Congratulations! You’re ready to open your Etsy shop and list your first product! If you don’t have an Etsy account yet, you will need to create one first. On the Etsy homepage click on the ‘Sign In’ icon in the top right corner. If you have an account already, sign in.
If you don’t have an account yet, click on the ‘Register’ button in the top right corner of the pop-up ‘Sign In’ window. All you need to do is enter your email address, first name, and create a password. So simple!
You should now be signed into your Etsy account. Now we can get started!
In the top right of the Etsy homepage, you will see a little icon that looks like a store next to the ‘You’ icon. Click on the little store icon. This is your shop manager.
SHOP PREFERENCES
First, you’ll need to fill out your shop preferences. Etsy will ask you your preferred language, the country your shop is located in, and the type of currency you’d like to use. Here, I selected English as my language, the United States as my country, and the US dollar as my currency.
Next, they ask you a question about selling. Do you sell full-time, part-time but hope to sell full-time, or are you happy with selling part-time? You can also select other. For this example, I selected “I sell part-time and that’s how I like it”
Awesome, you’ve completed the first step! Now click ‘Save and continue’.
NAME YOUR SHOP
Now it’s time to name your shop! You can name it whatever you’d like, as long as the name isn’t taken. Since there are millions of sellers on Etsy, it’s very likely your name may be taken. If your name isn’t available, Etsy will give you some suggestions for related names that are available. For this example, I first tried to name my shop ‘NaturalSoaps’, but it was taken. Next I tried ‘NaturalBeautySoaps’, and it was still taken. Then, I tried ‘NaturalBeautySoapsCo’ and it was available!
When you have your shop name, click ‘Save and continue’.
Now we’re going to add your first listing – yay! As mentioned above, you should have at least one photo of your product. You’ll see a page that says ‘Stock Your Shop’. Click on the blue ‘Add a listing’ box to get started. A new page will pull up with a bunch of new options. Don’t let it overwhelm you. We’ll get this done step-by-step!
PHOTOS
The first section is for adding your listing photo(s). You will need at least one, but the more, the better! You can add up to 10 photos. You can add photos of your product from different angles, close up, or being used/worn. If you were a customer, what would you want to see about your product?
You can arrange your photos however you’d like by dragging and dropping them in the order you want them in. The first photo will always be the primary, or main photo. This is the photo that shows up in search results on Etsy as a thumbnail photo (small photo). It will be the first photo shoppers see when they click on your listing.
Next, we’re going to add information about your product in the listing details. For this example, I’m going to pretend I’m adding a bar of handmade soap.
TITLE
Your title is one of the most important parts about your listing. This is what will get you seen in search results, and will let your customer know what you are selling. You have 140 characters to do this.
Before adding your title, think about what makes your product amazing. Let’s say my handmade soap is lavender scented, made from organic ingredients, and is moisturizing. These are all great descriptors that your customer should know! I’m going to write my title like this:
Lavender Soap – Moisturizing Organic Soap – Handmade Soap
If you were searching on Etsy for lavender soap, what would you type in the search bar to find it? Most likely, you would type in ‘lavender soap’! Most of your potential customers will too. This should be this first part of your title. Next, you can add the other amazing benefits of your product – moisturizing, organic, and handmade.
ABOUT THIS LISTING
Next, Etsy asks you a few questions about how this product was made. Did you make it? Is it a finished product, or a craft supply? When did you make it, or is it made to order?
CATEGORY
You will also need to add the category your item falls into. Start by typing in your item, and Etsy will help you with the rest. I typed in soap, and Etsy pulled up a bunch of categories for soap. I selected ‘Bar Soap’ from the options.
OPTIONAL
The next few sections are optional, but the more you can add about your listing the better. Any additional information will help you listing get seen more on Etsy search results.
I was able to add that the primary color was purple, since it is a lavender soap. I didn’t have a secondary color, but add it if you do. You can also add the occasion and/or holiday if it applies to your product. For example, is your product Christmas themed, or for a baby shower? Add it here!
