I'm sure if you are reading this post that you came here looking for really solid advice on the steps to take to start. Well, we are first going to give you the best piece of advice for starting - JUST DO IT. Not to push you into something you aren't ready for, but no matter how many blog posts you read or how many people you talk to or how long you spend prepping - you still won't know it all. You're not setting yourself up to fail, you're just taking a leap without seeing every single step you would've taken to get there.
All 3 of us (our dad, Marc & Barb) had considered selling our handmade goods at some point over the last two years, but we didn't for various reasons - too busy, too nervous, not creative enough, "what if it fails?" or even "what if it flourishes & is overwhelming?" Any of those reasons are good enough to hold you back from opening one, but are they really how you want to live? A little afraid of trying something new?
If you haven't heard our story before, I will give you the brief rundown. Barb & her husband lived in Virginia while he was in medical school. In March, they found out that they were placed in South Florida & would be moving to the Tampa area for the next 3 years (at least). Once we found that out, they spent a lot of time down in Florida looking for a place to live and putting their roots down here. One day in May, we were sitting around the kitchen table & Barb says, "lets just launch the Etsy shop!" We can commute back & forth or meet in the middle to do business, but let's try it. She picked the date June 1st & the rest is pretty much history.
We ordered some business cards to tag our items, bought fabric & elastic to make some scrunchies (thanks Youtube tutorials), and listed wooden lanterns our dad had made for our brothers wedding (which was also June 1st). We started an Instagram, created a logo on Canva & read a little bit about some tips to start an Etsy shop. We pulled pretty much all of this together in about 15 days & if we can do it, YOU CAN TOO!
Now I will preface by saying that you can start SO small. You don't need to invest $5,000 into your shop right away. We started with scrunchies & lanterns that we already had made. The wonderful thing about the Etsy platform is that people can find your shop without a ton of advertising or money spent in sponsored ads. You have a built in customer base because people go to Etsy to find the things they are looking for - which is exactly what you are going to give them! We have lots of friends & family (& even some strangers who have become friends via social) who have purchased from our shop. But we are constantly impressed with the amount of people all over the country who find us & choose to shop at our little corner of the internet.
So basically, all of this information is saying - start with what you have RIGHT NOW! & just take a step & do it. You can figure out the rest when the time comes. But if you are looking for real & actionable steps, here's what we think you should ask yourself:
1) What is the name of your shop?
2) What products will you be selling?
3) Have you spent time on Etsy looking at the "competition" for your goods? Are you in the right price point? Do you offer something different or better than they do that will attract customers?
4) What is your plan for shipping?
5) What social media are you planning to use? How can you use your personal to promote your shop?
6) Do you have the materials & supplies ready to fill 5-10 orders immediately (just in case it happens)?
7) When are you setting aside time to work on your shop/selling & shipping?
If you have thought through these questions & have answers to them, then go on with your bad self & open up that shop!
If you have any questions or if this post helped you take that step, please let us know! We'd love to visit your shop & support you!
Xoxo,
Marc & Barb
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