You’ve created an Etsy shop, prepared a curated list of POD products, and all the banners are ready. There’s only one challenge left – getting noticed in the marketplace and achieving more sales.
This step can be daunting for many sellers, as Etsy hosts more than 4.36 million sellers competing for 81.9 million buyers. Investing in Etsy advertising can improve your POD store visibility in the marketplace, attract potential customers and lead to success.
This article will walk you through the different kinds of Etsy advertising available. You’ll learn how to advertise on Etsy, how Etsy ads work, and how to associate Etsy advertising with the best SEO practices.
In This Article:
- What Are Etsy Ads
- First Things First – Optimize the Etsy SEO
- How to Start Your Etsy Advertising Campaign
- Valuable Etsy Advertising Tips
- Benefits of Advertising Your POD Products on Etsy
- What Are Etsy Off-Site Ads
- Optimizing for Off-Site Advertising
- How Much Do Etsy Ads Cost?
- What Else Can I Do to Boost Sales on Etsy?
- Wrapping Up – Selling and Promoting Print On Demand Products on Etsy
What Are Etsy Ads
Etsy advertising is the main way to promote an Etsy shop and make its products visible in the marketplace.
There are two types of Etsy ads – on-site and off-site ads. On-site ads refer to Etsy ads. They were previously named “promoted listings”, and many places still use that term.
Etsy ads are paid advertising running exclusively inside the marketplace, placing the promoted listing in visible spots within Etsy search results, categories, and market pages.
Advertised products can be spotted in the search easily, as they will have the tag “ads by”, followed by the Etsy shop name.
The platform places promoted listings higher in the search results according to these factors:
- Listing quality – affects the likelihood a buyer will click on the listing. The two main factors used by Etsy to attribute a quality score are listing and shop history and strong listing titles and tags.
- The bid amount – is the amount of money the sellers pay per click. That, in turn, is affected by the probability of sales and the listing’s relevance to the search.
First Things First – Optimize the Etsy SEO
Before starting an Etsy advertising campaign, prepare the terrain first-hand, applying the best SEO practices to your Etsy shop. Otherwise, you’ll invest resources to promote products that could perform better.
The following are some basic principles to keep in mind to optimize SEO on an Etsy store and improve its visibility organically.
Keyword Research
- Use free and freemium tools optimized for keyword research with Etsy, such as Seller-way, eRank, and Marmalead. These tools will assist in monitoring keywords and top-selling products, besides providing deep keyword insights.
Apply the Keyword Research to Products and Optimize the Titles
- Provided with knowledge of keywords, SERP, and most searched products, apply it wisely to the descriptions of products, listings, and categories.
- Optimize every title with relevant attributes of the products and categories. They should be short and easy to understand, as too-long titles are displayed partially in Etsy and Google results.
- Place the most relevant keywords at the beginning of the title, clarifying what’s for sale.
- Titles should be concise but informative. Avoid generic descriptions that don’t provide actual information.
Tags
- Use all the 13 tags allowed in each listing.
- Provide relevant attributes in line with the product characteristics and the keyword research.
- Don’t use different languages in titles and tags, as Etsy automatically translates terms.
Provide Quality Images for Listings
- Etsy allows displaying ten images per product. Place the best product photos first, as they are the first impression to potential buyers.
- Follow Etsy guidelines for formatting the pictures within the highest resolution possible.
Store Description and Policies
- Fill in the “About” section in the Etsy account. That improves SEO rankings inside Etsy, enabling more connections with the customers.
- Adding clear policies to the Etsy shop creates confidence and security and increases the customer marketing experience score.
Shipping
- Shipping costs affect Etsy SEO. Therefore, it’s best to offer free shipping. You can do that in the account “Settings” tab, “Shipping Profiles.” Remember to add the shipping costs to the product price.
Want to Delve Deeper Into Etsy SEO? Watch Our Video and Read Our Detailed Guide.
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How to Start Your Etsy Advertising Campaign
After the descriptions and SEO of all products, listings, and categories on your Etsy store are optimized, it’s time to start ad campaigns. That can quickly be done by following these steps:
- To create an Etsy advertising campaign, go to the “Shop Manager” page on your Etsy account. Then click on “Marketing,” “Etsy Ads,” and “Get Started.”
- Specify your goals so Etsy can drive the best results for your shop.
- Set your maximum daily budget. Specify an amount between $1 and $25. A higher budget means Etsy will display your promoted listings in high-visibility places.
- Click “Start Advertising.” Your campaign is ready.
- Advertise and track the performance of your online ads for at least a month, as recommended by Etsy. Avoid changing its parameters during this time. It’s possible to adjust the maximum daily budget in the section “Manage your budget.”
- Optimize the listings further in the section “Manage advertised listings.”
- Visually check your ads’ performance in “Other options,” then “Show graphs.”
- Disable the Etsy advertising campaign anytime in “Other options,” then “Turn off ads.”
Valuable Etsy Advertising Tips
Setting up Etsy SEO and an Etsy advertising campaign aren’t static actions. A successful Etsy shop requires continuous re-evaluation and adaptation.
The Right Timing
Ideally, it’s better to start running Etsy ads after getting a couple of organic sales. Etsy will optimize the ads better by gathering data on the shop and sales – patience at this early stage will pay off.
Slow and Steady
Constantly test and evaluate, checking what works and what doesn’t.
