I'm going to be brutally honest here folks because quite frankly I'm tired of the whining!
First of y'all need to learn how to cull works that are dragging you down like or not, while it MAY be your favorite piece, it does not do you, the artist, justice. And PHOTOGRAPHY speaks volumes about you, the artist, as well as your work.
Most folks are using all sorts of "props" when photographing small items and it IS the undoing of those works! Get rid of the props!!! Take good clear photos and if need be crop it in a photo editing program and get rid of the white areas! You DON"T need rulers in your picture, period! Get rid of theruler and put the measurements in your description! Take an inviting enticing photo of your work from various angles an, angles that tell us a story about the color, texture, shape, and form of the piece.
Go look at any number of shops on etsy that have sold hundreds or thousands of items ALL similar to yours, and ask yourself WHY are their works selling and why aren't my works selling??? I'll give you the anwser
Photography!
Third - descriptions some of you need to work on your descriptions, most are very lacking. Again go look at those shops that are selling hundreds and thousands of items WHY are their items selling and yours are not? I'll give you the anwser
Descriptions!
Fill out your policies, I do NOT buy from anyone who does NOT have their policies filled out, period!
Use some caption breaks in your descriptions so it does not become monotonous**************** and `````````````````` and ~~~~~~~~~ etc.,
Fourth - Tags and Materials Some of you are NOT tagging properly or listing your materials in such a way that puts you at the top of the food chain.
Fifth - Blog, website, FaceBook (create a Fans Page on FB) Twitter, Flickr, etc., are all places where you can CULTIVATE a following. DO NOT SPAM folks with your listings WE SIMPLY DO NOT CARE! What we want to know is YOU!!! It's all about you baby and YOU are your artwork! Put the purchase info in your profile links we'll look for it or ask if we want it bad enough! And if you cultivate your following in the correct way you will have thousands of folks wanting it and badly check out TheBlackApple to get a feel for what I am talking about.
Sixth - local art fares, business cards with images of your works on them, postcards, with images of your works on them. Make them enticiing, subtract EVERYTHING that detracts from the item you sell.
Again there are those on etsy that have had hundreds and thousands of sales to NON-ETSY buyers! WHY??? Because they have created a following!
I don't bother trying to sell in the forums, though I do visit them from time to time. I've created a following through my blogs, websites, facebook, twitter, and group lists I belong to. I sell more work off list, because they saw it on Flickr or on my blog than I do on Etsy. I use Etsy as a place where I can sendthe curious that want to see what I sell, when they are wanting more than what I offer on my website.
Have a great weekend everyone.
