A lot of us, small business owners, that specialize in handmade arts and crafts, vintage items or supplies, have many different venues to choose from. The most popular sites for these categories seem to be Etsy and Artfire, and since I have shops on both, I'll share a bit of what I've learned so far on each. Since I also have a small shop on Zibbet, I'll add my thoughts regarding that as well.
ETSY
Etsy is the granddaddy of sites dedicated to handmade and vintage items and craft supplies. Etsy has been in business for - oh, I'd say 5 years or so now, and is probably the best known of the all of the sites for this market segment. What started as a small Brooklyn based experiment is now a multi-million business, backed by venture capitalists.
The best part about Etsy is that it is the forerunner, and has been around the longest, meaning that it's the most established venue for this niche market. Although many people have not heard about Etsy, it is still better known than it's competitors. It also gets positive press from influential public figures like Martha Stewart.
Getting started on Etsy is easy and economical. Listing an item is only 20 cents, and other costs come into play only if you renew (more on that later) or sell something.
Etsy has a huge built in marketplace, since many of its sellers tend to also buy from other sellers. This is especially a boon for people that sell craft supplies, since many people that create handmade crafts find it convenient to purchase their supplies on the same site.
With all this going for it, Etsy is pretty far from the utopia for crafters. The drawback with being the forerunner is that Etsy has gotten very big, and competition is especially intense in some categories like jewelry. To stay visible in such crowded categories, sellers resort to constant "renewals" at 20 cents each time, so as to stay on top of internal chronological searches. This quickly adds up and makes the site far more expensive than at first glance, unless you are really careful to not overspend on renewals. Success at Etsy is easier if you have a niche product, that not many other people offer. Etsy's focus continues to be to bring in more sellers rather than more buyers, and this exacerbates the problem. Also, the success of the site seems to have made the site attractive for "resellers" and mass produced items are rampant on what was meant to be a "handmade" site, leading to loss of reputation to the site and loss of revenue to legitimate sellers. Rules are enforced inconsistently leading to further confusion, and Etsy staff are not easy to reach.
Another issue is that while Etsy is a huge marketplace in itself, there is little external visibility. Although some listings do get picked up by search engines, this is a constant issue for many sellers.
The buyer experience can also be improved, and this probably leads to fewer sales than Etsy could get if it was easier to buy. Prior to purchasing, buyers have to sign up for an Etsy account, and also login to Paypal and pay each seller separately. There are no site wide gift certificate or gift registries or coupons, that could make it more user friendly. Selling is not very user friendly either, and basic tools that sellers have requested for a while do not get developed, while Etsy focuses it's development on it's own priorities that are rarely communicated to it's sellers.
Overall, Etsy is a great place for sellers of craft supplies, sellers of niche handmade or vintage products, or hobbyists, or sellers of products that appeal to artists or crafters. People that do well on Etsy tend to fall into these categories, or have been on the site since the early years.
ARTFIRE
ArtFire is relatively new, and is built on a different philosophy. While Etsy's model is based on a pay-to-play model, ArtFire (and many other newer venues) is based on a hosting model. Etsy charges a standard listing fee to list the item for 4 months and also takes a sales commission, which is a set percentage of the item price. Hence, Etsy benefits from sellers listing many items, renewing the items (another standard fee service) to stay visible on it's chronological searches, and from sellers selling their items at the highest possible prices. ArtFire charges a set monthly fee for unlimited number of items, and does not charge a sales commission. There is also a "Basic" option at ArtFire that is completely free, with no fee for either listing or selling, and is supported by ad revenue. Hence, ArtFire benefits from bringing new sellers to the site, and indirectly benefits from sales since people that are selling well on the site will continue to stay on the site and pay the hosting fee.
The biggest benefit that ArtFire offers is exactly the biggest drawback of Etsy - being seen outside of the site. Listings on ArtFire are available to search engines in a matter of minutes, and are reachable from many popular shopping portals. Hence, the size of the ArtFire community has very little bearing on sales at ArtFire, and most of it's buyers are not ArtFire members. This is a useful feature for people with products that have broader appeal than to just fellow crafters and artists.
Another benefit on ArtFire is sophisticated seller tools, which again, is a major difference from Etsy. Listing, importing, creating coupons, applying global changes etc. are just a few clicks away. ArtFire staff are also very responsive and knowledgeable.
The drawbacks at ArtFire are primarily it's newness. Few people have heard of Etsy and even fewer have heard of ArtFire. Since buyers do not have to sign up to purchase on ArtFire, this drawback is mitigated to some extent, but an established name does promote more buyer confidence and lead to more sales.
Overall, ArtFire is a great place for sellers looking for a consistent and hassle free experience (tools as well as knowing exactly what the site expenses are), whose target audience is beyond other crafters and artists.
I will post in future about my experience and observations on other sites for buying and selling handmades etc. Let me know what you think too!! I am very interested in your experiences.
