Where to Sell Handmade Products Online (besides Ebay)
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Where to Sell Crafts Online
To sell handmade products online, first you'll want to think through whether you want to sell on a third party site (that is, a site that's owned by someone else, like eBay) or your own craft website.
There are pros and cons to consider with each approach. Selling crafts online on a third party usually allows you to set up your online store quickly and easily, and you can do it with little or no need to understand HTML or web design concepts.
Third Party Sites:
eBay
Although there are professional craft artists who seem to have success selling crafts on eBay, many feel they struggle with the "garage sale" mindset of eBay. It can be difficult to sell handmade products for a reasonable price there because most people go to eBay looking for bargains.
Etsy
Etsy.com is a site that is dedicated to the sale of handmade products. Plenty of professional craft artists like selling crafts online on Etsy.com. Etsy has very reasonable selling fees, a supportive community of craft artists and an easy to set up online store.
Because this site is dedicated to promoting handmade products, you'll find less of a "garage sale" mentality here. People visit this site and shop from the stores here because they value the quality and originality of handmade products.
Although there are some crafters on Etsy who price their work quite low, for the most part you will not be competing with the slim profit margins and underpricing you can find elsewhere.
Ruby Lane
If you sell handmade jewelry you may also consider selling on Rubylane.com. The selling fees at Ruby Lane are higher than you'll find on Etsy, but they are aiming at a high-end shopper, so again, you won't struggle to compete with sellers who have unreasonably low prices.
In fact, Ruby Lane actively discourages sellers from posting low priced items on the site and has guidelines for sellers that note they cannot sell items for less than a specific amount ($20.00, I believe) and only a certain percentage of their stock may fall within this low price range.
Your Own Site
If you are willing to put in the time to create your own site, you may also consider selling crafts online in this manner. Again, depending upon the resources you use, this can be a farily inexpensive option. You'll need to invest more time upfront in designing and building your online craft store than you would if you sold through a third party site.
However, you will benefit from the fact that you own and control the site; therefore, you will not be subjected to the regulations and changes to a third party site which could substantially impact your business (and not necessarily for the better). You'll have full control over the policies and direction of your online craft store if it is your own site.
Getting Traffic
One reason people choose to sell crafts on a third party site instead of setting up their own craft website lies in the fact that they believe they will automatically, with little or no effort, have customers at their online store because third party sites, like eBay, already have plenty of traffic. However, third party sites also have plenty of sellers who are all competing to get people to their stores. Therefore, to create a successful online craft business, you'll need to invest time to promote your online store whether you sell on a third party site or your own site.
There are plenty of good strategies for promoting a craft website, however it requires an investment of your time. I tend to see selling crafts on a third party site as a way to dip you toes into selling handmade products online. It can be a good option if you want to sell crafts online on a hobby or very part time basis and aren't able to or interested in putting in the time to create your own site.
However, if your plan is to create a substantial online business, owning your own site has many advanatages. You'll be investing time to promote your online store whether it's on your own site or a third party site, and there's a lot to be said for spending your time and efforts promoting your own site and not somone else's business. You'll be fully in control of the policies on your own site, and unlike selling on third party site, once customers get to your site, you will not be competing with thousands of other sellers on the same site.
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Comments
Thanks so much for answering my request! A friend of mine make beautiful crocheted items and I wanted to get some advice for her! I will forward this along to her. I think Etsy.com sounds like a good fit! :)
I like this hub. I am getting into woddworking and was thinking of trying to ebay some items. Maybe I can go through the sites you wrote about here. I'll have to check back here from time to time.
I really enjoyed the information. I too know people that would be interested in this information. My best to you!
My mate makes beautiful handcrafted metal art table and wall candleholders, and I listed them in Ebay during the holidays, but we couldn't sell them for what they are really worth because of the "garage" sale mentality, which you mentioned. Thanks for this info! Will pass it on to him.
Thank you all for your kind comments. I'm happy that my hub was helpful for you, and for those who are passing it along to friends, I hope it will be helpful for your friends as well.
lisa,
I had heard of etsy before but not ruby lane.
Thanks for the info.
sschilke
Sschilke, I'm glad if was helpful.
Lisa
Thanks for your info! I've had an Ebay store now for almost one year and the competition if fierce! I am constantly trying to cut my rates to match this garage sale mentality! How frustrating. Thank you again, and many blessings.
eBay is tough for handmade items. The profit margins are so slim in most categories, you have to do a lot of volume to make a good income, and, of course, it's hard to do a huge volume when you're making things by hand.
Even craft supplies are, for the most part, sold at wholesale prices on eBay. I've compared sellers of jewelry making supplies on eBay to the major jewelry supply wholesalers where I have accounts, and the prices are pretty comparable. That's good for the crafter looking for inexpensive craft supplies, but potentially tough for the small business person trying to make an income selling on eBay.
I've come across some professional craft artists who seem to do well on eBay, but it's not easy.
Hello!
I use etsy, I my fairly new but I am exploring options for spreading the world about my handmade crafts. I work full time right now but would love to be able to dedicate all my attention to creating items for my own online botique.
