Etsy shop branding is an integral part of the long-term success of your business. It’s also one of the many things sellers need to have nailed down before launching an Etsy store.
One of the struggles of selling on a marketplace like Etsy is that customers don’t always remember your brand’s name. They may remember that they brought your product on Etsy, sure. But customers may not remember that they got it from your shop.
This is where your Etsy shop branding comes in.
Before we begin
This article is a part of our Complete Guide for Everything You Need to Know to Succeed on Etsy! If you just stumbled across this article, we recommend you start back at the beginning: Everything You Need to Know Before You Start an Etsy Shop.
Or, if you’d like to check out each article in the series, click through the links below:
8 Steps to Starting an Etsy Shop
We created the Complete Guide for Everything You Need to Know to Succeed on Etsy to teach you how to start an Etsy shop the right way. You can position your Etsy shop for longterm success by following these core principals.
- How to Do Etsy Market Research for Your Products
- Know Your Etsy Shop Branding Before You Open
- How to Create & Maintain an Etsy Shop Aesthetic
- How to Master Your Etsy Product Photography
- How to Research Etsy Keywords
- Etsy Shipping Costs and How to Calculate Them
- A Crash Course to Etsy Taxes & Accounting
- The New & Improved Quick and Dirty Guide to SEO for Etsy
At Marmalead, we strive to offer real, practical advice for Etsy sellers right here on our blog and on our YouTube channel. The world of Etsy is constantly evolving, so if you have a question you can’t find an answer to, reach out to us at success@marmalead.com.
What is branding?
Branding is a feature of your business that makes it identifiable. Logos, symbols, images, a name, or a slogan count as branding, as they’re features unique to your business that make it distinct from all others.
Why your Etsy shop branding is important
People really won’t forget they purchased your product on Etsy.
Part of that is because Etsy has good branding (with its bright orange logo and charming tone throughout the platform). But really, Etsy is full of tons of shops! So if your shop doesn’t really stick out from the crowd with its use of branding, it may become quite forgettable.
Etsy shop branding is challenging because you’re trying to stand out from the other sellers on the marketplace. And what’s most important is you should be trying to create branding that’s memorable – so memorable, that your customers remember your brand name more than they remember the Etsy name!
Here’s an example: you just bought a new pair of handmade mittens from a shop on Etsy with killer branding.
When a friend asks, “Where did you get those??” rather than your answer simply being “Oh, I bought them on Etsy!”, we want your first instinct to be “I bought them from this *insert cute little shop name* on Etsy!”
Good branding creates:
- Brand loyalty
- Customer retention
- Word of mouth marketing
All these things are paramount to creating a solid foundation for your store — whether it’s on Etsy or not!
Where Etsy shop branding comes into play
As an Etsy seller, your branding can be seen – and felt – in many places.
Your store logo and your store header are the two most prominent places. But your product photos and descriptions are also places where a customer can feel your Etsy store branding.
It’s important to remember, though, that “branding” is much more than a logo. When done right, your branding shows off your products, values, and everything that makes your brand unique.
Getting started with Etsy shop branding
Before you start googling “free online logo maker,” it’s vital to know what message you’re going to take into your branding – what makes your brand unique?
It might be that you only use sustainable materials. Or, it might be because you give back to the community. It may also be that you make your product using old techniques or make it the same way your grandma used to make it.
These things help influence the direction of your branding. So, when it comes time to create a brand for your shop, think about how you can add elements of what your product represents.
Here are some examples:
- For sustainable materials, you could add earth-toned colors in your logo and throughout your shop.
- If you give back to the community, you could include “helping hands” in your logo.
- If you use old techniques, you could even put a slip of stationary in each shipment with the history of the technique used to make your product.
Creating Your Logo
Logos are the go-to place to start with your branding. It’s the literal hood ornament that, in time, becomes synonymous with your brand.
Are there shapes or symbols that you can see in your product?
Chasin’ Unicorns is a self-care subscription box, and cut crystals are a core product that the brand sells. The geometric, straight lines of the crystals are reflected in the brand’s logo:
Outcast Props sells handmade cosplay gear, as well as superhero and fantasy-themed props.
Their logo uses a lightning bolt to reflect the “superhero” themes, while the overall design is encompassed in an “O” for Outcast.
Your logo might show off your product, it might also just be your brand’s name in an elegant or stylized font.
Below you can see how Jumata Handmade has used a simple font and even simpler use of color to create a text-based logo:
This minimalist design is echoed in handmade dolls that the brand sells.
These logos have all been well thought out – they’re memorable, unique, and relate to the overall product.
Establishing Your Color Palette
Color psychology is a real thing, and you can use it to your advantage.
A brand selling products for babies probably isn’t going to get traction by using deep violets and yellows. Similarly, wedding supplies really won’t benefit from branding using hot pinks and lime greens.
Color helps make that first initial statement about your brand.
In this case, The Trendy Whippet uses black and white to exude a little class.
The simple black, used alongside the minimalist logo and thin, lightweight font, establish a sense of class and elegance. The buyer is left knowing that they can buy everything they need to make their whippet trendy (I mean, literally it’s in the name)!
Staying on the theme of dog clothing, Pepper Petwear is an established brand on Etsy with well over 4,000 sales.
The simple blue color of the logo asserts this trust. No frills, nothing fancy, just well-made pet wear. This ‘no frills’ and ‘specialist’ feel is echoed in the brand’s tone of voice with the simple statement of “Made to measure dog coats”.
The tone of your Etsy shop branding
If your brand was a physical person, what words would be in its vocabulary? How would it communicate and talk about itself?
It’s at this point that your tone of voice comes in. Again, your brand’s unique elements can help you decide what style of voice to use.
Get started with your tone of voice by asking, “who buys my product?” Note that this is a different question to “who uses my product.”
Babies don’t buy diapers; their parents do.
Gift receivers don’t buy their gifts; people giving the gift do.
This canned air from Prague is a gag gift, so the tone of voice reflects that:
With a tone of voice that’s on par with your product values – humorous, classy, delicate, bold – and consistent overall, your product listings create not only better branding but more trustworthy branding.
Over to you
Your Etsy shop branding builds trust with your buyers. Grab your buyer’s attention with a brand that catches their eye, then keep them coming back by staying true to that brand.
Interested in more things you should know before you start an Etsy shop? Well, if you don’t know where your product ranks with the competition, how can you be sure you’re even in the running? Here’s How to Do Etsy Market Research for your Products.
If you’re ready for the next article in our Complete Guide for Everything You Need to Know to Succeed on Etsy, then here it is:
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How to Create & Maintain an Etsy Shop Aesthetic
