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Author Topic: Debate on online selling  (Read 2702 times)

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Offline Crowning_Glory13

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Debate on online selling
« on: July 28, 2018, 03:41:14 PM »
I have been on ebay for awhile, and it's ok. I just feel buyers can be kind of nasty, but I have to take it and there is no feedback. I have 3 times the sales versus the feedback.

I have been toying with moving to etsy. Most of my sales are hand made items like flutter wings and knitting outfits.

I would like to know different opinions. I only want to deal with one online selling tool. May e I should switch or some tips would be great.

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Offline lovesbabysquirmy

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Re: Debate on online selling
« Reply #1 on: July 28, 2018, 04:11:47 PM »
Etsy has equivalent fees to Ebay but they have far less resolution power when disputes occur.  It's very common for buyers to do a CC chargeback on sellers and get away with it.
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Offline tailrustedtealeaf

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Re: Debate on online selling
« Reply #2 on: July 28, 2018, 04:23:55 PM »
I think it's worth a shot to try Etsy because of the audience that's on there.
I see a lot of people use eCrater as well, but I'm not as familiar with selling on there.
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Offline Lollipop

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Re: Debate on online selling
« Reply #3 on: July 28, 2018, 04:37:42 PM »
Personally I would say stay well away from Etsy.... We are pretty much done with them now. They have messed us around so much... Lost us thousands of pounds with all their changes delays and blocking of our country in other countries ... They don't seem to care about anyone outside the USA  :(

They are no longer the best market place for unique and handmade items. Far too many brand new factory made items listed as 'vintage' or 'handmade' when they are clearly neither.

Etsy is fine to make a little bit of cash... But they have become so greedy now. Especially now with their subscriptions. They take far too much money for what they actually do.

Customers will be the same on every platform really. You may find that Facebook might be a good idea. It's free and there are handmade groups you can join. (pony ones too) with Facebook though make sure payment is always through PayPal it is the safest option for you.

Instagram is quite good too. After all with Etsy to be successful you need to do a lot of promoting yourself on social media. (or pay a lot of money towards Etsy 'ad' listings which they will not show to customers worldwide anyway)

Otherwise there are things like shopify. This is quite a popular market place you have more control too. (or obviously you can go for your own website... But trust me its a lot of hard work... Taken me forever to get ours up and running and im still tweaking  :P)

(It might not be so bad for you with Etsy as you are in the USA & it can work for smaller shops but when you start making more money it is best to get out and expand elsewhere)

Unless Etsy seriously changes and takes notice of the UK and Europe we will not be having big shops on there anymore.
« Last Edit: July 28, 2018, 04:40:45 PM by Lollipop »
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Offline Crowning_Glory13

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Re: Debate on online selling
« Reply #4 on: July 28, 2018, 06:34:56 PM »
Thank you for all the points of view. I only have time for one media seller, and trying to check options.
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Offline banditpony

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Re: Debate on online selling
« Reply #5 on: July 29, 2018, 04:34:15 AM »
I have read some bad things about selling on etsy these days. And that pretty much you had to pay to get yourself seen, or invest time and money for self promition.

I actually think instagram would be an interesting way to go-- with your own site for the sales portion. Really you kinda have to do multiple platforms these days. But those two platforms could be intertwined.
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Offline NightGliderSA

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Re: Debate on online selling
« Reply #6 on: July 30, 2018, 01:16:02 AM »
Just from a buyer's point of view (I don't sell) it can be hard to find items in Etsy stores; you sometimes have to scroll through pages of items which are not necessarily in any logical order. It's much easier to find them on eBay, so I prefer going through them. Personally I always leave feedback, though I do not buy too often as the shipping cost to South Africa can easily outstrip the cost of the lot.

Offline Sweet Daes

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Re: Debate on online selling
« Reply #7 on: July 31, 2018, 07:25:13 AM »
When I tried selling on Etsy I ended up owing them listing fees and I made no sales in 3 months. There are several reasons for this, including some conclusions that I have drawn myself on using both eBay and Etsy as a selling platform.

On Etsy, there is a LOT of competition, and it's hard to make your thing look better than "their thing", not to mention that the appeal to those who splurge spur-of-the-moment is going to be greater than those looking for certain items. Their search feature is not stellar (not that eBay's should be praised- it still needs work) but eBay is much better at sifting through their catalog to give you more relevant listings.

I am not the most pleased with eBay because I can't say how much a buyer sucks, but I will never go back to selling on Etsy because their basic business/site format is not to benefit a seller. There are too many loopholes for buyers to be scam artists and the entire Etsy platform just isn't seller-friendly.

Offline silverdawn

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Re: Debate on online selling
« Reply #8 on: August 08, 2018, 03:58:51 PM »
I'm curious how instagram works exactly... I made an account, but it looks to me like I need to use an app to upload photos?  I'm still on my windows 7 desktop (with no plans to EVER upgrade to windows 10, I learned from the hubby's mistake), so in order to use it, I'd have to send photos to my phone, then upload them to instagram from the app on my phone?  Seems like kind of a hassle, but maybe worth it?  Any thoughts from people who use/have used instagram?

Offline tailrustedtealeaf

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Re: Debate on online selling
« Reply #9 on: August 08, 2018, 05:10:26 PM »
I'm curious how instagram works exactly... I made an account, but it looks to me like I need to use an app to upload photos?  I'm still on my windows 7 desktop (with no plans to EVER upgrade to windows 10, I learned from the hubby's mistake), so in order to use it, I'd have to send photos to my phone, then upload them to instagram from the app on my phone?  Seems like kind of a hassle, but maybe worth it?  Any thoughts from people who use/have used instagram?
If your primary camera is your phone, it is rather convenient. Otherwise, it does become a bit of a pain.
Just remember that Instagram is a phone app first, and a clumsy website second.
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