With the rise in easy-to-start online businesses, more and more people are turning to micro-entrepreneurship to provide or supplement an income. EBay has been around a while, allowing people to auction off whatever item they desire. In more recent years, Amazon has made it super easy to sell larger quantities online, making reselling businesses viable. Improved shipping, reviews, and other features to handle more bulk orders turned extra cash into a source of revenue. While both eBay and Amazon serve their purpose, a unique niche has appeared. On Etsy, artists and craftspeople can feature their work. It is an outlet for creative types to feature their work in a way that eBay and Amazon never focused on.
As artists and artisans, there are a few things that set you behind the curve from the get-go. There is rarely a clear demand for handmade items. Because there’s not typically a pain from a lack of personalized jewelry for example, large quantities are harder to sell. Etsy sellers must focus on the gain they offer the people who click through their store. It can be hard to come up from everyone else featured on such a site to actually make a considerable profit. Although, having a business based around whatever craft you know is advantageous because there’s already a passion there. An artist doesn’t have to sell themselves on their idea to be excited about it and go all in.
Just like other forms of entrepreneurship, having an Etsy business pushes the owner into multiple roles. Most obviously, sales skills apply, although most conversations will happen over the internet. Marketing your product, learning SEO, and creating a relevant social media presence are all essential. You must also learn niche skills like photography and copy writing to feature your products in the best way possible. Etsy is just another example of how the internet has led to a rise in entrepreneurship and how entrepreneurship has pushed more people into sales.
BoweryJE22
This is a great example of how to communicate like a salesperson through digital means. Selling someone is hard, so building a system (through things you mentioned like social media and SEO) that sells is very difficult. It requires that the customer has already walked himself or herself through much of the sales process itself to the point of desiring purchase. Thanks for this good read!
I’m so glad you mentioned learning SEO and more niche skills like photography because that is actually so important in trying to be profitable in today’s day and age. Great point.
Etsy is such a cool site, and your post kind of reminds me of my post about Poshmark. These online selling sites/apps can be SO beneficial if they are used correctly. I love how you connected this to the owner having multiple roles and being a real entrepreneur!