I have been selling quite successfully on Ebay for a number of years. Also, I have been very fortunate to acquire a following which has lead to a number of repeat sales or custom sales which I really enjoyed making. It is fun when someone has an idea or has seen something of mine but wants it in a different colour so that we can chat about how they want their bespoke item to look.
Some of the comments have been great and allow others to read and so give a little insight to whether they would be happy bidding on one of my products. People even take the time to send me a separate email to say thank you - now that is really rewarding.
Etsy, where quality handmade goods are sold, has been slower for me. Reason being that Ebay is so well established and an obvious place to look for anything. Etsy is still relatively unknown - a very new site but has thousands of sellers and buyers who have discovered a wonderfully, friendly place to shop.
A different ethos here. You have to market, promote like mad unlike Ebay where you start a price and sit back. People find you. On Etsy you have to actively look for people and that is very time consuming. However, the community on Etsy which is global, is so friendly and helpful it is a pleasure just being there. One day, I hope to do as well there but in the meantime Ebay will compliment my selling style with Etsy.
So, in answer to my question...... I will stay with both and see how things progress. I would be interested in your views and experiences on this topic so do leave a comment for me and others to see. Thank you:)
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
2 comments:
I have been selling on ebay for about 5 years. I'm new to etsy...joined in Sept. Its definately slower than ebay for the obvious reasons you stated. But the atmosphere on etsy is wonderful! What I did when I joined etsy was close my ebay store - b/c they raised the fees so much. Then I would list an item for auction and If it didnt sell I would put it in my etsy store (which is what I did with the ebay store) because its much cheaper.
I've been on eBay for around 5 years also and properly set up my craft shop in January '07. I have to say that it is easier on time to sell on eBay and your are easier to find there to. However, with fees esculating I think like most I am feeling the pinch.
I opened on Etsy and DaWanda in May this year selling hand crafted gifts, to compliment my eBay craft kits and equipment and have only sold items through Etsy so far. It's been hard though... very time consuming and like you say marketing, marketing, marketing! However, with fees so cheap I want to presever a little longer.
So I'm left on the fence as to which is better... I think I personally need a mix of both.
Post a Comment