Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Circling on Etsy / My Sister

Building a presence on the internet is a necessity if you are going to have a successful online business.   The same is true on Etsy.

One of the ways to help build a presence on Etsy is to build up your circles.   When someone chooses to add your shop to their circle, then your activity shows up in their activity feed - such as when you favorite an item, or a shop or a treasury, or add someone to your circle.   Essentially, they are saying that they like some of the same things that you like and would like to see more of what you like in the future.

It really is quite easy to build your circles simply by adding shops or people to your circle.   Often, but not always, they will circle you back - and your circle count grows!

My method for choosing shops to add to my circle is to go to my Favorites - either Favorite Items or Favorite Shops.   I select a shop or item that I like - one either with similar items as those that I carry, or with a similar style (even if the item or items or totally different) to items that I carry.   Then, I go to the list of those that have Favorited the item or shop.   There you will find a list of shops and people who have favorited the item or shop.   You will also find a count of how many circles each one is in, as well as how many items they have favorited and pictures of the last four items they favorited.

Now, you have to determine what your criteria will be for including a shop or person in your circle.   I NEVER include a "Secret Admirer".   They keep their favorites private, so that their favorites never hit the activity feed.   Generally, I choose shops that have at least 50 members in their circles, indicating that they have been around for at least a little while.   I also look for those that have at least as many items favorited as the number of circles they are in.   This tells me that they will be involved in getting items into the activity feed for their circle members to see.   All of this helps to get items seen.  

The reason for choosing shops or people that like the same styles that I sell is that some of those will also favorite my shop, which serves as an added bonus!

New Addition to My Shop !

This week, my sister joined my shop.  She will be bringing her creativity in the form of things that she sews and jewelry that she makes.  The first of her items added to the shop are three handmade Christmas Tree Skirts.  Generally going beyond just sewing the skirt together, she also adds details such as paint, glitter, sequins, ruffles, gemstones and crystals.  These are truly heirloom quality!  Be sure to check them out -



Have a great day and Thank you for joining me here today! 
Please leave a comment - I love to hear from my followers.