Etsy for Everyone

Something new at Strumpfkunst

I had to share my newest listing with you.... I am so excited about it. :)

As some of you know, Strumpfkunst is German. Strumpf means "sock", and Kunst stands for "art". Back then I chose the name because the domain was available, it was a totally unique name, and it really represented what I wanted to do - combine art with sock critters.

I have actually done a couple of those locally, just haven't listed them online yet. Mainly because the canvasses were too big to ship to the States. I have gotten a bunch of smaller canvasses now, so here it is - my first sock critter with matching painting:

Banner backgrounds

I figured it was time for some new banner templates. Only rule: Do not use these for banners that you sell, but only for your own shop.

To use the design, just click on the image to have it open in full size, then right-click and say "save as". Once the image is on your computer, you can easily open it in free software (even MS Paint) to add your shop name and other text.

Let me know if you have any difficulties?

Efficient bidding with Project Wonderful

As you know, you can place ads through Project Wonderful on this blog. I only accept Etsy-related ads, which means there is less competition for you, which means lower prices - and I don't have to see irrelevant web comics or money-making schemes on my beloved blog.

I also only have three spots, so everyone actually gets some decent exposure, without the site looking cluttered.

Now the best way to get a good price on any of those three spots is bidding on all of them at once. That way, whichever spot is cheapest, you will then get. If you bid on one specific placement, you are more likely to be outbid, or pay more than the others.

Just go here and click on all three boxes on the left side - enter your max bid, which ad to run, and you are all set.

Do you need help making a nice Etsy ad? Drop me a line, and I'll be happy to design one for you, which you can then upload.

Completely off topic

This has nothing to do with Etsy. This doesn't even have anything to do with politics or current affairs. Well, in a way it does.

Last week, a Dutch politician published a long-announced anti-Islam video. I haven't seen it. Wilders is not one of my most favorite politicians, either, and I wasn't paying that much attention. I was paying attention when they mentioned the murders of Pim Fortuyn and Theo van Gogh.

While I am German, living in Hamburg, I actually spent 8 years in the Netherlands. I was around during both those murders. What makes me remember Van Gogh's murder is not just the savage way with which it was executed, during daylight in the middle of a busy street in Amsterdam. It is what happened a couple of weeks afterwards, right across from my apartment.

I left in the morning, on my way to a presentation at a customer's. I opened my front door, went down the steps. And was greeted by a soldier with an automatic weapon and a bullet-proof vest. I was told that I should have listened to the news, no further info was given. I had the option to stay inside or leave the neighborhood, but I would not be allowed back in.

Hey, I was on my way to work, so no worries... I wouldn't be back till later that evening. So I left the neighborhood, walked a couple of stations to the next operating tram station, and called my boyfriend/ ex-boyfriend (it was one of those weeks) up for more info.

Apparently, there was a terror cell across the street from my place. Police had tried to get in , but the front door had been booby-trapped. Can you tell that I'm a sound sleeper? I didn't even hear the explosion. In any case, they were waiting for back-up, and I was on my way to my appointment.

Then my customer canceled. Hm. I couldn't go back to my place, didn't feel like going to Utrecht for the office, and I had a concert later that night in The Hague. So I grabbed my laptop and settled down to do some work at my favorite cafe downtown.

I wasn't worried yet. Till David (the ex) started calling me with news. And more news. And I started running around the corner to an electronics store every half hour to catch my neighborhood on the news. Rumors were flying high, the whole place was supposedly full of explosives, tanks were on their way to The Hague, and all I could think of was "my ferrets are still in there".

When you hear about stuff on the news, it is always condensed - I never realized how long such a situation can last. I spent the whole day in my cafe, not working much, being updated mostly by phone. When it was time for the concert, we were still not allowed back home, so I went out. Afterwards, I continued calling the official police hotline, to see what
was happening - no info, no news. The terrorists had been taken into custody, but apparently a robot was now inside, checking for explosives.

I had the choice of groveling to my ex for a place on his sofa, or sleep in a public sports hall. My ex was not amused - things were not going well between us, and suddenly I am forcing him to break our agreed-upon off-time. He even called the victim hotline himself, thinking it was a ruse to stay at his place - what did he take me for?!

Next morning, we were back together (funny how that works), but I was still not allowed back home - the situation had been diffused over night, they had stormed the apartment, but I didn't have my passport with me in order to get through the police lines. I was finally allowed back in later that night. The ferrets were fine, by the way.

The next week, there was media everywhere. Everyone was discussing our neighborhood, we were declared a "probleemwijk" - a problem hood. Which is ridiculous. It was mixed, with many working class Dutch, and there were never any problems at all - till a handful of terrorists made it so.

Right now, I am wondering if something like this will happen again. I am wondering when this kind of hatred will stop - from both sides. As I was re-reading "Drifters", I realized this was an age-old problem. Maybe it is up to our generation to solve it. Maybe it will only be solved in another 200 years.

