We don’t always like to acknowledge it but this saying is so true:
Patience is a virtue…
…And when it comes to tips for selling on Etsy, this is Tip #1 from me to new Etsy sellers.
As a new seller you really want that first sale to come very soon after you launch your Etsy shop and list your products. But you need to be realistic and set some very realistic expectations for yourself lest you become discouraged and subsequently give up.
I made this poster and put it up on Instagram and the immediate and very vocal response I got to it let me know that I had hit a nerve (in a good way) 🙂 so I was inspired to write this post as a follow-up.
New Etsy sellers:
This bears repeating… When it comes to not only selling on Etsy but any new business for that matter, success very rarely happens overnight. Selling on the internet can sometimes give the illusion that things move faster (or have the potential to do so anyway) than in “real life”/the offline world, but they don’t.
You have to be patient… Stay the course… Hang in there. Don’t panic if you don’t get that first sale soon after you launch (but if you do, rejoice!).
With the very first Etsy shop I opened in 2010, I kid you not, I literally made my very first sale within about 7-10 minutes of putting up my first listing and needless to say, I was thrilled. I called and reported the “instant sale” to whomever would pick up their phone at that late hour (I was listing at night that day).
The sale was for a vintage sewing pattern for ladies nightgowns from the 1950s. But let me tell you this… That was a total fluke… I didn’t make my next sale for another few weeks after that. And after that they just started trickling in. No floodgate, just gradual trickles.
That first sale is/was not the norm… I have since opened two more Etsy shops and the story is oh so different… 😉
I think it was encouraging for me and others who saw the post on Instagram to hear from other newbie sellers who were patiently waiting for their first sale…
Folks shared what they were doing in the meantime with regard to their Etsy shops and some shared their “first Etsy sale experiences”.
If you’re on Instagram, feel free to hop on over there and read the responses people shared… I’m @EtsyConvo over there. And feel free to join the convo over there as well!
As an aside, I have to say that I’m really enjoying the personal nature of Instagram and making nice and real connections over there with other Etsy and ecommerce sellers.
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