Etsy in Ireland Meet Up

This week sellers had the chance to visit the new Etsy Ireland office in Dublin for an informal meet up with Etsy staff. It was a great opportunity to see Etsy Ireland in action in an informal and informative setting. Huggleknits, BarneyRaRa, and Nicobel were among the shops representing the Etsy Ireland Team and participating in a question & answer session with Etsy reps. Here are some of the questions and highlights from the lively discussion and some great tips and info from Etsy.

One shop, two shop, all in one shop

I sell a variety of items in my shop, is it better to have them all in one shop or to open more than one shop for different items?

Etsy says: A number of different items and types of items in a shop can be helpful. Different items can bring traffic to a shop. A shopper may click on item, then click on the shop, then view and click on other items from that shop, and maybe buy one. On the other hand, lots of different and seemingly unrelated items may be distracting, look like a jumble sale. It is important to have a cohesive brand. Have an idea of who your target buyer is. A shop might have different items but ideally all items are of a particular style that appeals to our target buyer. Again, the key word is ‘cohesion’.

To search or to browse

How are my shop and my items found?

Etsy says: Only a small percentage of purchases come from browse, most come from search. Check and use Shop Stats and keywords (Click on ‘Your Shop’ and the ‘Shop Stats’). Shop Stats indicate how people found you and what your most popular items are. Checking keywords can be helpful in tagging your items. Consider changing tags if certain keywords that apply are more popular and successful in terms of attracting views.

By checking Shop Stats you might find that a particular item gets lots of views but hasn’t sold. Other items get fewer views but sell more quickly. Shop stats help you figure out what to make more of or they might help you figure out how to make unsold items more appealing. Information in Shop Stats can help us optimize our titles and tags.

Titles and tags—the long and the short of it

Is it true that the first three words in a title are the most important?

Etsy says: Titles and tags are both important. Titles and tags are very strong in ‘search’ algorithms. You don’t get extra value from a long title. Write what is most important first, be descriptive and specific. Tags are equally important. Phrases in tags can be helpful; they do not need to be single words. Specific and accurate phrases can move you up in a search. ‘Irish hand knitted wool’ for example may be a more relevant tag than simply using ‘wool’. Here too, reviewing Shop Stats can help. Keep an eye on Search Stats and make sure that you are using words that are bringing in impressions, views.

Titles and tags are how sellers find your items and shop. After you come up in a search, photographs determine what is clicked on. Thus, photographs are very important. After a photograph is clicked on, the description may seal the deal.

Ads, credit and currency

Etsy asked if sellers have used Etsy Search Ads. Sellers asked if they could add credit card options to their shop and if there is a benefit to listing items in Euros or Dollars.

Very few sellers at the meeting had tried Etsy Search Ads. For those who had, it was a once off type of experience as it had not yielded results. Apparently, this is very common. According to Etsy, there are two strategies sellers employ when using Etsy’s Search Ads. The first is to buy ads for items that haven’t sold or aren’t selling as well. The second is to buy ads for items that sell well. The latter seems to be most successful. In essence it is buying more traffic to an item that has proven popular already. The behavior of the buyer does not change. Buyers respond the same way to an attractive Search Ad and an attractive listing.

As for credit card payments, sellers mentioned that when they have tried to add this option they are prompted to provide a US address. The credit card option, Etsy says, is a work in progress. Etsy is working to facilitate credit card payment options for sellers in all countries, presently country-specific issues (legal, etc) are being worked out.

Whether there is a benefit to listing items in Euros or Dollars is unclear, according to Etsy. This may be specific to each shop and its main target market. There seems to be a view amongst sellers that the majority of buyers are in the US. However, as of Christmas 2012, one third of Etsy transactions were not in the US; buyer populations outside of the US are growing.

Team Love

Etsy asks: Do you know about Etsy Teams, are you a member of a team?

Etsy says: Teams are a great way to share information, organise, encourage and promote each other. Etsy loves when a seller promotes her shop and the Etsy site (through business cards, blogs, twitter, etc) and this can be even more effective as part of a team. Etsy encourages sellers to band together and to come up with ideas and strategies for promotion (by extension Etsy promotion), and is willing to help and work with teams in this. Have a look here. One way Etsy will be doing this is through a planned Etsy UK & Ireland seller-specific newsletter. When it’s ready to go, you can receive it by clicking on: Your AccountàSettingsàEmails and scroll down to Your Subscriptions.

With Etsy in Ireland there is a real opportunity at hand. Are you feeling inspired? Have something on your mind you’d like to share? Etsy Ireland Team now has 800 members! Let’s hear you ideas!