There are many ways to make money with Etsy, including selling different types of products and even using affiliate marketing links to Etsy products to generate income. Today, I’m sharing the top four ways to make money with Etsy online and how you can get started.
(This post contains affiliate links and you can read the full disclosure here)
Digital planners on Etsy — a popular digital products niche!
Sell Digital Products
My favorite way to make money with Etsy is through digital products. I personally opened a digital products shop on Etsy and was able to make over $15,000 a month within three months of starting without running ads, a pre-existing social media following, or offsite marketing. The best part is that you don’t need any marketing or design skills to get started, either.
I always recommend starting with a keyword research tool like Everbee to research high-demand products with low competition. This step will save you many wasted hours creating an otherwise excellent product that won’t sell because it’s in a highly saturated niche or has low demand. After you’ve selected some products to make, use a product like Canva to start creating them. There are countless online tutorials on creating digital products. For a quicker start, you can check out my course Digitally Purposed for the lowdown on setting up a successful shop and creating products quickly and easily.
Digital products are also a great way to establish a mostly passive income source because once your products are created and listed, there is very little maintenance needed to continue making money from them.
A few examples of print-on-demand t-shirts on Etsy
Sell Print-On-Demand Products
Print-on-demand products are created by a supplier of white-label products, such as tote bags, t-shirts, or baseball caps, that are customized and sold on a per-order basis in your Etsy store. The types of designs you can sell are endless, from custom designs to wedding, baby, pet, mom life, teacher, and career-themed pieces.
You can streamline selling print-on-demand products on Etsy by using a printing service like Printful. Printful integrates directly into your Etsy shop and handles customer fulfillment and shipping. A service like this reduces the time you need to invest in fulfilling orders so that you can focus on bigger things like managing your Etsy shop and marketing your products. Most of these services don’t charge monthly fees, so you’ll only be charged when an order is fulfilled.
Unique handmade clocks on Etsy
Sell Handmade Specialty Items
If you are crafty or enjoy making handmade items, such as clocks, jewelry, clothing, or wedding centerpieces, selling handmade items on Etsy is a lucrative choice for making money.
Start by deciding what kind of items you could sell. I recommend using a product like Everbee to research trends and products with low competition but high demand. Check what overlaps with your skillset and begin experimenting with your handmade wares. Then, create attractive and clean images of your items and write an engaging, SEO-friendly listing to help your product rank in search results.
Remember, unlike the other options on this list, you will have to invest time and money into shipping your items. Shipping things promptly is crucial to customer satisfaction, so you must stay on top of this and deliver handmade specialty items on time.
I recommend looking into a cost-effective postage plan to ensure you don’t lose profit on unreliable shipping costs. If your products are heavy or delicate, a courier company may be the best option instead of relying on the Post Office.
A couple of results for ‘Best Etsy Finds’ on Pinterest
Affiliate Marketing on Pinterest
Etsy’s affiliate marketing program is a great way to earn extra money by recommending Etsy shops and products you already love. You’ll earn a commission from Etsy for every qualifying, one-of-a-kind piece you recommend with an affiliate link. You can feature Etsy affiliate links on your blog, social media, and Pinterest accounts. However, you cannot share your own Etsy shop’s products with affiliate marketing links. Any affiliate marketing links through the Etsy program must be from other shops.
Pinterest is an incredibly lucrative place to feature Etsy affiliate links because it’s highly visual and has an audience that is often more interested in DIY, unique, handmade, or specialized items.
Pinterest offers three primary pin formats: Video Pins, Idea Pins, and Standard Pins. Standard Pins are the pin format you’re most familiar with, but Idea Pins are a newer pin format that is amazing for reaching new people. Idea Pins are also the only pin format you can use to share links directly to Etsy. The Etsy affiliate program also requires original content. For example, you cannot repin another Etsy shop’s pin and add your affiliate link to it. You need to create your own graphic, text, and title for the idea pin, then add your affiliate link.
The most important thing to remember when sharing affiliate links on Pinterest (besides following Etsy’s guidelines) is that creating visually appealing, unique photos is a must.
Pinterest is all about visuals and showcasing beautifully designed Etsy products in unique graphics. I recommend Canva for creating stunning images for Pinterest. Canva has many amazing free templates, stock photos, and more that you can use to create a unique image that will draw the eye of viewers.
Overall, selling digital products and using affiliate marketing to make money with Etsy are my favorite options because they involve far less overhead and time commitment once you’re started. For more information on creating your digital products and automating your traffic to ensure your sales never dip, check out my course Digitally Purposed. My course also includes continued trainings and a monthly Q&As so that you can stay on top of new digital products with low competition, address issues stumping you, and much more.
