With over 4.4 million active sellers from 234 countries and more than 39.2 million buyers, Etsy has become an important marketplace. Unfortunately, with great popularity, comes market saturation. This can make it pretty difficult to start selling printables on Etsy. But while it’s true that Etsy is now pretty competitive, with the right tactics you can still make a lot of money!
Top tips for selling printables on Etsy:
- Stay updated with changing trends.
- Promote your store on multiple platforms.
- Practice good SEO.
- Hide your Etsy sales history.
- Upload a video guide on how to use the printables.
- Ensure images are appealing and properly sized.
- Describe your printable listing in detail.
- Set up an auto-reply for customer inquiries.
- Send coupon links for return customers.
- Avoid editing a listing that is doing well.
- Use Etsy Ads to direct traffic to your listing.
- Provide options for popular printables.
- Focus on one niche.
- Prepare seasonal products early.
- Include benefits in your product description.
We’re here to help you stand out from the crowd. This article will explore the above tips in more detail. Whilst we’ve focused on selling printables on Etsy, these tips will work for most products!
Table Of Contents
Tips For Selling Printables On Etsy
1. Stay Updated With Changing Trends
Selling printables on Etsy is amazing!
After all, Etsy is a vast market reaching every corner of the earth.
The potential profits are huge!
However, you’re also vulnerable to trends, putting your Etsy shop from the top today, to the bottom tomorrow.
While being unique sells, trendy items are equally important. Of course, if your target market is “people who aren’t into the latest trends”, there’s no need to conform. Still, it’s often best to find a balance between being an artist and a business owner.
Fortunately, Etsy encourages creativity. You can still follow the trends but tweak them to make your printables eye-catching and different from the rest. Some trends to follow include:
- Colors
- Patterns
- Textures
- Materials
- Themes
- Characters
- Keywords
Notably, your products are likely to get more views if they feature among the items buyers are searching for at the moment.
Too long, didn’t read: Selling printables on Etsy is a helluva lot easier when you stay on trend!
2. Promote Your Store On Multiple Platforms
Starting an Etsy store is the easy part.
The hard work is getting your printables to the top listings.
Unfortunately, with thousands of sellers selling printables, you can’t afford to sit back and hope potential buyers will visit your store.
You need to market your products extensively on various social media platforms. It’s also prudent to consider creating informative tutorial videos on YouTube, Instagram stories, and other platforms.
Pinterest has 431 million monthly active users. Over 89% of users visit Pinterest for purchase inspiration, while 85% have bought items based on pins.
When you promote your printables on platforms outside of Etsy, not only will you quickly become an authority on printables, your Etsy store will get more visits and purchases.
Too long, didn’t read: In 2022, selling on Etsy is certainly easier when you drive traffic from other sources. But you don’t need to be an influencer to be successful!
3. Practice Good SEO
Etsy SEO will boost your listings when you use the appropriate keywords in the product title, product tags, product categories, and product attributes.
Unfortunately, when a client searches for printables, the scope of the results is usually too wide. To narrow the search further, Etsy will rank the listings according to:
- Relevance. If your listing has keywords matching the search query, it’ll automatically be ranked. However, how high you rank will depend on the other factors on this list. Etsy gives 13 tag options, so you should endeavor to use them all to increase your chances to rank favorably in the search results.
- Recency. New listings usually get a reprieve for a few hours or days. After that, it’ll start dropping in rank unless it starts selling immediately.
- Listing quality score. High-performing listings with great conversion rates get more visibility. It’s not enough that many people click on your listing. You need to convert those clicks to sales!
- Customer and market experience. You’re likely to rank higher than your competitors if you have positive reviews. How you respond to customers and your overall service will affect your ranking.
4. Hide Your Etsy Sales History
If your sales history is active, anyone can click on it to see the printables in demand and those that aren’t. They can also easily tell how much you’re making.
The problem here is not buyers seeing this information, but your competitors simply copying your best-selling printables!
We’ve seen this happen all too frequently.
This inevitably saturates the market further because multiple stores will be selling the same printable.
Here’s how to deactivate and hide your Etsy sales history:
- Go to track manager
- Click on settings
- Go to options and locate ‘disable the sale history’
- Click to disable it
Once disabled, the clickable link won’t be available, so the information remains private.
Too long, didn’t read: When selling printables on Etsy, hide your sales history to prevent copycats!
5. Upload A Video Guide On How To Use The Printables
Many Etsy store owners assume buyers know what they’re buying and how to use the items. However, even the most informed consumers can learn a thing or two from a video guide. Explore unique ways to use the printables and illustrate them for the buyers whenever possible.
Buyers will have a better idea of how they can use the printables and are therefore more likely to buy.
With a guide, even those who weren’t seeking out the printables may be tempted to buy them – basic human psychology.
6. Ensure Images Are Appealing and Properly Sized
Your potential clients will give your store a second look if the images are appealing. The image quality and background are critical because they’ll set you apart from your competition. Here are some tips:
- Use a simple background. Remember, it’s your product that should stand out.
- Follow the Etsy image size and quality guidelines. The shop icon should be 500x500px, the shop banner 760×100 pixels, and the thumbnail 570x456px. The listing image should be at least 2000 pixels per square inch. Avoid loading images above 1MB. The ideal image is one of the highest quality but optimal size.
