Buying and Selling on Etsy - Opinions and Advice?

Something about Etsy feels more like 'shopping' in the traditional sense. I don't know how to explain it and I mean no disrespect, but I might compare DoA to fleamarket shopping, and Etsy to boutique shopping.

As a seller, I like the ability to nicely format the sales items and how everything a buyer might need is on hand on any product page (feedback, contact info, etc). I like the ability to break things into categories and to update shipping costs from one panel. I also like the featured items, the 'favorites' list and having thumbnails of my newest products in rotation on the front page of etsy for a while after listing.

As a buyer, I find it much easier to search, and have found quite a few things I didn't expect that have been delightful purchases.

I joined Etsy specifically to buy from one friend's shop, so I would say yes to your last question.

There's also a movement among sellers there to use 'BJD' as a standard tag, so it's easier and easier to search for outfits and such every day.

Hope that helps!

 

I love shopping on etsy. It feels somehow more secure than DoA, and its easier to find exactly what im looking for. The DoA market place is just too big sometimes, plus etsy tends to only have good quality handmade clothes, ie, no teen trends or barbie stuff, which i like

 

I haven't actually bought anything on Etsy yet (I often see things I like but the seller doesn't ship to Australia or the shipping is fairly high and they only have one thing I want) but I think buying on a site like that definitely does make you feel a bit more secure in your purchase. Also... I know this is totally just my perception, but I tend to think that people who bother to sell on Etsy generally have nicer products, and are more focused on being a boutique shop or making beautiful art-fashions, while DoA has a lot of things that look kind of poorly made and sell for really cheap. I have seen stuff that isn't very good on Etsy, and I have seen stuff that's amazing on DoA, but some mental connection in my head still thinks of items sold on Etsy as being, in general, nicer.

Edit: I also agree with the person who said it's easier to find what you want- I hate clicking on a thread that says something like "SD & MSD clothes and shoes- boys and girls" and then the only MSD sized stuff is boy clothing or it turns out to be Friends 2B Made or Teen Trends (or there's only one item for the size I'm after and it's not what I want, or the clothes are on different pages instead of all on the first couple of posts, or other things that frustrate me). Having the individual items and thumbnails to look at is nice because DoA threads really can be a hassle to search through sometimes!

 

Can I bring this thread back?

I also have a question for Etsy sellers, do you feel you sell more on Etsy than you do/would on DoA?
I'm contemplating opening an Etsy shop, but I want to know if it is worth it before I do

I'll answer your 2 questions as a buyer;

As a buyer, do you prefer it to buying on DoA?
Currently, i can't decide. There isn't as much selection on Etsy, BUT it is a lot easier and I feel safer doing it for some reason.

If you saw something you liked on Etsy but weren't a member, would you join?
I just did that today, actually. I saw a pair of Unoa boy pants for a good price, I had to have them, so I signed up and bought them. Now I want to sell, too XD

 

Etsy is an awesome place to buy and sell,imo.It's not like ebay where they charge you so much fees as well,I believe it's $0.20 per listing and some small percentage if you sell the item.The item also stays up for 4 months,so muuuuch longer than eBay which is good.

Also the search categories (handmade,supplies,vintage) help a ton.

Overall I'd say Etsy's really good.

 

What is the link and how do you look up SD and MSD clothing there? What all is sold there anyway?

 

Everything, except for vintage human clothing, is supposed to be items you made yourself. So it's not a place for reselling your doll clothing. People mentioned Friend2BMade stuff, but you couldn't -- or aren't supposed -- to be selling off your Heisen.... (can't spell that out correctly!) clothing, or Dollheart or Jpop wigs or anything like that. Or premade "props" or accessories you no longer want, unless you made them yourself.

However, there is a yahoo doll sales group AND a clothing/accessories sale group to offer other outlets for that, as well as Resinality's market.

 

Hey, I'm reviving this thread to see if there have been any changes. I'm thinking about starting up an etsy shop selling hand tatted doll accessories, and I was wondering if it's hard to sell BJD items there. I was surprised that they too 3.5% of you sales. (jeeze, I'm such a noob.) Comparatively, is that a good price for selling online, or do you think it's high?

 

Airia: It's low compared to Ebay. Ebay takes something like 8%. If you sell something on DoA, you'll only have Paypal fees, but there are other advantages to Etsy.

I've had an Etsy shop for about a year, and I love it. It's easy to list an item, and it only costs 20 cents per four-month listing (Ebay costs a couple of dollars and up). I've done fairly well, selling SD girl clothes. (By fairly well, I mean I sell 2-3 items in a month--I'm not paying the rent with it or anything). Etsy reaches a lot of people, and the website looks nice and professional.

Drawbacks: There's a lot of stuff on Etsy, particularly for itty bitty dolls like Lati and Pukifee. The exclude function in the search is crappy, so you often end up having to poke through a lot of things. Most people just look at the first few pages, and the default organization is "newly listed", so people "bump" their listings by renewing them, which costs an additional 20 cents each time.

I find Etsy much easier to use than the DoA marketplace, anyway. The MP is just too big. I'll look there first if I'm looking for something, but it's really hard to find anything specific, especially eyes/ wigs/ clothes. But, the MP is great for dolls and secondhand doll items you can't get new.

For the record, "handmade" can include upcycled, repurposed, or embellished items. Let's say I bought a shirt from 9Ninestyle and then painted my own design on it. I could sell that on Etsy even though it's not made from scratch, as long as I disclose that info.

 

Thanks wildwoodflower! I don't think my mom is going to let me use the market place (to buy or sell), and since I don't have any kind of credit account yet, it's still up to her... >.> She's okay with etsy, though. Do you need a paypal account? Other methods of payment are listed, but it seems like no one's willing to send checks through the mail anymore.

 

Reviving this with a question for sellers... I was thinking about opening a shop over the summer and was wondering if you think it's worth it? With the fees and how much things you end up selling is it worth it to open a shop? And how did you go about advertising your shop for buyers? Thanks

 

I think it's pretty worth it... especially if you make SD stuff. There's a good market for things that are reasonably well-made, but not insanely fancy/expensive. I've been most successful with fashion kimonos and sundresses (again, successful being a relative term--in my best month I think I made about $140, and usually I made much less). As I said above, there are a billion things for tiny dolls (like Lati Yellow), but not a lot for SD, especially boys.
Etsy has a "Featured" option where you pay $7 and are featured (shown at the top of the page) in one category for 24 hours. I think it works pretty well, but I don't recommend it until you have a few things in your shop--$7 is a lot to pay to sell one $25 item. You can also link to your Etsy page from a DoA sales thread in the MP.

Airia--sorry I never commented back--I didn't see your question. You don't need a Paypal account, but it makes it a million times easier, and I think a lot of people use it exclusively. Technically I take checks at my shop, but no one has ever paid me that way.

 

It's fine. ^^ We've already set up an account, and I'm working on inventory. I do have a question about selling items: in you opinion, do you think it's better to sell items in matching sets (cuffs&necklace, shirt&skirt, etc.), or individually?

 

Thank you for responding. I have two msd sized girl's right now so most of my things will be in that size to start with

 

I just bought something from Etsy, and I found it quick and safe. I am thinking to open a store too, and I think etsy would be a good plce to sell. Also, as a buyer I like to shop there.