Starting your own business is a great way to make money in this economy. Many successful businesses were started by individuals who had their eyes set on bigger things but gave up not because they lacked desire, but because they lacked knowledge of how to start that business.
With technology moving at a lightning speed, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. It can feel like there are too many choices and no clear best options.
That’s where we come in! We’re going to give you all the information you need to launch your own ecommerce store through Etsy.
You’ll be starting from square one with zero overhead, which makes it easier to focus only on running your business without getting distracted by other expenses. (By and large, most people fail due to poor financial management in the beginning.)
This article will go over everything you need to know about launching on Shopify, the most popular platform for sellers on Etsy. You’ll also learn some tricks to pick the perfect niche, source products, manage your inventory, and grow your audience.
Make a list of what you are good at
Starting your own business comes down to knowing yourself well and realizing that you have skills that can be translated into something profitable. If you’re very artistic, offering custom art services is a great way to start as it requires no equipment or supplies other than your creativity!
If you are excellent at talking about fashion, starting a fashion store is a perfect way to begin. You would need to secure some loans or invest in stock, but then you could sit back and earn money from the rest of the world through your clothes.
If you love doing things with numbers, starting a finance website/business is a fabulous idea. With technology being so advanced now, creating your own digital platform to spread your message makes sense.
The key thing to remember when setting up your business is that you do not need to know how to do everything to start. What you can do is identify a niche that fits you, and go after that market with gusto.
Make a list of what your resources are
Starting an eCommerce business from scratch is definitely not for the faint of heart. You will need money to invest in sourcing products, creating your store, and promoting it.
There are many ways to make extra income these days, but starting your own online shop is one of the best (if not the best) way to do this. Many people have made a good living off their stores alone!
By and large, most successful sellers don’t just wake up one day and decide they want to sell things on Amazon or eBay. They spend hours every day developing their craft, marketing their product, responding to comments and messages, and establishing relationships with others in the industry.
You can start making sales now by taking some of the time you would normally allocate towards running your business to instead focus on your niche and the initial stages of opening an account on either site.
Once you have done that, then it’s time to move onto the next step which is finding something to stock your store with.
Create your website
Starting an online business is not like starting a regular job, where you can simply pick up tools and go! With selling products via eBay or Amazon, or even creating your own site and merchandise, with Etsy being one of the biggest crowd-sourcing sites out there, it’t much simpler than that anymore.
With their vast amount of sellers coming and going every day, having your own shop doesn’t require too much work beyond setting up an account, picking an already established theme (or designing your own!), finding quality supplies and marketing materials, and putting together some good pictures.
The hardest part will be getting people to buy from you! But once you have those loyal followers, it’s all gravy from then on.
Buy some inventory
The next step in starting your business is choosing what you want to sell and how you will store and display your merchandise. Buying some inventory is one of the most important steps towards opening up your online shop as it gives you space for your products and costs are typically zero if you do your research!
There are many ways to start building your inventory, but my favorite way is through Amazon or Ebay drop-ship.
A drop ship business works by someone with their own seller account creating a product list (or website) that sells a specific item. Then they create another account linked to the drop shipping site where they manage and fulfill the orders for your product.
By doing this, they take care of all the logistics of buying the items, protecting them during transit, and updating your website with pictures and information about the products.
Start selling
Starting your business does not require lots of money, or special equipment, nor do you have to be very experienced in marketing before you dive into this. With technology being ever-evolving, there are many ways to start promoting your handmade products online.
There are many easy ways to begin offering your goods through sites like Etsy. You can choose whether to sell all items at once, or one item at a time to test out the market first.
By using your creativity and making things that you would want to own yourself, you will know if this is something that will succeed for you. Keep learning about how to promote your shop and the platform, so you can maximize your income!
Blogging is another way to gain exposure for your business while adding new content to your site. Writing about your craft and what materials you used to make your pieces will help people connect with you as an artist and person.
Get your business license
Before you can start selling online, you will need to get some licenses and documents signed! This includes having your business name registered, getting a seller’s ID, and obtaining a business license. Some of this information is found through state agencies, but many give out all of this info directly via phone or chat, so it isn’t too hard to find.
Most states require at least one year of continuous residence in order to apply for the business license, so make sure to check into that first before starting anything else! While there are fees involved in applying and running a business, most don’t exceed $100 per document unless something more formal like proof of ownership requires done.
Register your business
The next step is registering your business with both state and online marketplaces. This allows others to view your account so they can see you exist, what products or services you have, and if there are any warnings or notifications.
State-level registrations include:
Business license – this shows who you are as an individual (personal use) or company owner (business ownership)
Title search – this verifies that your business name is not already taken by another business or person
Ecommerce seller’s certificate -this confirms that you’re old enough to run a business (usually 21 years of age) and that your business is in fact legal
Once these things are verified, you can move onto creating an eBay or Etsy store!
On eBay, you will need to create an accounts through their site which has its own set of requirements and tests before giving you access to make stores. On Etsy, you just choose a theme and style for your profile, and you’re ready to start selling.
Start accepting customers
Starting your business on eBay or another online selling platform is great, but it can be hard to get people to buy from you. Creating an Etsy store makes it much easier for your potential clients to find you!
By introducing yourself as an entrepreneur on this site that allows users to connect with each other, word will spread. Your loyal followers and fans of the website can now access your products and services through your store!
The hardest part about starting an Etsy business is getting past their “walls”. A lot of sellers start creating content on the site to grow their businesses, but some stay closed off and protected.
Do not worry too much about what kind of content you create on your shop, instead focus more on reaching out to others to help them in their business. Create helpful articles and tips for your competitors so they do not benefit from working with them.
This article has discussed how to start an Etsy business, now let us look at some ways to promote yours.
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