7. Describe Your Printable Listing In Detail
Every creative design has a story behind it, and some Etsy shoppers will relate to your experience and choice of art.
Some of the information you can include in the description are the printable’s title, the person who made it, the category (a calendar, planner, or digital print), and tags.
Ensure the description is catchy so visitors keep exploring your shop and hopefully convert to paying customers.
It pays to stand out from the competition.
Try out a little eccentricity…
Be cheeky, funny or even… sexy (joking… or am I?).
Besides using the description box, you can also give tips on how to use the printables you’re selling. For example, if you have college worksheets, you can give tips on how to use them on the image.
This is because many people don’t go to the listing description. Their attention is usually on the image. To get more buyers, put short details on the image. This provides shoppers answers without having to scroll to the description.
Remember, people are lazy. Make life easier for them!
8. Set Up An Auto-Reply For Customer Inquiries
How quickly you respond to inquiries often plays a big part in how many sales you make.
Selling on Etsy requires commitment. Otherwise, customers move on to a more responsive store.
But don’t worry! If you can’t respond to customers immediately, set up an auto-reply for an hour after the inquiry.
Setting the auto-reply within the shortest time possible buys you time with your potential client. If you set the auto-reply hours after clients make contact, you risk losing them, and this will affect your store’s performance. Be sure to let the client know when you’ll be getting back to them.
A simple message is enough: “Thanks so much for your enquiry, we’ll get back to you as soon as we possibly can.”
9. Send Coupon Links For Return Customers
Once you make a sale, it’s good to send a thank you message to your clients.
Instead of standard messages, you can use this opportunity to introduce any discounts you’re running on some of the printables.
For example, after thanking them for the purchase, you can share a link with a coupon so the client knows the next purchase is 10% off.
This is a great way to get return clients and boost visits to your Etsy store. Additionally, you may prevent these clients from discovering your competition.
You can also send coupons to recover lost sales. This could be from people who abandoned their carts or those who favorited your printables but didn’t proceed to check out. Sending a nudge email with a coupon offer may be a great incentive for clients who may have forgotten about your product.
This YouTube video gives 35 hacks to help you increase your Etsy sales:
10. Avoid Editing A Listing That Is Doing Well
How often are you tempted to add or remove some of the details in your listing?
Stop!
If your listing is performing well against hundreds of listings offering similar services, in the words of the Beatles… let it be!
When you edit the listing, you risk losing the progress you have made. The Etsy algorithm may pick out new keywords, which will affect the position of the listing. However, if your listing isn’t performing well, you can edit the keywords to your hearts content. Improve the description and the tags then monitor your progress. It sometimes takes some trial and error.
11. Use Etsy Ads To Direct Traffic to Your Listing
Marketing is important for every business. When selling printables on Etsy, you can use Etsy Ads to draw attention to your listings. Etsy has set a limit of $25 daily for all Etsy sellers for ads. You get to set a limit on the amount to pay per day.
Fortunately, Etsy only charges you based on the clicks your ad gets.
Etsy Ads will target the right audience based on their purchase history and interests. This makes it easier for you to have a campaign likely to yield results and help you outsell others providing similar services.
12. Provide Options For Popular Printables
Monitor your Etsy Ads and determine which listing is bringing in more revenue. You can provide options for such products to give customers alternatives they may find equally appealing.
For example, you can modify a popular planner using different colors and patterns. In general, customers often appreciate having two or more options for the same product and the freedom to choose their preferred color and style.
This will increase your sales and give you an edge over others selling printables on Etsy.
13. Focus On One Niche
The debate of focusing on one niche over multiple niches is unlikely to end soon. Some people believe having a little of everything ensures you have a wider target market, while others believe being specific is the way to go.
This can be frustrating, especially if you’re new to selling on Etsy.
However, for a saturated market, niching will help you stand out. You want shoppers who come across your listing to find exactly what they’re looking for when visiting your Etsy store.
For example, if a weekly planner listing caught someone’s attention, they hope to see more of the same when they click your store. If they find a little of everything and nothing of what they came for, they’ll swiftly move on.
So, instead of getting a repeat customer, you’ll get a one-time one who wasn’t impressed with your shop.
Niching down won’t cost you sales. If anything, you’re likely to see an increase in sales because your customers will relate to your brands, and they can easily find what they need.
Just make sure there is a demand for your niche before you dive in too deep!
14. Prepare Seasonal Products Early
Seasonal trends are short-term, but they’re also quite profitable.
Everyone likes making a quick buck.
However, you can only have a successful season if you prepare your printables in advance. It’s easier to sell products that people are actively looking for, and seasonal trends are a great place to start.
Whilst this may mean spending your summer making christmas products – it’s a worthy sacrifice.
15. Include Benefits In Your Product Description
Consumers usually buy products based on their benefits. While product description is important, you’re more likely to make an impression by explaining how the printable benefits the potential buyer.
The benefits of the printable should come before the print features. This way, when the customer discovers the dimensions, they automatically become involved because they’re already picturing how they’ll benefit from it.
Conclusion
Selling Printables on Etsy can be a great source of passive income. However, you should be strategic with your listings to ensure you rank highly and beat the competition.
Fortunately, Etsy still has almost ten times the number of buyers against sellers, so you have a pretty good chance of making decent sales!
Optimize your shop with the above tips and you’ll be selling like a pro in no time!
Ready for another side hustle?
