Selling Crafts on eBay - Tips for Selling Crafts on Ebay

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Selling crafts on eBay or other third party, artisan specific sites can be profitable if you have a unique product, and you're willing to put in the time required to market your work. However, this strategy for making money with crafts can be challenging. It's not the easy, low time commitment sales strategy that some people would have you believe.

If you read certain books about selling crafts on eBay, they'll have you believe that this is a quick and easy way to make money with crafts. They imply that you can just put up your auction, or build your online store, pay a few minimal fees and the customers will come. That's not how most people experience selling crafts online.

There are people who have success with selling crafts on eBay and other third party sites, but it requires work and planning to have success in this arena. If you follow the auctions or store listings of people who seem to be making consistent sales on third party sites, you will see that they put a great deal of time into constantly putting new items for sale, taking great photographs of their items, establishing competitive selling terms and writing great descriptions of each piece. This approach to selling crafts requires planning and a real time commitment.

Depending on the type of crafts that you make, you may find that many third party sales sites have a lot of people selling products in your specific category. So you really have to work to get your own products seen by customers. These sites are often structured so that you get the best exposure if you're posting items on a regular basis. It might be more time efficient to post all of your products at one time, but on most of these sites, that approach won't bring in the customers you want. It takes time to continually list pieces, especially one of a kind pieces that will each need to be photographed and described separately, but that’s what required on many of these sites if you’re going to get your work seen ahead of your competition.

The type of art or craft you make could be a factor in your success in this type of sales strategy. Some categories are really saturated, and eBay and other third party sites are extremely competitive in certain categories. Although some people do seem to have success in selling crafts online in competitive categories, they obviously work at it and are very committed to this sales venue.

On the other hand, I have found and purchased items from some artists on eBay who do beautiful, unique work that fits in a niche with very limited competition. If you fall into this category, and your work fits into a really unique niche that is under-represented online, you may find that selling crafts on eBay is be a great option for your home craft business and really worth your time commitment.

It's important to consider all of the fees you'll need to pay when determining whether selling crafts on eBay or another third party site will be profitable for you. Remember that you may need to pay more than just the basic selling fees to get the exposure you need to realistically expect to sell crafts on these sites. Some sites, for example, have a pay per click system in place. You don't technically have to pay per click if you want to list your items, but you won't realistically get your listings in front of customers without paying those fees. If you plan on making money with crafts using third party websites, it will be reasonable to assume that you'll be paying fees beyond the basic minimums. It will be important to ensure you price your art or crafts so you can make a profit over and above these selling costs.

Also, keep in mind that all of your items will likely not sell. If you have several items listed on a third party site like eBay, and you have to pay listing fees for each individual item, you’ll need to include all of your selling fees (that is, the fees for items that did not sell, as well as the fees for items that did sell) in your calculations to determine whether you are making a profit by selling online. That means you'll need to have a realistic idea of what percentage of your items will likely sell. eBay does have tools that you can use to get a sense of how well items sell in various categories.

Determining a profitable pricing strategy will be important for selling crafts on eBay or other third party websites. Some sites have a "garage sale" philosophy. People typically go there looking for real bargain prices, and sellers make up for low profit margins by selling high volumes. Other third party sites promote the value and uniqueness of the handmade items. You'll see higher prices for handmade items at these sites, and you'll find customers who value handmade products and are shopping for something unique and are not necessarily there to find bargain basement prices. Some third party sites even have policies in place to prevent sellers from selling at extremely low prices. Taking some time to assess the image and philosophy of a third party site will help you to choose one that fits with your own pricing strategy, business goals and image.

Selling crafts on eBay or other third party, artisan specific sites can be part of a successful marketing plan for your home craft business. You'll need to do a bit of research to make sure you are selling on a site that meets your needs. Also, if you budget the time and money needed to maintain and market your auctions or online store, you'll increase your possibility for success with this craft sales strategy.

 
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