Start with a lower budget, then scale up as you go and learn from the accumulated data. Don’t be afraid to stop advertising, diminish the budget, or even remove products that don’t sell.
Prioritize
Etsy recommends running ads for all products at the beginning or focusing on top sales-driving products, which would generate more ROI (Return On Investment) from what was invested initially with Etsy advertising.
Once more, stop promoting underperforming products, and consider taking them out of your site.
Track the Results and Evaluate
Etsy recommends keeping an ad campaign for at least a month. This will allow sellers to identify trends and adjust and optimize the product listings.
While products advertised are easily spotted in the search results, the ad performance can be tracked in the “Marketing” section, “Etsy Ads.”
Give special attention to the ROAS (Return On Ad Spend) and evaluate which advertised products give the best results.
Benefits of Advertising Your POD Products on Etsy
Integrating an Etsy shop with Printify is a low-risk way to sell immediately available high-quality, custom products without hassle with inventory management via POD.
Are Etsy ads worth it in partnership with POD? There are many advantages to creating an Etsy advertising campaign for your POD products:
- Promoted listings are displayed prominently in Etsy's search results.
- Etsy advertising increases brand awareness within the marketplace.
- Success purchases increase the Etsy shop rankings cumulatively. The more you sell now, the more you will sell in the future.
- Compared to social media advertisements like Facebook and Google ads, Etsy ads have a low cost for the seller, around $0.20-$0.50 per click.
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What Are Etsy Off-Site Ads
Etsy’s new off-site ads program has been in function since 2019. Previously, the platform advertised only through Etsy promoted listings and Google Shopping.
Etsy’s off-site ads advertise in external search engines like Google and Bing and social media platforms, including Facebook and Pinterest. The platform alone arranges off-site Etsy advertising without any control from the sellers. Still, it poses neither upfront costs nor initial risks.
If a shopper clicks on the ad and buys the product, sellers who sold less than $10,000 in the last year will be charged the Etsy advertising fee of 15%. Sellers who sold equal to or more than that amount will be charged 12%.
Off-site ad fees are charged over the product price and the shipping, on top of other fees such as those set from Etsy Payments and the basic listing fee per product. The sellers pay no more than a cap of $100.
The off-site ads program may bring visibility to an Etsy shop outside Etsy. However, although free publicity looks tempting, be cautious of off-site Etsy advertising, as it tracks products advertised via cookies for 30 days. If repeat customers click on an ad during this time, the fee will be charged per purchase.
If a product from your site starts being heavily promoted by Etsy advertising on third-party platforms, re-calculate your prices and expenses related to that product. Otherwise, you may lose money, especially when low-profit margins and free shipping are enabled.
How to Turn Off Etsy Off-Site Ads?
Etsy sellers can’t opt out of the off-site ads program after selling more than $10,000. Before that, to stop advertising, follow these steps:
- Go to the Shop Manager.
- Click on “Settings,” then “Off-site ads.”
- Click on “Stop promoting my products.”
Optimizing for Off-Site Advertising
Optimizing your product lists for off-site ads is similar to doing it for Etsy ads. The main difference is that products advertised by off-site ads are visible to a much wider audience, including on Google, Facebook, and other social media.
If you have a product frequently advertised by off-site ads, it can be optimized specifically for a broader market.
- Update your SEO continuously and keep tuned to market and niche changes outside Etsy. Constantly update tags and descriptions according to the best SEO practices.
- Catch the general customers' attention with exceptional product pictures. Take a look at these articles on our blog for taking pictures to boost your sales and top advice for taking product pictures for Etsy.
- Provide engaging product descriptions with complete, truthful, and valuable information. Add keywords wisely.
- Answer possible questions and concerns through product pictures, descriptions, and shop policies. That creates trust with the customers, leading them to pick your store.
How Much Do Etsy Ads Cost?
- The daily budget for Etsy ads ranges from $1-$25.
- Etsy charges from $0.20-$0.50 by ad click.
- Etsy off-site ads cost a 15% fee to sellers, with the last annual revenue lesser than $10,000 and 12% for those who reached it.
- The cap for off-site ads is $100 per transaction.
What Else Can I Do to Boost Sales on Etsy?
Remember that Etsy ads are an effective strategy to increase your store’s visibility and sales, but only if promoted with the strategies mentioned above.
In addition, consider the following tips for improving your Etsy advertising campaigns even more:
- Keyword research and SEO updating should be a constant practice. Keep researching and adjusting the course, updating tags and descriptions if needed.
- Take full advantage of social media exposure to advertise your shop and brand. Besides that, social media is a great medium to build reputation and trust with a customer base.
- Don't miss other marketing resources provided by Etsy, such as sales and coupons, and targeted offers.
Finally, treat yourself to our detailed guide on How to Sell On Etsy for additional insight on optimizing your shop for Etsy advertising and marketing.
Wrapping up – Selling and Promoting Print On Demand Products on Etsy
Are Etsy promoted listings worth it? At this point, you understand that you should carry out Etsy advertising with other marketing practices to be effective.
This article explained the requirements for advertising Etsy products and its benefits for POD businesses. You learned the difference between Etsy advertising options, including on-site and off-site ads, and how to optimize your store to get the most out of them.
Now it’s your turn. Design best-seller products with Printify, optimize your Etsy page and listings, start an Etsy advertising campaign, and profit with intelligence.
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The post How Etsy Advertising Can Boost Your POD Business appeared first on Printify.
