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Is one of your hobbies creating products? And are your handmade items so good that friends and coworkers keep asking you to make them one? If so, those items could be Etsy best sellers.

Have you ever thought of selling on Etsy? Why not show the world your creative side and make some money along the way?

Shoppers love handcrafted items. Not only are products unique, but many things can be personalized.

And nowhere is there better proof of how much love handmade items are getting than on Etsy. And it’s not just handmade items, but digital items, too.

If you’re looking to make extra income from home or an easy way to start your own online business, joining Etsy is a great option to explore.

And we will take you through Etsy for beginners and show you how you, too, can start selling Etsy best sellers.

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Making Money on Etsy

Is it possible to make money on Etsy? Absolutely!

Most of Etsy best sellers have the platform as their sole source of income.

And that could be you, too. Not only do you need to know all the ins and outs of selling on Etsy, but it helps if your product falls into the Etsy best seller products.

Being successful and among Etsy best sellers, you must know what are the Etsy best sellers and what fees are involved with selling on the site so you can find the perfect products to sell on your own Etsy shop.

Top Ideas to Sell on Etsy

Whether you already have a hobby or are looking for ideas to sell on Etsy, it’s good to know what items are the most popular with customers.

The list greatly varies including products that do require a specialized skill to those that just need a know how with certain computer software.

When you find the Etsy best sellers in the categories your product will fall under, look at the keywords each shop is using for its product titles.

This is all a part of understanding SEO (search engine optimization) on Etsy.

If you want to be among Etsy best sellers, you need to be found quickly. And using popular search keywords on Etsy is one easy way to get buyers to your shop.

Top Product Categories for Ideas to Sell on Etsy:

Craft & Supplies – a very popular category for those who love sewing, needlework, etc. Here you can find cross stitch/crochet/quilt/knitting patterns and even different types of yarn.

Handmade Items – from pottery to wood carved pieces, anything handmade that makes a statement in a room or a special gift fits into this category.

Jewelry – handmade jewelry has never been more popular with people wanting more original pieces to wear rather than mass produced product.

Vintage Items – Any items over 20 years old fits into this item. Rather than create, if you have a good eye at thrift stores, this is a great option for selling on Etsy.

Home & Living – Living spaces can be livened up with wall decorations, rugs, and furniture. And kitchenware and utensils are always in demand.

Arts & Collectibles – One-of-a-kind pieces are very popular on Etsy.

Currently, the best things to sell on Etsy to make money include:

Stickers – shoppers can’t seem to get enough of stickers and are buying them in large quantities.

Notebooks & Planners – from personalizing them to eye-catching graphics, notebooks are something that never go out of style nor demand.

Candles – with people spending more and more time at home, candles can provide great ambiance as well as scent.

Home Décor – shoppers are always looking to add a special something to their home. An individual piece that stands out and reflects their personality.

Personalized Items – always makes for a great present no matter the time of year.

Graphic/Digital Designs – from posters to cards, computer-generated graphics are very popular and easy to reproduce in a multitude of variations.

Posters – everyone likes to have something on their wall. And posters are inexpensive to print and ship out.

Fees for Selling on Etsy

To be among the Etsy best sellers and for making money on Etsy, it’s not enough to know how much making your products will cost you and then determine what you sell them for based upon the percentage markup you pick.

You need to factor in the different fees charged on Etsy into your total cost per item.

Etsy makes money from its platform by charging fees from each seller, which include both listing and selling fees. Let’s break down each fee for Etsy for beginners.

Etsy Store Cost

Technically, starting an Etsy shop doesn’t cost you anything.

But it does charge you to list items in your store. And what good is an Etsy shop if you have no product to sell?

So, Etsy charges sellers $0.20 per each item that you list. It’s important to note that there is a difference between item and product.

Etsy says an item is the actual item that you are listing. Each variation of that item that you offer is a product.

For example, you would list a hand knitted scarf as an item. Within that item, you could offer different colors or lengths. Each of those variations is a product listed within the main item.

With this fee set-up, you could list multiple products under one item and only pay the item listing fee of $0.20 once.

But, the listing fee of $0.20 is not necessarily a one-time fee. If an item listed does not have any sales within 4 months, Etsy will charge you another $0.20 to keep the item listed.

But, once a sale is made, the clock automatically resets to 4 months at no added charge to you. So, the more you keep selling, the less fees you will have to pay.

Etsy Transaction Fee

As soon as you make a sale, Etsy charges the seller a 5% transaction fee of the sale price.

Payment Fee

If a buyer, upon checking out, opts to use Etsy’s payment system, then the seller is charged a 3% processing fee AND a $0.25 transaction fee per transaction.

Shipping Fees

Any shipping fees can be avoided if you correctly determine the shipping costs for each of your products. On Etsy, buyers pay the shipping fees that are set by the seller.