Alliw, I've used Etsy a bit for selling and also for buying (I'm making a point of buying handmade when I can and Etsy's at the top of my list for finding great handmade stuff). I've even seen products from Etsy stores featured in major magazines. I like the fact that people go there specifically because they are looking for unique, handmade items. You don't have to work so hard to sell the value of handmade items there bacause people who visit that site are already sold on that idea.
I've heard of Esty but I always think that sites like those are never visited and no one sells things on there, but maybe i'm wrong and I should give it a go. Ebay is terrible for te bargain basement price, which as a buyer is good, but as a seller is awful.
I may set up an account on Esty and see what happens!
Thanks for all the great info! x
Hi,I posted a list of places to sell your handmade items online that includes traffic rankings. I've also posted interviews from some of the handmade selling venues.
You can find it on my Simply Shiny Blog at http://shinyadornments.com/wordpress/?p=205
Good luck!KristyThe Simply Shiny Bloghttp://shinyadornments.com/wordpress
Kristy, your chart comparing Alexa rankings of various third party sites for selling handmade items is very thorough and helpful. I read your comments about Ruby Lane with particular interest. It's been a while since I had a shop there (I prefer to focus my efforts on my own sites, not third party sites now); based on your comments, it seems like it's become a much less friendly place for selling handmade jewelry.
Thanks for the informations
I'm a handicraft seller from northeastern India, Mizoram (collecting bamboo and cane products from village craftsmen ; including small rucksacks, hand bags, sheets and even lamp shades made from traditional cloths) but I don't know much about online buisiness. Will it be helpful if I try on some of these sites ? Can you suggest me some helpful tips.
Moya, I've written several articles about selling crafts online at my main site here:
http://www.inspiri-art-and-craft.com/sell-crafts-o
I hope they have the kind of information you're looking for.
I won't pretend to be an expert on importing your crafts from India. If you have something like a business development office or chamber of commerce in your area, they should be a good place to start for getting information on business regulations in your area.
Well, I've done most of the enquiries. As far as the rules are concerned, there's not much bars if one is just running a small business like mine.I just have to collect the products at a reasonable price and ship them. This state of India is tax-free zone and all I've to do is pay for the shipping. I don't need and export license for these small products if I ever use the state's postal services. I hope to contact you very soon if I'm still stuck in the process. Thanks.
Hi there! Great article. Have you heard of http://ArtFire.com? ArtFire is a fairly new craft marketplace where artists can sell their handmade items completely free!
Here's some more introductory information:
ArtFire is the fastest growing marketplace in the handmade industry where artists from all over the world can list and sell their handcrafted items. On ArtFire, members can set up a virtual and fully customizable storefront where they can list items for sale with absolutely no fees. But ArtFire is so much more than a marketplace, it is a community. Members can interact in the site forums, join together in craft guilds, and even become involved in the construction of the site. With promotion tools such as Rapid Cart, which allows members to post a miniature storefront to their blog, and Market Hub, which allows members to link out to their other online venues, ArtFire is revolutionizing the craft marketplace. Although ArtFire is still in beta, it has grown tremendously in the last nine months, with more than 30,000 members and more than 300,000 items currently listed for sale.
Hey. is Etsy a good place to sell my homemade spa baskets?? I need your opinion!!!
Sara:
Thanks for adding the information about Artfire. I haven't sold my own crafts on the site, so I can't comment on it from direct experience, but I have heard positive comments from other professional craft artists who use the site.
Zebra:
Etsy is a very popular third party site for professional craft artists. In terms of selling handmade spa products specifically, I did a search for the term "spa baskets" on Etsy, and there weren't a lot of results, so the market for spa baskets isn't flooded on the site. That's generally good (not a lot of competition), but it is wise to consider if there's a reason why there aren't a lot of people selling spa baskets.
I don't know the answer to that question. That would take a bit of digging and research. I'd suggest reviewing the stores of people who do sell spa baskets on Etsy to learn as much as you can about their pricing, sales etc., also search for spa baskets and related terms on the Etsy forums to find any discussion on the topic, and try posting on the Etsy forum also to get feedback; it tends to be a very positive and friendly atmosphere there.
Hi thank you so much your site is very helpful.I'm so new for selling stuff online do some searching for 2 months now.My family has been working on handmade jewelry for more than 20 years.I hope i can find some helpful sites to promote our products.
Praow, you're welcome. I'm glad you found the information helpful. Best of luck promoting your products online!
This is in response to Zebra concerning the spa baskets, somewhere on the site it classifies what can and cannot be listed on etsy. One of the things it includes in the cannot be listed part is baskets because the products included in them aren't handmade. So unless the products included in them are crafted by hand ie: handmade soap, i would say etsy isn't the right place for that.
amy jane says:
17 months ago
Thanks so much for answering my request! A friend of mine make beautiful crocheted items and I wanted to get some advice for her! I will forward this along to her. I think Etsy.com sounds like a good fit! :)