Feature Friday - FantaSea Jewelry

FantaSea Jewelry - Dragonfly

Have you ever been browsing online and stumble across a photo that just makes you stop and stare? I'm going to share the one that caught my attention the other day on Etsy.  It's a sterling silver dragonfly with blue topaz.

I love dragonflies and I grew up on the ocean. FantaSea Jewelry's Etsy shop is absolutely breathtaking with its silver creations beautifully photographed over driftwood.

When I look at an Etsy shop, I like to see what they put in their shop announcement, shop policies, etc. It gives me an idea of how professional they are about running their shop. FantaSea Jewelry does an excellent job of making customers aware of the time it will take to receive their orders:

Please keep in mind that I am shipping from the Caribbean, and although we are part of the US, shipping will still take LONGER than shipping stateside and I have no control over this! Please expect delivery between 5-12 days from the day I shipped your item out. Most items are handcrafted at the time of purchase so please expect 5 days for production. If an item is ready to ship, I will email you and let you know when I receive the order. Thank you!!!

 You can avoid negative feedback and unrealistic expectations by letting your customers know what your process is like. Some friends of mine recently opened a wonderfully original restaurant and art gallery. Because they make all their entrees and sauces from scratch, it takes some time to get your food. On opening weekend, our server was apologetic about the delay. I later talked to the owner and told her that instead of apologizing, the server should let the customer know that the food is being cooked from scratch at the time of the order. Customers just need to know what to expect. Not everyone is in a hurry and many things are worth the wait.

FantaSea Jewelry - Octopus

I'm so glad I stumbled across FantaSea Jewelry's shop, especially since I never manage to get to the Caribbean to go shopping.  In addition to sharing my favorite items on Facebook, I pinned them on Pinterest so others can admire their beauty. My husband may be getting tired of all my hints, though...

FantaSea Jewelry - SeaHorse

Let Facebook Help Promote Your Etsy Shop

 Can't afford to advertise your Etsy shop? Neither can I. Fortunately, the growth of social media has provided some great opportunities to share information for free.  Right now I have a Facebook page for this blog, but I haven't set up a separate one for Native & Pilgrim. The Etsy Madness page basically serves to promote the blog and the shop.

Worried about the time investment of an additional Facebook page? It doesn't have to take a lot of time. I post the latest blog articles by clicking the button below the article to share on Facebook. Etsy has also made it easy to share your product listings on Facebook. I wouldn't necessarily post every item in your shop on the FB page, but posting new creations, sale items, and holiday-specific items will keep your fans connected. Make sure you do some status updates about what you're working on or asking questions of your customers so its not just product promotion.

Mashable recently posted this article on hot tips for small business marketing on Facebook. I recommend following Mashable for their posts on technology.

Another great article comes from Outright's blog, The Bottom Line. Justine Smith shared the top 10 marketing tips from full-time Etsy sellers. You may have heard some of these tips before, but I like having a refresher and each person will explain it a little bit differently.

Postal Rate Increase

Some of you have probably already noticed the latest rate increase from the US Postal Service (USPS). This rate increase happened on January 22, 2012. Although the difference in rates isn't huge, it will certainly add up as you ship multiple packages.

New domestic retail pricing for Priority Mail Flat Rate products:

• Small box — $5.35
• Medium box — $11.35
• Large box — $15.45
• Regular envelope — $5.15

 If you haven't done it already, head over to your Etsy shop and update the shipping charges for your items. I used to use the Craftopolis website to quickly edit prices and shipping charges. They're renovating their site right now, so I'm going to have to make the edits on Etsy.

One of the easiest ways to handle your shipping amounts on Etsy is to create Shipping Profiles. Go to https://www.etsy.com/your/shops/YourShopNameHere/shipping/batch.  You can created and edit shipping profiles there. I have one for digital items (free shipping), one for very small items (1 oz or less), and one for items that are a little larger and need more packaging. You'll choose all the same options you would when listing a new item for your shop. Once you save it, you'll be able to select that shipping profile when listing or editing items in your shop. Over time, this will be a great shortcut.

On the shipping page, you can apply shipping profiles to many items at once. The only negative I've found is that changing the dollar amounts in the shipping profile doesn't change anything in the items in your shop automatically. For example, I decide to change the shipping profile for very small items. The shipping charge is now $2.25 instead of $2.00. I will now need to go in and edit the item listings to apply that shipping profile. Shipping information for items doesn't change until you apply the updated profile. That's definitely an area that Etsy could improve on.

Please share any tips on making this an easier process. Good luck!

