When I was little I dreamed of being an Olympic gymnast; as I got older I wanted to be an Olympic swimmer. Then I wanted to be an astronaut. I even dreamed I’d become the first female NFL quarterback.
Which is funny, because I am not athletic. Not in the least.
Did you dream about reaching the stars? Do you still?
Do you dream about your store taking flight, sales soaring into the stratosphere? Beyond the money you could make do you dream of easing financial burdens, taking vacations, being your own boss or having the time to simply create?
What is holding you back?
Owning a shop is easy. Owning a successful shop, the one that lives up to your dreams, now that’s hard work.
If you’ve been open on Etsy more than five minutes you know that Etsy is your storefront, not your business plan. Etsy gives you a place to display your goods, but it’s no guarantee of page views or paying customers.
Getting buyers through your door rests largely on you – and how to do it occupies a large portion of the Etsy forums.
Since getting traffic has been so thoroughly & eloquently covered, here and here and here, I’m not going to repeat it.
Instead, I’m inviting you to take real action to step up your game.
Taking your business to the next level
In his book, Tribes*, Seth Godin, aka thought leader and marketing genius, takes a look at niche groups and the human desire to band together with people who share similar interests.
Not surprisingly, he calls these groups tribes, and they exist everywhere – religious tribes, business tribes, sports tribes, hobby tribes, art tribes. There is a tribe for just about everything – jewelry addicts, vintage hoarders, quilted bag collectors, granola fashionistas, decorating divas and … well, you get the idea.
If there’s a market for your product, there is a tribe waiting for a leader.
Build a Tribe
Your Etsy customers are a tribe and you can be their leader. Since you create the art, you are poised to lead and many will look to you for guidance.
Be their leader. Give them ideas. Share ways to use your products. Teach them how to get the most mileage out of their purchase. Give links to shops with merchandise that complements yours.
If you lead your customers down the path of greater value for their purchase, they will follow. Then they will thank you for it in the best way possible – with sales and referrals.
Will you lead?
Stepping forward is not easy and you shouldn’t take it lightly. People will expect you to communicate regularly, they will look for you on social networks and they will want to see fresh products in your store.
On the flip side, they will feel part of something bigger than a one-time purchase. They will tell their friends. They will forward your email newsletters. They will like your Facebook page. They will return to your shop, passing over the hundreds of sellers that are like you.
The question still remains…
*PS – That is not an affiliate link, I won’t make any money if you buy it. It’s just a book that you really, really, really should read.
PPS – Do you love cliff hangers? Yeah, me too. I’m dying to know if you are ready to lead your tribe of Etsy customers forward as you make your business grow. Are you dying to know the key to that success? That’s what Part 2 covers. So check it out!
I agree with everything in this post, really! Etsy is great but it can’t be everything! A person cannot build a business on Etsy! The competition on Etsy is too big! It is a great way to get some first-time customers! Then it is your job to bring them with you in your own shop, on your blog and like you wrote, in your tribe! Once they start to interact with you, read your posts, receive emails… they’ll always think about you so if they need to buy handmade, they’ll buy from you!