I am FREE of ETSY! Here's why you should be, too...

I am so glad to be free of Etsy!

I know. Sounds strange, right? I’ve sold on there since January of 2007. I had almost 1,000 sales just in my art shop alone. At one point, I managed three Etsy shops, started an Etsy team, and was a huge “street team” proponent of the site in its early days.

I watched one drama unfold after another–serious issues that affected the lives and businesses of serious sellers, but I hung in there. You see, I had put all of the proverbial eggs in a single basket. In the beginning, after all, it was easy to sell and be seen on Etsy.

In 2012, I closed my Etsy shop for good. It was a long decision. Felt rather like breaking up. Etsy has grown in a different direction, heaped on more dubious “things.” My own focus has moved away from commercial art anyway. I’m glad the change came at a time when Etsy’s unscrupulous business practices continued to chase more away.

But, here’s the final, important point I want to make.

If you are an artist or craftsperson who sells through Etsy, consider this deeply:

One of my final reasons for closing my shop was that I realized that the many wonderful things I had bought over there had become, in my head, “from Etsy.” After closing my account, I realized I’d never find some of those artists again. I had forgotten their names, maybe never knew them to begin with.

I had conflated their identity and creativity with “Etsy” and the ease of finding them in my favorites. Which means, essentially, all the years they spent trying to get traffic, trying to brand their shops had been spent supporting only the concept of the venue. If they had been building their OWN retail website, I’d be going to their front door right now to buy more.

I’ve asked people where they’ve purchased a certain pair of earrings or shirt. The answer is, invariably, “Etsy.” Not “Designs by Lisa” or “Art by John Doe.” They answer: Etsy.

So, if I wanted a pair of Lisa’s earrings, I’d have no way of finding HER and HER workmanship. I’d have to wade through her competitors, maybe find her by accident. I am not going to HER shop, but to a venue.

If you have not considered moving your business to its own retail storefront, you really should. There are many, like me, who finally reached their last straw with Etsy’s behavior and crooked policies and walked away. I will not be shopping there again. So, if you’re only on Etsy, you’re missing out on sales from thousands who feel the same.

Food for thought, at least.

Build YOUR brand, not theirs.

 

 

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