Adventures In Selling Beyond Etsy

Greetings!

So this blog is a little bit more of a reflection blog - a how NOT-to blog, if you will. In the three years since I've opened my Etsy shop, I more than doubled sales in year two, and now in year three I am on pace to double revenues again. Maybe.

The reason I say maybe is because I realized recently that I have been doing a lot more for Etsy.com than I realized - and although I am truly grateful for this platform, I feel frustrated because the way Etsy does business has changed in a way that benefits my competitors more than it benefits me.

Let me explain, and hopefully I can help you avoid the mistakes that I made. When people search for things that I sell, or link to one of my products on Etsy.com, they now will see "suggestions" of similar items - which may or may not be items from my own shop. Which means that if I drive potential clients to my Etsy shop, they may instead choose to purchase from my competitors. Not cool.

I realized recently that posting pictures on Pinterest of my items sold through Etsy.com was the leading cause of this. If people clicked through on my link, they would go to my Etsy.com shop, but now they would also now be exposed to suggestions from similar competitors rather than the item that I created.

The funny thing is, when I started selling on Etsy, I sold the only thing I had ever made - photo collages on wooden letters for players on my volleyball team. Then came the day that someone asked for collages on numbers. I went to the craft stores, and at this time, they did not sell numbers. So I had to find a way to make my numbers myself. That is how I know I was the first person to make a jersey number collage - no one else had done it or could do it without making the numbers, too!

15 Inch Jersey Number Collage by Match Point Gifts

Fast forward to now - you can get generic numbers in almost every craft store and there are several people who now make number collages. I am not offended by this - I see that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. I also believe that there are certain benefits that my collages and numbers possess that other people can't touch - partly because I understand things about athletics that only come from firsthand knowledge as an athlete and a coach.

What does bother me is generating leads for other shops. And I would love to help anyone else who might experience this by offering two important pieces of advice:

1. Create a web STORE, not just a website.

My webstore is www.matchpointgifts.com. It was a lot more difficult to set up than setting up my shop on Etsy, but I believe that doing this early will help you avoid the frustrations I have experienced.

2. Link every shop update and photo that you pin on Pinterest of your creations to your WEBSTORE, not Etsy.com. 

Then it will drive your interested Pinners and followers to your unique works of art and not advertise for others!

I wish I would have known this before pictures of my collages generated 24k pins or more. *sigh* Those pins were attributed to Etsy or to a general collage genre, but not to my shop, Match Point Gifts.

But that's ok. Business is all about learning and because I'm also a teacher, I live to inform others to do better than myself!

I hope you can learn from my mistakes! In the meantime, I will be trying to build my web store beyond Etsy, and I'll keep you posted with what I learn!

Don't forget, if you need any custom wood numbers, letters, or cutouts, you can find them in either of my online stores:

www.matchpointgifts.com
www.giantnumbershoppe.com

Thanks for reading! Tell me about your experience with any of the above - I'd love to hear your advice as well!
Crystal

How to Prepare a Wooden Letter or Number for a Photo Collage in Four Easy Steps

Hi! I'm Crystal, the owner of Match Point Gifts (www.matchpointgifts.com and www.matchpointgifts.etsy.com). I've noticed a trend over the last year of DIYers purchasing our letters and numbers for personal collage products, so I wanted to post some (hopefully) helpful tips to help you make the best collage possible!

Today I will explain how to prepare a wooden letter or wooden number for your collage project in four easy steps! I hope to have a video version of this tutorial linked here soon!

Step 1: Purchase Your Wooden Letter, Number or Shape.
You can purchase your wooden letter or number from www.matchpointgifts.com or in my shop on Etsy, www.matchpointgifts.etsy.com. One reason I would suggest this is that we offer a variety of sizes, from 12 inches to 60 inches! I personally have made 3 foot collage projects, and I've sold numbers larger than that to those who wanted to make the giant collage themselves!

12 Inch Wooden Number, Block Font (Great for Sports Collages!)

24 Inch Numbers, Block Font

15 Inch Wooden Letters, Standard Bold Font

We also make the block fonts pictured above and can custom make any shape you would like, so just shoot me an email if you don't see what you have pictured in your mind's eye ... we will custom design any shape for you!

Step 2: Choose a Paint Color.
I personally prefer to use black for all of my collage projects. Black provides a clean edge and cohesiveness that I like. Clients request customization when it comes to color, though, so every once in a while, I will choose a finishing color that is not black.

I have used a lot of craft paints, and my favorite by far is the regular acrylic version made by Folk Art. Sometimes it goes on sale, but you can almost always get it for 40% off by using a craft store coupon. (TIP: most craft stores accept competitor's coupons! YES!)

Here's a quick glance at the Folk Art paint:

Folk Art Acrylic Paint, My FAVORITE!

Step 3: Select the Right Brush.
Some people say that foam brushes work well for painting, but foam brushes are not my top choice when it comes to painting wooden letters. I love them for decoupaging collages, but for painting, I prefer gold-bristled brushes like this:

Gold Bristled Paint Brush - My choice for painting wooden letters, numbers, and shapes!

Step 4: Paint Your Letter, sides, then back.

When I first started making collages on wooden letters and numbers, I made a big mistake in assuming that I did not need to paint the back of the letter or number. I chose not to paint the back to "save time" ... and while skipping the back may have saved time, the letter looked terribly unfinished when people flipped over my beautiful collage, only to see an uneven splattering of paint covering the back of my letter or number.

You want your final piece admired from front to back and side to side, so make sure to paint the back of your number and letter completely BEFORE you collage the front!

Thanks for reading! Next week I will share a detailed tutorial for prepping your photos for your collage, and give you a couple of different options for putting your collage letter or number together! Now's the time to get your letter or number at www.matchpointgifts.com!

Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think - and is there anything you would add?

Happy Collaging,
Crystal