RENEWAL OPTIONS
Next, you’ll select your renewal option. Your listing will be active for 3 months. After three months, your listing will expire and become inactive. Buyers won’t be able to see or purchase it anymore. Do you want Etsy to automatically renew your listing after 3 months? Or do you want to manually renew the listing yourself? Select whichever option you’d like. I always select Automatic renewal.
TYPE
Is your product a physical product, or a digital file? I selected physical for my handmade soap.
DESCRIPTION
In the description section, you can add everything about your product that a potential buyer needs to know. Things to consider in your description are:
- Product size
- Product weight
- Ingredients
- Materials
- Anything that makes your product amazing!
Check out my example:
This lavender soap is handmade using only the highest quality organic ingredients. Each bar weighs 3 oz and is 100% natural.
Ingredients: Olive Oil, Coconut Oil, Shea Butter, Lavender Essential Oil
PRODUCTION PARTNERS
A production partner is anyone who is not a part of your Etsy shop and helps you physically produce your items. Did you have any help making this product from someone who is not a part of your Etsy shop? If so, you will need to add them as a production partner.
SECTION
You can add shop sections to make it easier to organize your products, and to help customers easily find their way around your shop. For this shop, I might have a few sections including Bar Soap, Hand Soap, and Lotion. I am going to add my lavender soap to the Bar Soap section. Click on ‘Add Your First Section’ to name your new section.
TAGS
Tags are technically optional, but they’re not really optional! You need tags for SEO (search engine optimization). Tags are keywords that will help potential buyers find your product. Remember, there are millions of products on Etsy. Not to sound discouraging, but there are probably thousands of lavender soaps on Etsy. Add tags to get your product found! What might a buyer search to find your product? Something like ‘purple’ is too broad. It is unlikely that someone is going to type ‘purple’ into the Etsy search box. But ‘purple soap’? Someone might be searching for purple soap if their favorite color is purple, or if they are looking for purple party favors for a bridal shower. Add these in your tags!
You can add up to 13 tags. Try your best to use them all. The more tags, the more likely it is your future customer will find your product. I try to stay away from one word tags. Here are the tags I chose for my lavender soap:
lavender soap, purple soap, handmade soap, bar soap, organic soap, natural soap, bridal shower favors, party favors, soap bar, soap favors, lavender soap gift, organic bath, bath soap
MATERIALS
If you’d like, you can add your materials or ingredients in this section.
INVENTORY AND PRICING
The hard part is over! The rest of the listing will be relatively easy. You’ll need to add your product price (the amount you are selling your item for). You also need to add the quantity. I have 5 bars of soap made, so I put 5 for my quantity. Please note what Etsy says here:
For quantities greater than one, this listing will renew automatically until it sells out. You’ll be charged a $0.20 USD listing fee each time.
If my quantity was 1, when a customer bought my bar of soap, the quantity would move down to 0, and my product would be sold out. My listing would become inactive, and no one else would be able to purchase my soap. I put my quantity as 5. This means that when I sell one bar of soap, the quantity will move down to 4, and customers will still be able to see and purchase my product four more times. Etsy will charge me a $0.20 listing fee each time a bar of soap is sold (until the quantity goes down to zero), because you are essentially setting up a new listing each time.
If you have a SKU for your product, you can add it here. A SKU is an identifier used for your product. It is usually a mix of letters and numbers. I don’t use SKUs, but feel free to add yours here if you do!
If your product sells out, do you want buyers to be able to sign up to be notified when it’s back in stock? I selected yes.
VARIATIONS
If there are different variants for your product, you can add them here. For example, your product may come in different colors or sizes. I am going to pretend I offer three weights for my soap (3 oz, 5 oz, and 7 oz) and add them as an example.
