? Create an Etsy seller account now and consider using the Alura tool for your product research.