Handmade for the Holidays

I know that Christmas was a month ago, but I was impressed with news about how a lot of consumers chose to buy handmade items this year for gift giving. BusinessNewsDaily talked about the trend toward purchases of one-of-a-kind handmade gifts over the mass-produced gifts of the past. Etsy's CEO remarked that average sales per shop on Cyber Monday increased 11 percent.

This information is good to know as we launch into a new year of selling. I know that the items we make are unique and made with care in a way that can't be done in a factory. Whenever we sell in person, we are able to talk to our potential customers about what went into the creation of the piece, the inspiration, and more. I honestly believe that when customers buy from me in person, they are purchasing the background or story as well as the actual item.

One of my friends posted on Facebook that she was doing a "pay it forward" activity and would send a handmade item to the first five people to comment.  The only catch was that you had to do the same thing - post the pay it forward status and make something for five people. It didn't matter what the handmade item was - cookies, greeting card, jewelry, etc. My friend sent me a crocheted dish cloth and I am just finishing up some tatted hearts to send to my five people. I also decided to make one extra to send to the friend who connect me with this effort.  I encourage you to consider participating in this to keep handmade items in the spotlight.  Here is the text for your Facebook status:

Pay it forward 2012.... I promise to make something handmade for the first five people who comment. They must in turn post this and make something for the first five who comment on their status. *The rules are it has to be handmade by you, and they must receive it before 2012 ends.* Craft, cookies...who knows what you might receive..

Inexpensive Help for Your Business

You can do it all yourself, right? Create products, photograph and list them online. market your products and your business, create logos/labels/packaging, etc....I didn't think so.

I recently stumbled across a website based on the concept of "What are you willing to do for $5?"  Fiverr allows you to search for the type of work you need done. You can also request your own specific "gig" and hope for someone to respond. You can sign up to offer your own services as well.

For only five dollars, it's not much of a risk. What can you get for your five dollars? Here are a few that I thought would be helpful for Etsy sellers:

• Critique your Etsy shop
• Create a banner for your Etsy shop
• Tweet about your shop (some do this several times per day without end)
• Edit your product photos
• Design a logo for your business
• Set up your blog
• Record a video promoting your product/business
• Create backlinks for your site
• Review your product on my site
• Write the name of your business on a sign, lips, fingernails, face....

There are some very entertaining things on there. You could get a video of somebody in a hot dog costume dancing for two minutes to the song of your choice or have someone do some of your computer programming homework. Like with any online purchase, you should read reviews from previous customers before committing to pay. I paid for someone to tweet two messages a day to her 32.000 Twitter followers every day, forever and ever. She had me send her the two different messages to tweet and the messages were sent within minutes. Those messages continue to be tweeted daily and I have seen an increase in visits to my shop and new Twitter followers.

Althout you can't expect an awesome logo or banner design for five dollars, this is an inexpensive way to get started. If you decide to sell your own services on Fiverr, you'll want to read this article that explains how much you actually make after fees. I'd love to hear from you if you decide to use Fiverr.

Improving How You Use Facebook

If you're selling on Etsy (or have a business of any kind), you need to have a Facebook page for your business. Originally, Facebook was set up more for individuals. It has adapted over the years and has what it calls "fan pages" that are great for businesses. They're also good for celebrities since they don't set a limit on how many people "like" you (yes, there are actual limits to how many "friends" you can have as a person on FB).

When I first set up a business Facebook page, I created it to support this blog. Sometimes I wonder if I should have a separate page for the Etsy shop. More work, but targeted to different audiences. The debate is still going on in my head for now.

Mashable had a great article about some of the metrics (statistics) that Facebook can provide you for your page. Knowing where your fans are coming from and how they are engaged with your information will help you not only to improve how you market your brand, but will also give you opportunities for keeping your biggest fans engaged with you.

Another great thing you can do with your Facebook page is to add a Welcome tab using an app called iFrames.  I'm working on the one for my Etsy Madness page, but you can take a look at the one I made earlier this month when I was working for Heritage School.

In looking at the statistics for my Etsy shop, I've seen that a lot of people are linking over from Facebook.  So many people comment on and share their favorite items that it really pays to be on Facebook.  I've been hearing a lot lately about how Pinterest is boosting traffic for Etsy shops.  I'm hoping to start on Pinterest, but the one drawback is that you have to receive an invitation to join. My request for an invitation put me on their waiting list, but I don't know how long it will take. 

What are your Facebook tips? And could someone please send me a Pinterest invitation....thanks!