Great topic, I also started on Etsy and it was great for me in the early days I made lots of sales at the time because at the time I was focused on one product that stood out from the crowd. Etsy of late has been getting diluted by some not such high quality work/mass produced items. I myself have my own websites now 3 different ones focused on different customers. Never has it been easier to build your own website.
Absolutely agreed! It's a shame how Etsy pretty much makes it worse each time and pushes real crafters away. I've just found out that they have raised the fees again, now it's 6.5%. It's no longer cheap enough to be justified as a real competition to having own website. The only good aspect is that built-in search engine, which then in some cases can work against you actually. Anyway, I'm really glad that you are now happily selling through your own sites! ❤️ Keep growing 😀
Thank you so much, I'm very happy you enjoyed the video. And thank you, I appreciate it a lot. Poland is ok so far, but we are very worried and concerned seeing what's happening to our neighbours. Looking back at our own history from a century ago, we can't help but see drastic similarities and it's incredibly hard to grasp that this is actually happening again, in today's world.
B, all your videos are so good, but this one really shows your practiced finesse at communicating valuable information well. There is so much solid information presented here, I appreciate having your perspective!
Thank you so much Pepe!! It's a pleasure to be able to share my experience and knowledge and pass on the information. I hope folks will find it useful and helpful :)
I'm so sorry, Alisa, to hear that! I hope you are well and safe! Take care lovely. Remember that Polish border is open to all of you (including your pets), so please, remember that you have a place to go if there's a need. Though I hope the situation won't escalate and you won't have to leave your home and can be safe there. I'm glad my video can be a distraction right now and I'm sure that you will be able to go back to your craft and creating when this madness is over ❤️ In the meantine, torch them!! 😄
Thank you so much, I really enjoy your bright personality and love for your work🤩👍 Even if I am an artist🤭 it was about very interesting to watch your videos of jewelry making 😊
Hiya Lady Stardust, there you go, you've done it again, set up wonderful help for us, with no gain to you! Thank you, now we can have the help we need in selling but with minimal cost but great professional assistance. For people like me who have no idea how to go about this or any other computer-based setting up, this is quite fantastic. I was given a computer at work back in the 90s' and I had to be shown how to turn it on, and as for using it??? I ended up able to do easy work and put equations on spreadsheets for accounts. But do this? Never, so again Basia thank you. Stay safe, Steve...
Wow, thank you so much Steve! I'm very happy you think so and enjoyed the video. I tried to share as much as I can, though it can be tricky sometimes, as I'm only guessing which aspects may be considered important by someone else. So I hope that, what I shared, will be helpful! :) Take care and stay safe xx
@@TheArtOfMetalsmithingeverything you shared was perfect. I think you could share all you know and some of us would be helped every time. A lot of teachers assume we know the basics, we don't always, so any and all help has its place in our work. You seem never to assume that and give us the help we need, at the level we need, and that is so welcome. Megan is the same, that is why I think you two will work so well together, helping us. Steve xx...
Great topic and video 🙂💖. For me as ringmaker, Etsy is still main source of sales. But also have website and hope to go full time soon 🙂. P.S.: Love your Earrings 😍💖
Thank you for watching! And yes, I completely agree. Once you're ready, having own website and then e-commerce is absolutely brilliant, I'm haven't looked back once 😀
On Etsy I have to correct you. It does not work (for Italy at least) Too many red tape and things to pay .. they are all leaving for this very reason. Okay for Brits and Americans, that's it.
I totally agree with you! I mentioned Etsy as a place to start, so people have options and can do further research, but I don't recommend it. It costs the same as having own website. You are not a unique show on Etsy, when people purchase from you, they purchase "on Etsy". Etsy has a very bad (even predatory) rating system and never help when people take advantage of ratings to bully sellers. Overall it's not a good place
@@TheArtOfMetalsmithingthank you for this information. Knowledge like this is part of why I love your videos. Your smiling eyes are another, but we won't go there now, hehehe. Your depth of knowledge is very wonderful, most especially in the way you share with us! There must be many people out there who owe you thanks for helping them set up their business, I know I do. I've found a graphic designer who will help sort my logo and look, so I'm moving forward to being able to make and sell my work. Soham and others like him helped us with the practical matter of making our jewellery, but then stopped, you don't, you and Megan take us so much further than that, you've been doing that for quite a long time, you must have started when you were 5 as you are so young now. Now we have Megan also showing the business side as well as you, both of you helping us grow our skills with your 'Georgeos' videos about the skills needed to saw/solder etc then how to price/cost our work and even more how and where to sell it. All in all, you take us by the hand and lead us down the road you have already trod towards being an independent artisan with our own customers and sales. THANK YOU, dear lady!
Hi! So I am super new at metalsmithing, but I was thinking about setting up an Instagram to sell some pieces. I’m not quite sure yet how much time I have to dedicate to the craft. Would you recommend an Etsy store instead? Also, I really appreciate your videos, they have helped me deepen my love for making jewelry!
Hi Amanda! Personally, I would do both! You can set up a "shop" on Instagram now & have it connect to your facebook page. By following a lot of other "jewelry" (enthusiasts, collectors, etc..) pages, the algorithm starts to get your account in that atmosphere. You're right, selling like this is an easy way to get started before committing to your own website or even an Etsy site. Good luck!
I second the comment from Modern Jewelry Creators. You can totally do both! Luckily neither of them charges you just for opening account, so you can start this whevener you want. And link your pages to each other, start building that trust with Google SEO. Google likes when pages are linked to each other, as it looks legit and more real. I didn't get to the subject of selling on Instagram using Pay pal, I will cover this in the second part of this video. But the main thing to consider is still having clear policies/FAQ saved as your Instagram story highlight, so it's always accessible on your profile by anyone interested. Set up PayPal and make an Invoice template. You will have to send invoice to your customers. Sometimes customers may be late with payments. You will have to be prepared that you may have to remind them about the payment sometimes. Also, when making something custom, take half of the payment upfront. Don't start working if your customer isn't commited and haven't paid something upfront. Otherwise, they may change their mind, disappear and you'll be at a loss. These are just a few tips for selling on IG :) Don't be scared, it will be alright! You can work on your profile as you go and focus on creating beautiful pieces :)
Hi! Thank you for watching :)) I'm sorry, at the moment I'm not able to add Spanish subtitles, becasue I don't speak Spanish and I work on my videos alone. I hope that in the future I will be able to hire someone to add subtitles to my videos :)
I'm not using my Etsy enymore, I have my website now. I temporarily stopped selling, because I've moved to Poland and have to complete some mandatory steps first (cash register etc) to be able to sell again. I will re-open my shop very soon 😀