Managing your own Etsy store is a great way to get some sweet monthly passive income. We talk to Amy, who manages her Etsy shop full time and has scaled her shop to both wholesale and retail clients.

Amy fell in love with design and opened her Etsy shop the minute she graduated. From there she started off with vintage clipart, and the moved towards printables in the wanderlust and travel niche, selling to both wholesale and retail clients. She manages her Etsy shop full time and prints her designs on everything from mugs to pillows.

You'll love her story!

We also chat about...

How she got started with Etsy
How to know when it's time to pivot
The importance of communicating with the customer
How to shop and select a printer
Using a dropship manufacturer
Good Etsy conferences to go to
Selling wholesale and retail

Enjoy this chat with Amy, and please subscribe to us in iTunes if you enjoyed it!

Show notes and links from today's episode

Amy's blog: Paper Finch Design
Amy's shop: Paper Finch Design
Amy's email: amy at@ paperfinch dot com
Amy on Instagram and Facebook
Etsy Forums
Red River Paper
Printful
Printed Mint
Haute Stock
Society for Creative Founders
Adobe Creative Suite
Upwork
Caroline Keating Coach

 
Key takeaways from our chat with Amy
1 - How do you know when it's time to pivot your product?
J asks Amy when is the best time to pivot your product: how do you know if the product isn't selling because of the product itself or because of the way you list it on Etsy? Amy tells us that it's all about the success of the product. If you see that one certain niche is selling much better than others, then focus your efforts on that one and try to expand the product types.

Amy tells us she noticed that her wanderlust and travel products were selling over and over again, so she decided to drop other products and focus on that niche. She says it's good to be known for something, and to focus a lot on one niche instead of on a bit on several niches. She realized this also by making sure to listen to customers and feedback.
2 - How to shop and select a printer
One pretty big issue when selling printables on Etsy is figuring out how to print them. When Amy started out she used a local shop to print her products. However, as she grew she realized that this was getting pretty expensive and so decided to buy her own printer - no easy feat. So she went on Etsy forums to see what others had, she cost compared prices and bought what she thought would work best for her in terms of ink and volume. A few recommendations she gives:

Buy a printer with a warranty
Start small and within budget - you can upgrade later
The ink world is vague, do your research
Buy from the manufacturer so you get customer support
Bookmark articles with important info

3 - 2 of the best things Amy did
Amy gives advice to other people starting out:

1. Find a mentor

Amy recommends finding a mentor to guide you through the whole setting up shop on Etsy. She found hers at conferences such as Society for Creative Founders.

2. Ask, ask, ask

Ask your manufacturer what they think, ask other Etsy shop sellers for advice and ask friends in the local shop. By asking others you learn how to improve your product and you get to know better your customer.
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