4 Ways to Improve Your SEO and Increase Your Traffic on Etsy

We use Google, Yahoo, or Bing for hunting down a variety of places, items, and information and probably don’t really concern ourselves with how the info at the top of page one got there. Or why, for that matter, the sites that we expected to find aren’t there.

 

The art of getting found in a search engine’s results is big business. Depending on the type of site, organic search traffic is usually one of the biggest traffic drivers for all websites — the art of which is called Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

 

Search Engine Optimization is a mouthful, but don’t let the title put you off. Sure, if you read up on the subject, it can seem very overwhelming, but SEO is actually a simple series of steps that can make a huge difference to attracting free traffic.

 

Are you ready to get started? Here are four simple steps for increasing your chances of being found in search engine results pages.

 

1. Know That Content Is King

 

Search engines love unique content — they use it to determine what a web page is about and then match up a page to a search query. As an Etsy seller, there are several main content components areas you need to concentrate on:

• Create unique and strong product titles. Think about keywords that shoppers would use to search for your product and include them in your product titles. If you carry similar products, ensure that each product title is unique. For example, if you have two black tote bags featuring slightly different patterns, don’t call them just “black tote”; instead, add details, such as “Black Tote Bag With Blue Diamond” and “Black Tote Bag With Red Design.” Be obvious about what you’re calling something and use standard terms. Don’t use excessively long product titles — instead, aim for about 80 characters. If you’re unsure what people are searching for, Google’s keyword research tool can help you find out.
• Flesh out item descriptions. Use less obvious terms to describe your shop items and expand your product titles.
• Fill out your About page. This will tell the search engine all about your shop.

2. Get Link-Happy

 

Because search engines use links to determine ranking order, links have always been one of the most important elements of SEO. There’s no rule on how many links will help, as each link will have a different value. For example, a link from CNN to your Etsy shop might be worth more than 10 (or 100) small blog links. But all links (big and small) help. Here are some simple tips to help draw in links:

 

• Do you have a blog? Don’t be shy about self-promotion — don’t go overboard, but certainly link to your Etsy shop/listings where possible.
• See your items featured outside Etsy? If the blog doesn’t include a link to your item, contact the editor to request a link; they might say no, but no harm in asking!
• Link between listings on your site. Internal linking helps pass link authority from one page to the next, giving search engines signs that pages are also related or grouped.
• Network. If you know sites that are seeking content and guest blog posts, volunteer to put your content on other people’s sites.
• Don’ts: Never buy a link and don’t use spammy techniques such as third-party forum postings or directory listings — search engines can see through dodgy link building practices.

 

3. Put Your Social Media to Work

 

Social media’s not just great for being social; it’s a great way to showcase your shop listings. Using Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn, and Google+ are great ways to show search engines that people are talking about your shop or listings. Yahoo and Bing particularly use social signals as a ranking signal, so if you have one of these channels running, use them to promote yourself. The other secondary bonus is people may link to you from your social promotion.

4. Be Patient and Don’t Obsess

 

SEO can take time to take effect, so be patient. Also, you’re not the only Etsy seller tweaking pages, so you might see your pages start to rank slowly and see some ups and downs. While search engines like fresher content, don’t think this means you should tweak your pages each day. Keep pages reasonably static (for example, no changing unless you have to). Also, try to use pages several times; if your listing sells out and you’re able to restock, try to reuse this page when it’s back.

 

Importantly, don’t stress about Google’s PageRank value. This is a rather old way of viewing pages and is too generic to mean much in today’s SEO. PageRank is often misunderstood and not necessarily accurate now.

 

https://blog.etsy.com/en/2013/4-ways-to-improve-your-seo/

 

7 Marketing Mistakes to Avoid

Crafty, creative businesses like yours are making and selling unique goods people want to buy. But with millions of products to choose from, it’s critical that customers can find your shop — and understand what sets it apart. These common marketing mistakes could be keeping your business from reaching its full potential. Here are some tips for making the most of your marketing efforts.

 

Photo by Catshy Crafts

 

Mistake #1: Spreading Yourself Too Thin On Social Media

 

It can be tempting to want a presence on every social media platform out there. After all, more eyes on your message means more customers, right? But, trying to do too much can cause unnecessary stress and take away from creative work.

 

“Recognize that the time you spend on social media to connect with customers and promote your business is really different than the time you spend connecting with friends,” says Kari Chapin, author of The Handmade Marketplace. “Know what your end goal is. What value are you putting out there to your customers?”

 

Chapin recommends monitoring your traffic from social media sites in your Shop Stats and focusing on the platforms where your customers are most engaged (in other words, where they’re commenting, clicking and liking) and skip those that don’t work for your business.

 

“I market on Instagram and Pinterest, because I know that my customers are there,” says Marika Reppas of Love, Meeksie, an Etsy shop based in Los Angeles that sells handmade fabric button earrings and tiny studs. Reppas maximizes her time on Instagram by searching for hashtags that buyers of her gemstone earrings might be using and commenting on and liking their photos.