I grew up in the peace movement, and I know my parents' main fear was of the a-bomb. Now, our greatest fear is of terrorist attacks. Me, I am scared of both sides. Bush's politics scare me as much as terrorist bombings. I am hoping for a peaceful solution during this generation - I won't be around in 200 years.

About Dawanda

I know some of you might have looked into Dawanda for a European-based Etsy. It's pretty much a copy of Etsy, with some differences. I actually sold there for a while, but have stopped. While it has its plus points, here are my reasons for not selling there anymore.

The main difference is the amount of traffic. It is app. 1/20 or less than Etsy. Meanng sales are scarce. Don't get me wrong, some people do really well - mostly the ones that would not be allowed to sell on Etsy. Meaning real businesses, with one person designing the stuff and a host of seamstresses making them.

I prefer the 1-on-1 interaction on Etsy. Don't get me wrong, I love small businesses with a crafty/ creative edge when shopping locally, but I don't want to compete with them online.

Some of the technology is more advanced than Etsy's - like a beautiful Alchemy-style section where you can offer your customizable products. People then choose from the different options and place their individual orders that way. And yes, you can use any of your existing listings as a template for listing new stuff.

On the other hand, some technology is a huge drag. What made me give up on Dawanda was the fact that customers had 3 different ways to communicate with you - through the Alchemy-order, the order itself, and convos. And when Dawanda sends out notifications, they don't include the actual message. It was impossible to find relevant info on an order without going throughhalf the site - easy to make mistakes. And getting in touch with customers was neigh impossible, since people do not "live" on the site the way Etsians do... and Dawanda did not provide you with a direct e-mail address.

Other than that, I took offense at Dawanda's intrusion in "my" business. When I had a beef with a customer, they told me what I had to do, though my own rules and regulations stated something else.

After I left, many other very active people did, too. Not because of me, but because of the fact that some very involved users, people that were promoting Dawanda from the beginning, spending their time giving constructive feedback, were banned. Yes, I know we have had similar situations on Etsy - but Etsy is such a huge site that it doesn't have the same impact. Dawanda forums basically consist of 20 people, and having 2-3 of the "leaders" banned definitely hurt the site.

As far as I know, Dawanda still charges no listing fee, but something like 5% of every sale. So if you want to give it a try, go ahead - it's not that much of a financial risk.

Personally, I doubt they will gain any momentum in the future. They got started on venture capital and are not making much on commission. Any PR that mentions Dawanda also mentions Etsy; and while Germans aren't known for their brilliant English, many of the Internet-savvy folks will still give Etsy a try, especially with Paypal gaining more acceptance over here.

So, what's new?

Being away for so long meant that I had to get reacquainted with Etsy. But as far as I could see, not that much has changed. Here is what I have found so far - did I miss something?

• Alchemy
• Batch shipping

Nothing else caught my eye, at least nothing extremely innovative. And of course, I was hoping for some news on the following topics:

• Vacation button (would have saved my life)
• Search
• Hearts per item (loved the beta version)

I will start going through the unofficial Etsy News today, see what else I misse. Of course, I am especially curious in the down and dirty - who got expelled, who left, and how are those resellers doing?

Want to share some stuff I missed? Go ahead!

Preparing for the worst

Yes, I am back - after being sick for ages. Which is why I can talk about today's post from my own experience - because I should have done these things, and didn't.

How do you prepare for the worst? What happens if you suddenly take sick, go to hospital, are off the computer for a while? You still have products online, possibly have some current or future orders to take of... and suddenly you can't.

In my case, a number of things happened - I was off the computer, had no-one with Etsy knowledge around, and then the mail service messed up past orders... and there wasn't a thing I could do about it.

After this experience, here is my list - start getting those things done today!

• Write down your passwords
  Start with the most important ones - your E-mail and Etsy accounts. Because you know what? When my friend asked for mine, I had no clue what they were. Simply because everything is stored in my computer, and I log on automatically. My friend had to go to my place to get anything done at all.
  
• Make a manual
  My friend had never heard of Etsy, and I was unable to explain to her how to disable my shop or products. So write down the most important stuff in a quick manual, best with screenshots. Whoever helps you out needs to know how to get around Etsy. For me, writing and answering convos as well as disabling products would have been most important.
  Is someone gonna continue selling while you are away? Then your manual needs to be more extensive, including getting the address for each order, marking it as "shipped" in the system, possibly using Paypal shipping, and definitely how to wrap everything up and what to include in each package.
  
• Inform customers
  If you are able to inform customers yourself, do so. I had my friend send out convos to anyone that might have been affected by the mail problems. Which then meant she was blocked for spam, and Etsy didn't answer her enquiries. I haven't yet checked if it is fixed or not - will see sometime this week.
  
• Sort your Etsy things
  Sure I know what goes into a package and where to find everything. My friend? Not so much. It would have been helpful if I had everything stored logically and marked... She now had to follow my search instructions and hope for the best.

I am back now, and sending out notes to all customers during the next week or so. Hopefully, no real damage was done.

Avoid the chaos that I had to deal with by being better prepared. You never know when the unexpected is happening. And - come back to Etsy for Everyone, since I am back! :)