I get asked what the secret to Etsy success is all the time. And I hate to break it to you, but for the most part there is no magic secret to hitting big revenue numbers.
You set goals, make products, learn SEO, and work really freaking hard. No magic number of listings. No magic social media tricks. No magic way to get featured by Etsy. It’s just consistent, hard work.
But there is one thing that most Etsy sellers don’t focus on that would improve their shops with minimal effort. Something that can help push you over the edge from hitting your goals to blowing them out of the water. And that’s focusing on creating full product lines.
Why It Matters
First let’s start by talking about what a product line is. It’s a group of products in your shop that are similar. A really great example is a jewelry seller who sells bracelets, rings, and earrings. Those are 3 different product lines. And there are two main reasons why having full product lines is important.
This isn’t an exact science. There’s no right or wrong answer to what your product lines consist of. I encourage you to really think about how buyers are searching for your products to help you work out what your product lines are.
Your Search Results
The first reason why having full product lines is really important is because it tells Etsy that you’re important for that product line. If we’re talking about the jewelry seller from earlier, Etsy is going to show you higher in search results when you have 50 listings for earrings compared to when you only had one listing.
Now this doesn’t mean there’s a magic number of listings you need for each of your product lines. It’s going to vary depending on how much competition you have, the keywords you’re targeting, and how well you’re formatting your SEO. But it’s much easier to rank for your search terms when you have full product lines.
Your Customers (Conversion rates)
The next reason having full product lines is so important is to help your conversion rates. One of my favorite examples of this is retails stores. Let’s say you walk into a local boutique and you’re looking for the perfect outfit for a special event. You want a gorgeous dress. You want into the store, but they only have one dress. It’s not really your favorite color. And it doesn’t fit quite right. So what do you do?
You definitely don’t head on over to the home decor section and grab a pillow for your couch. Instead you leave and head next door to another boutique that has a few dozen options so you can find something perfect.
The same thing happens with your shop when you don’t have full product lines. Customers get into your shop but your one listing isn’t quite perfect and you have no alternatives for them.
So they leave and go to the shop next door. (AKA next in the search results). Don’t let your customers move on because you don’t have exactly what they want! Fill up those product lines and watch your conversion rate improve!
How To Do It
There are three easy steps to completing this process. Let’s go over those now.
Assess
The first thing you want to do is assess your current situation. How many product lines do you have? How many of them are selling? What’s not selling? What’s getting found in search the most? What has the best conversion rate?
Go through each product line you have, whether you have 1 item or 100 listed in that line, and compare your stats for each of them.
Pick
Then we get to pick what to focus on. This phase is a little less cut and dry. What do you enjoy making? What has the best profit? What inspires you? What does your social media audience respond to the most?
There are millions of questions to consider.
What matters is that you make a decision that makes sense for you and your business. A decision you’re confident that you can stick with.
List
Then we do the real work. List, list, list. Create new products to fill that product line up and list them until they sell. Focus on this one thing you love and care about and enjoy making it it works. Your business is going to grow much more efficiently this way.
Summary
Know you know why this makes such a big difference in your Etsy business. So next you want to sit down, analyze, and get to work. Need help deciding which product line to focus on? This is one of my favorite things to do with students in The Handmade Creative, my signature Etsy course that gives you everything you need to start getting daily sales on Etsy. Learn more in my free masterclass here.
-Sarah