I selected ‘Add variations’. Etsy asked me for my variation type, and I selected ‘Weight’. Etsy asked me to choose a unit, and I selected ‘Ounces’. I then typed in ‘3’ before ounces and clicked ‘Add’. Then I typed in ‘5’ before ounces and clicked ‘Add’. Finally, I typed in ‘7’ before ounces and clicked ‘Add’. I also selected the checkbox next to ‘Prices vary for each weight’ because my larger soaps are more expensive than my standard 3 oz soaps. If you have another variation type, such as color, you can add that here as well. You can add up to two variation types. When you’re done, click ‘Save and Continue’.
Since each soap size is a different price, I added a different price next to each variation. The orange buttons under the ‘Visible’ section means that each of these variations is visible. If at any time you want to make a variation invisible, just click on that orange button to toggle it off.
PERSONALIZATION
If your product comes personalized, for example, if you personalize names on your product, you can turn on the personalization section. If you click on the on/off button, you will see a personalization box pop up, so that customers can add their personalization details during checkout.
SHIPPING
Next you’ll add your shipping details. You can either have Etsy calculate shipping costs for you, or you can manually enter fixed shipping costs. I already have the mailers that I am going to use for shipping, and I know how much my package will weigh, so I am going to let Etsy calculate shipping costs for me based on that information. This way, the shipping cost will vary based on where the package is being shipped. Add the zip code you will be shipping your items from, and your processing time. Your processing time is how long it will take you to ship the item once it is sold. I selected 1-3 business days because I have my soaps made already. If you need time to make your item before you ship it, make sure you allow enough time here.
Next, choose where you will ship your product to. Etsy has preselected options (United States and worldwide), which I’m going to keep. You can edit these however you’d like. If you don’t want to ship internationally, be sure to edit these in the ‘Countries’ section. You can also add a handling fee here. This is a separate fee you charge on top of the shipping cost. Your customers won’t be able to see that there is a handling fee. It will all simply be shown as the shipping cost. I won’t be adding a handling fee.
Before setting your shipping settings, I would recommend figuring out what type of packaging you will be using to ship your items. Will you use a mailer, a bag, or a box? Measure the size. Put your item in your shipping package, along with any bubble wrap, tissue paper, etc. you will be using when you pack your item. Weigh the final package. Enter this weight into your shipping settings.
For my soap, I am going to use a padded bubble mailer that is 6” x 9”, so I add this as my Item Size. The heaviest soap I sell is 7 ounces, so I am using that in my shipping weight. My packaging adds an extra 3 ounces. My final package weight is 10 ounces, so I add this in my Item Weight. It is very important that you don’t lose money on shipping! This will cut into your profits.
Click save and continue.
Congratulations! You just created your first listing! Hooray!
Now, if you want to create another listing, you can either create a new one from scratch, or copy the listing you just made, and then make whatever changes you need. This can save you a lot of time. For example, if I were to add a bar of vanilla soap, I would copy the listing I just made, and tweak it for my vanilla soap.
Once you’re done stocking your shop, click ‘Save and continue’.
HOW YOU’LL GET PAID
Here’s the fun part! Let’s talk money, honey! How do you want to get paid? When you make a sale, Etsy will send your funds to the bank account you add here. You can also choose how often you want to get paid. The options are once per week, once every two weeks, once per month, or every day. In order to be eligible to get paid every day, you will need to have at least $25 in your funds to be deposited every day. Otherwise, Etsy will pay you once per week. Also know that if you’re a new seller, for your first 90 days, your funds will be available for deposit 3 days after a sale. Once the 90-day period ends, your funds will become available for deposit the next business day.
SET UP BILLING
If you owe money at the end of the month that wasn’t covered in sales, Etsy will bill you on the first of the following month. You will need to add a credit or debit card here so that you can pay your Etsy bill. For example, I set up one listing so far, so I owe Etsy $0.20. If I make no sales all month, I will still owe Etsy $0.20 by the end of the month. On the first of next month, Etsy will bill me $0.20, and I can pay it with the card I add here. If I sell one of my bars of soap, Etsy will take that $0.20 listing fee from my sale, and I won’t owe any money at the end of the month.
You did it! Once you fill out your billing information, you can click on ‘Open your shop’, and your shop will be live on Etsy! Wait for that first sale to come in! Cha-ching!