In an earlier post I wrote about the two most popular venues for handmade and vintage items, and for craft supplies, Etsy and Artfire. Now on to some more.... this is by no means a comprehensive list, but just my observations on these sites.
ZIBBET
Zibbet is one of the newest venues for artists and artisans, and is offered from our neighbors down south - Australia, to be exact. Other than the memorable name that rolls off your tongue, this newbie has a lot to offer! An easy to use interface connects buyers and sellers. The selling model is similar to ArtFire, and offers all services for a set monthly fee, or there is also a free option.
The benefits of Zibbet are that this is a new site, with lower fees and with staff that is eager to listen and learn, thereby forging strong bonds between the company and it's early sellers. The CEO is often in the ning forums, answering questions, even hard questions, with refreshing candor and takes personal interest in the sellers. This is also a great site for people looking to take their business outside of North America, or for sellers outside of North America. Although all of the online venues are technically worldwide, they do reflect the preferences and styles of the location of the company, and this Australian venue will probably grow to be a great niche market for buyers and sellers in Australia. The monthly fee is one of the cheapest among similar venues.
The drawbacks of Zibbet are also tied to its newness. Server crashes and downtime are issues that are being addressed, and seller tools continue to be developed. Given time, all of these issues should be contained, and this venue will probably grow to be a good competitor to established venues.
Overall, Zibbet is great for hobbyists with more time than money :-), and for sellers that are looking for slow, steady growth and are in the business for the long haul, and for sellers looking to target markets beyond North America, or Australia in particular.
CraftisArt
I have not had too much experience with CraftisArt, so I don't have too much to say on it. The site seems to be quite user friendly, and is also based on a hosting fee model with a free option as well. (In fact, most of the venues other than Etsy are based on this model.) This site seems to have growth potential, and does have an impressive number of listings already.
DAWANDA
Dawanda is a great option for sellers looking to target Europe, and Germany in particular. German speaking sellers will do well on the huge, bustling German language version of Dawanda. The English version is quieter, but still gives Etsy and it's cousins a good run for their money. Dawanda was a free site for a while, and has recently started charging sales commission, which is higher than what Etsy charges, but there is no listing fee (on the English and French sites, that is, there IS a listing fee for the German site) and no hosting fee. There are a great set of seller tools, and hands on support provided by the staff. With the decline in the dollar, American products are quite an attractive buy for buyers in Europe, and Dawanda offers a great opportunity for any US sellers to tap into that market. To fully tap into that market, a seller has to put in some effort - like accepting payment in ways other than Paypal, such as bank transfers, and also understand Euro to Dollar conversions etc.
1000 Markets
1000 Markets is restricted to sellers from the US. The pricing model is similar to Dawanda, and there is a sales commission but no listing or hosting fee. The sales commission here is a bit more complicated, since there is both a variable as well as fixed component. You also have to be approved before you can open a shop here, and approval is based on the quality of your items, their pictures etc, i.e. it is a juried site. From what I understand, 1000 Markets is only for handmade items, and not for vintage items or for crafts supplies.
Do you have any experience with any of these sites, good or bad? Are there other sites you recommend, other than these?
Hi there! For my loyal buyers, new and returning, here is a coupon for my ArtFire Studio. Use LOYAL10 for 10% off your total purchase. Just click on the banner below to go to my ArtFire Studio, or copy this link into your browser http://www.YourTime.artfire.com/ Welcome to my blog! Stay a while and grab a cup of coffee, and relax!
Etsy or ArtFire or Zibbet or ....- What's best for you?
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.
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.
NEW SHOP!!!!!
I just opened my NEW SHOP on Artfire!! Use the coupon code GRANDOPENING to get 20% off at http://www.artfire.com/users/YourTime
Pricing your Handmade items on Etsy
Pricing your handmade items is one of the toughest parts of selling on Etsy! I see many forum threads and questions on this very topic, and it seems to come up again and again. I created a spreadsheet to take into account some of the common variables, so that you can quickly get a ballpark estimate on what you should charge, to meet your own personal goals. Once you input numbers into the teal cells, the spreadsheet calculates for you, and the answers show up in the yellow cells.
Since I cannot seem to be able to upload the actual Excel spreadsheet here, here is a snapshot of what it will look like. (If anyone knows, let me know!!) If you would like a copy of this spreadsheet, convo me in my Etsy shop at http://www.etsy.com/shop/YourTime or at my ArtFire shop at http://www.artfire.com/users/YourTime with your email address, or include it here in your comments, and I will send it to you for your personal use. Enjoy!! :-)
Since I cannot seem to be able to upload the actual Excel spreadsheet here, here is a snapshot of what it will look like. (If anyone knows, let me know!!) If you would like a copy of this spreadsheet, convo me in my Etsy shop at http://www.etsy.com/shop/YourTime or at my ArtFire shop at http://www.artfire.com/users/YourTime with your email address, or include it here in your comments, and I will send it to you for your personal use. Enjoy!! :-)
My You Tube Videos
A little while back, I created a few youtube videos of my jewelry and soaps. Enjoy!!
Wire wrapped jewelry
Handmade Soap SlideShows
Wire wrapped jewelry
Handmade Soap SlideShows
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