So, if you guess on shipping costs rather than weighing packages and determining rates, you could end up paying shipping costs out-of-pocket.

The only way to avoid this scenario is to take the time to calculate true shipping costs.

And if your product is digital and can be downloaded, you don’t have to worry about shipping fees at all.

To help you better keep track of fees, what products are selling (and at what price) and what your overall profit is, it helps to use some sort of spreadsheet software.

That way you can easily see where you stand financially at any given moment.

Starting an Etsy Shop

Now that you’ve done your homework and decided that it’s time to start looking at how to sell things on Etsy, it’s time for the fun part: starting an Etsy shop.

But before clicking on Etsy and starting an Etsy shop, there’s a few things you need to do first.

1. Make the product – As stated before, there’s no point in starting an Etsy shop if you don’t have any merchandise to sell.

So, make sure you have something to list on the website. If your product is small or inexpensive, it will help to have some inventory available with choices for buyers.

The tricky part is to not make too much product upfront unless you can safely store it.

But during the first few months on Etsy, it is going be a lot of trial and error as you work with product names, prices, etc.

2. After you have your product, take photos of each product, including different colors, sizes, patterns, etc.

And as your photos are what will initially attract buyers into your Etsy shop, these photos need to be of a high quality.

Each product should have at least 5 photos showing the item from different angles, including overview and details.

It helps to have a few very clean images of the product on a clean white background and a few of the product in actual use or in a living setting.

And, you will need to decide on how you want each thumbnail image to look for each product.

As the thumbnails will be visible together on your Etsy shop page, they should all have the same look and feel. This is your shop, so in fact, you are creating your own brand.

If you know someone who is really good with photography, it’s worth asking for their help as quick photos taken with your phone just won’t stand up to the quality of other Etsy shops.

Configuring your Etsy Shop

Once you have your product and photos, starting an Etsy shop is quite easy to do. But here’s a break down on how to open your store on Etsy for beginners.

Go to Etsy and click on ‘Open Your Etsy Shop.’ If you don’t already have an account on the platform, you’ll be asked to create an account before continuing.

Next, you need to set your preferences.

This includes how you want to sell your item, which currency to use, what language to use for product descriptions, and shipping location.

Then comes the all-important part of choosing your Etsy shop name.

Technically, the requirements are that the shop name must be between 4 and 20 characters long without any spaces and special characters are not allowed.

And it’s important to not rush this step. Etsy is a creative place, so be creative with your Etsy shop name.

Though your name should reflect you and what you are selling, it shouldn’t be too narrow a name. Etsy best sellers are always growing and expanding their product offering.

So, your Etsy shop name should be able to grow with you.

Now it’s time to start listing your products. For each product, you will need to create a product title and description. And it’s here that you will add your product photos.

Once you have everything listed, you then add your inventory for each product option as well as the sale price and shipping fee.

Once you have entered in your products and item options, preview how your Etsy shop looks. Does everything look like it ties together and is from the same brand?

If not, you need to fix that as you can bet that the top Etsy best sellers have a coherent look and feel in their shops.

After you’re happy with your shop, it’s time to select your payment options. The two most common forms of payment on Etsy are PayPal and Etsy Payments.

If you don’t have a PayPal account, it’s worth opening one up.

Lastly, Etsy will ask you for your billing information, which helps validate that you are you (and a real person).

Personalizing your Etsy Shop

If your goal is making money on Etsy, there are a few extra things you can add to your Etsy shop that will help get buyers to notice you beyond just having Etsy best sellers on hand.

Though it’s not necessary, it adds a nice touch to buyers if you take the time create a profile, FAQ section, and a store bio. Why is that?

Well, Etsy is all about finding unique items from individuals that you do not know.

By filling out a profile about yourself and the purpose or origin of your store, you are building trust with your buyers without them having to meet you.

All the Etsy best sellers have their profiles and bios completed.

And having a FAQ section that answers questions shoppers may have about materials, build, ship times, etc., is a great way to demonstrate that you are sincere about your shop and gives it the professional touch.

Selling on Etsy

Now you are ready to start selling on Etsy.

Once your Etsy shop goes live, don’t expect for orders to start flooding in. It does take time and effort to start making money on Etsy.

Sometimes you may need to play with product titles as well as pricing.

Use your analytics to see which combination drives more sales.

There is always the option to create ads on Etsy so your listing appears at the top. However, that does cost money per ad click.

And there you have it. Selling on Etsy is not complicated at all.

So, if you have the creativity and entrepreneurial spirit, an Etsy shop may be perfect for you to start earning extra income from home.

If you stick with it and really learn the platform, the odds of you joining Etsy best sellers list is likely. So, happy selling on Etsy.

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