Last week I was looking for a handmade scarf as a going away gift. I wanted something to remind the person of where she'd been living - so I was looking for something with local landmarks or similar. I'd checked around local shops and didn't find what I wanted. So I thought of Etsy.
When I went to Etsy I put in specific keywords in the search - I think they were "Oregon scarf" - and then clicked on the "handmade" box.
I had to look through several pages before I found one that was a good fit. And then I clicked on the seller's store and looked at other stuff.
One thing I checked was the location of the item - I needed the scarf quickly so wanted it to be close by. This seller is located just a few hours away so that helped make up my mind. That's not something you can really control, though - just something that may influence potential customers.
I used the "ask a question" button to ask how quickly the scarf could be shipped. Got an email from Etsy saying the message had been sent - and then waited two days until I got a reply from the seller. She apologized and said her parents had been in town and she hadn't been able to check her messages.
That kinda bugged me - I did need the scarf quickly - and her lagging meant it wouldn't arrive in time for the going away party. My husband is self employed and he takes phone calls and checks messages pretty much every day. I realize this may just be a hobby or side business for this seller, but I was still miffed by the delay.
But, I ended up buying 3 scarves from her, not just 1.
What did I like about my experience?
- attractive storefront
- clear photos, more than 1 photo of each item with different angles and closeups for some
- good descriptions - what type of fabric, sizing, fabric care, a bit of seller's personality ("I found this design and loved it - wish I had more of it")
- many items to choose from
- quick shipping once I ordered - didn't arrive when I wanted but the next day, which was ok
- scarves well-packaged for shipping
- little printed cards that came with each scarf with washing instructions and some other care advice
- low shipping cost
- seller obviously takes pride in her business
I don't know what algorithms Etsy uses to determine which products turn up on the front pages of the search - for "Oregon scarf" 407 items matched those terms - 10 pages to look through. Which wasn't much to go through. Something with thousands of items matching the terms would have so many pages of results - I'd probably just look through the first 10 or so and hope to find something.
If I were looking for your shoes, what keywords would people use? I'd make sure your descriptions contained those. And perhaps you can find a way to make sure your items turn up early in the search (don't know how that works with Etsy).
I did notice that if I searched for "Celia Cyanide Shoes" as 3 separate words your shop doesn't turn up. It has to be entered as "CeliaCyanideShoes" (1 word) to appear. As a buyer, I might not think of that.
Your store is attractive. Your descriptions seem honest - you mention bits of wear from the thrift store shoes. I would add the heel height in inches for each shoe - I don't wear heels much, so what's "low" to you might be more than I'd expect.
Good luck with your Etsy venture!