Setting up your Etsy shop, taking photos, using tags and descriptions

Yesterday I was talking about the basics of filling out information on the Etsy site.  Just reading and filling out forms and check boxes is easy. Also it's easy to fix if you mess up.

Today I want to go over some of the things that were tricky to me and needed more research.

• Photos - Bottom line. If you don't have good photos, you won't sell things. That is the only way that people can see what you have to sell. You need to read the Sellers Handbook on photography. They tell you how to take good pictures with any type of camera or phone. Use all 5 photo spots. Get different angles and different backgrounds. The first picture should be simple and with a plain background so the customer sees the product clearly. Make sure there is a closeup shot. Make sure there is a picture of the customer enjoying the product or the product placed where someone might use it. The other two should be different angles, emphasizing special characteristics of your product or at least a different angle shot. To make your shop look more professional, keep all of your photos the same size, shape, and brightness for each product. That will make it seem as if you know what you are doing, even if you are not sure. Don't worry about a perfect picture either. Put up the best you have and come back later and change it out when you perfect your skills. Maybe your customer will not be as critical of your pictures as you are.

•  Since my products are tiny, I needed a light box. They are good to have for anyone who has a product that will fit in one. If you don't want to buy an expensive one, you can make a good one with a cardboard box and tissue paper. YouTube has several videos on how to do that. They work well. I set an old desk lamp over the top of it and it takes great pictures. you may need to play with the settings on your camera. Try several. You may be surprised. Make sure the colors on your screen or monitor are true. Every device has a setting for that.  If your photo skills are not that great, find a graphic program that you like and use it to improve your pictures. Almost any photo can be made better with a little work and there are a bunch of free or inexpensive programs out there that will do most of what you want. Don't get to fancy though. The customer is wanting a realistic picture of something they want in their home, not an artistic one.

• Tags and keywords - Use as many as you can. They may call them optional but they are not really if you want to sell things. The keywords and tags are how people find your products in the search engines. There are all sorts of ways to pick them, but the best that I have found is to do a search on Etsy and on Google with the word/s that I want to use and see what turns up. If the product in my shop is similar, it is probably a good word to use. If it is totally different, it probably isn't going to bring you the customers you want. Use words that you don't really think apply. You may be surprised.

• Descriptions - First tell people why your product is something they would want and how it might be used. Notice I said might and not should. Give them some leeway. They might have different ideas and that is good. Tell them the exact size and color of the item. Talk about how it was made and what materials were used. Space it nicely and don't make it too long, but make sure it is complete, readable, and with no spelling or grammar errors. If you can't spell, customers are less likely to trust your other skills and go elsewhere.

This is long enough for today. More tomorrow. I was going to do more about making things each time, but this somehow seems to be more important and I will get to it as soon as shop basics are done.

It suddenly dawned on me that I am really writing this for a couple of people that I know that want to get an Etsy shop but they are not sure enough of themselves to take the plunge. Maybe this will help.