When you sell any kind of product online, the quality of your listings is usually the single most important factor in whether you make a sale. A lot goes into making a good listing and creating one is a skill you will improve as you practice over time. If you want to improve your Etsy listings, make sure you’re asking yourself these seven questions.
1. Is my listing the first one I notice when it shows up in search results for one of my keywords?
You should always include quality keywords along with your listing. Etsy looks at your tags and title for keywords while other platforms also consider the listing description. To determine how effective these keywords are, however, you will need to test them. And just as it’s important to monitor the performance of your keywords, it’s equally important to monitor the quality of your photos. We like to say keywords get you found, photos get you clicks, and descriptions get you sold.
Search for some of the keywords you’re targeting and take note of which product catches your attention first. If your listing is in the search results, did you look there first? This is just one important step of applying AIDA to your photos. For bonus points, bring your photos through all 4 steps. 🙂 If your listing isn’t in the search results, don’t panic! Etsy uses personalized search results so even if you’re not seeing your own listing, customers might. This is why tracking your “rank” on Etsy went out of style a long time ago. The best place to track your listing performance is in Etsy’s Stats.
2. Am I priced right for my market? Is my budget product priced below average? If I’m premium, does my price reflect that?
How you choose to price your products is a decision that can be quite difficult. One way you can determine if your prices are fair is if they are comparable to similar products appealing to a similar target audience. This is called market based pricing and it is how many of the top sellers on Etsy price their products. It may be enticing to use pricing calculators to figure out where you should price based on cost of materials and hours of labor. And while we would certainly encourage you to crunch those numbers to be certain you’re swinging a profit, it’s not the best way to arrive at a sale price.
If you are trying to attract buyers as a budget brand, you should set your prices a little below market average. Again, be sure to take other factors into consideration, such as the cost of time and materials to make a product. If you’re selling a middle of the road product, we suggest pricing just above the average price for your market. If you’re offering a premium product, make sure your price isn’t causing customers to confuse your listing with the more average ones in your market.
3. Do I have photos that show my products from multiple angles and contextual placement?
Quality photos are the lifeblood of most listings because they provide shoppers a visual representation of your product. There is an art to taking good listing photos, however. Be sure to use photos that show the product in as much detail as you can. Remember that shoppers aren’t able to physically handle your product like they can at brick and mortar stores. Do your best to recreate that experience virtually by covering all angles and details of your products. Photos should be good resolution, not blurry and in good light. Kicking your photos up a notch is a fantastic way to improve your Etsy listings.
4. Do I have listings that have renewed without a sale?
If a listing has sat there long enough that it has been renewed without a sale, there is likely something about that listing that could be improved. This could include better keywords, a description with more information, more vibrant language, better photos and more. Listings that are in this state should be focused on for improvement first, as it is one of the best indicators that a listing might not be ideally presented. Keep listings that are working and begin to improve your Etsy listings that aren’t.
5. Have I checked my Etsy stats to see which keywords are delivering visits?
Many online sales platforms allow you to look at metrics. For example, you can observe sale numbers of a particular product over certain time periods as well as how many hits your listings get. This is valuable information you can then act upon if certain listings appear to be under-performing. One of the most valuable stats that Etsy shares with sellers is the list of keywords that customers have used to find your listing. Check this list against the keywords you’re using in your title and tags. KEEP the tags that are helping you get found and replace the ones that aren’t contributing to customer discovery.
6. Have I gotten any customer questions frequently enough that I should put answers in my product descriptions?
Pay attention to the kinds of questions you receive through messages and e-mail. If you get certain questions frequently enough, you can improve your listings by adding that information. This gives your customers more information up front so they might be more likely to commit to buying the product and not have to spend time messaging you for an answer. If someone has taken the time to send you a question about one of your products, chances are, others have had the same question but didn’t take the time to ask. They may have just continued on to the next shop in search of their answer.
7. Do my listings ask for the sale?
A simple way to improve your listings is by asking for the sale. Customers are more inclined to follow through when you ask for the sale in the description. The best listings include some kind of urgent call to action that will hopefully convince your customers to buy without delay. Focus on the benefits of your products to your target customers to back up your request.
Did you find anything to improve?
If you sell any kind of product online, you should frequently update and improve your listings. Let metrics in your Etsy stats and Marmalead tell you which ones are under-performing and might need the extra help, in addition to using your intuition and the best practices for creating a listing that sells products. Ask yourself the right questions and do some investigation to get better results. Did you find any ways you could improve your Etsy listings by stepping through these questions? Let us know!