 

Mistake #2: Thinking Like Yourself Instead of Your Customer

 

When writing listing descriptions, titles or tags, ask yourself, “What does my customer need to know?” “Even if you think a detail of your product is obvious, you can’t guarantee that the customer does as well,” Chapin says.

 

Shannon Kennedy, founder of Winter Park, Florida-based Etsy shops Sass and Peril and The Paper Cub, turned to friends when she needed help marketing her whimsical, screenprinted baby goods and prints. “I didn’t have kids, so I wasn’t thinking about it as someone who has a child,” Kennedy says. “I consulted with my friends who had kids and asked them what they would type in if they were looking for baby gifts.” As a result, Kennedy made her titles and tags more descriptive, adding terms such as “new baby” or “shower gift.”

 

Mistake #3: Not Explaining Why Your Product is Special

 

Giving customers a peek into your process and telling your story on your About page and through social media are great ways to make your business stand out in the marketplace. “When people make a decision to buy something handmade or one of a kind, they’re looking for something more,” Chapin says. “That something extra is generally emotional. You’re giving them something from your own two hands that they can’t get anywhere else.”

 

Kennedy recognizes that customers might not be familiar with the process that makes her prints special. “Since a lot of my work is screenprinted, it is my job to convey that to the customer,” she says. “It’s the value of what I do.” In her listing descriptions, Kennedy describes the unique texture screenprinting gives her prints and cards and emphasizes that each piece is screenprinted by hand, which results in one-of-a-kind variations.

 

Shannony Kennedy’s listing description for this card in her shop, The Paper Cub, emphasizes that it is hand printed, and, as a result, no two are alike.

 

Mistake #4: Hiding Your Personality

 

Another part of what makes buying on Etsy special is that customers know they’re spending their money supporting a real person with a passion for creating. Make sure your presence is felt in your shop. Reppas of Love, Meeksie infuses her positive personality into her shop through the cheerful colors on her packaging, fast and thoughtful customer service, and even her shop name, a play on her nickname. “In my item descriptions, I use a lot of ‘I’ statements to convey why I love my products,’” Reppas says. “People think differently about an item when they feel like they’re talking to the person who made it.”

 

Marika Reppas of Love, Meeksie uses cheerful yellow packaging to give her shop a friendly vibe. Including her shop name and web address in the images without using a watermark is a creative way to increase brand name recognition.

 

Mistake #5: Focusing on One-Time Sales

 

Making a sale feels great, but turning a one-time buyer into a loyal customer feels even better. Including your brand name on packaging, or even on your product itself, will ensure that customers remember where they purchased something and keep your name on the tip of their tongue. Be sure to include business cards or other promos in your packages as well. “When I bought my first handmade bag, the seller asked if I would like extra business cards,” Chapin says. “Over the course of our 10-year relationship, I’ve had to ask for more cards. She empowered me to talk to other people about her products.”

 

Kennedy uses her design skills to create memorable marketing materials, including a bulletin-board-worthy “Thank You” card featuring her popular animal designs and stickers printed with her web address. She uses simple materials to keep the costs down.

 

Shannon Kennedy’s sweet fox postcard is a nice “freebie” customers can hang onto. A coupon code on the back encourages repeat purchases

 

Mistake #6: Falling Out of Touch

An email newsletter can be another great way to keep customers engaged with your brand or even turn curious observers of your shop into buyers. But many sellers worry about annoying their customers with too many emails. That’s a big mistake, Chapin says. “Not being able to stay in touch with the customers who purchased from you is a big impediment to continuing to sell or grow,” she explains. “If someone signs up for your list, it means they want to hear from you.”

 

Kennedy collects email addresses for her MailChimp newsletter using a link in order confirmation emails and on her Facebook page, and through a paper sign-up sheet at selling events. Her advice? “Keep it short, keep it sweet,” she says. “A big graphic above the fold will entice people to click.” Kennedy says she typically sends one newsletter a month to promote new product lines or promotions, saving smaller shop updates for social media.

 

Mistake #7: Looking Unprofessional

 

Just like a real-world storefront, your virtual shop should look like a place people can feel comfortable spending their money. One way Reppas instills a sense of trust in shoppers is by including customer feedback in the body of her listing description. “It gives buyers a feeling that other people liked the product, which makes them feel safer about buying it,” she says. It also has the added bonus of helping customers imagine how a product could be used — for example, one customer described the earrings she had purchased from Reppas as “perfect for daily wear.”

 

Having thorough Shop Policies is a great start to making your shop feel trustworthy. “People will see [your professionalism] in the care you put into your listings,” Chapin says. “If you have typos, or haphazard capitalization, people might feel like you’re not really into it. That’s definitely sending a message about how you treat your business.”

 

https://blog.etsy.com/en/2014/7-marketing-mistakes-to-avoid/