Selling on Artfire for free

Since my May post Where to sell handmade products online
I have felt somewhat homeless on the internet, a bit like in real life when I haven't felt sure where exactly I wanted to live or put down roots. The result has been a handful of items listed on one online selling venue and a handful there, while I make up my mind where to put the majority of my listings. Not having tried them all yet and not having sold anything either because I need to list more, promote more and buy more in order to build up my feedback, I am nonetheless getting a FEEL of what these different venues are like, so anything I write about any of them are all based on personal preference and not on sales figures (yet).

Etsy is a site that a few seem to do well on but is swamped with so many listings, and from what I've heard they look like they are going the way of ebay now they have become so big, as the complaints sound very much the same re customer service, treatment towards sellers etc and I still have the scars from ebay not to want to repeat all of that. Admittedly they get a lot more traffic to the site than some of the other online venues for handmade goods, so I will keep some presence there at least for now.

Folksy is the UK equivalent although only a year old and so not in the same league as Etsy even though some sellers have migrated over from there. It will no doubt grow but I'm getting the impression that there is little promotion going on for the site if the forum is anything to go by. Deciding whether to list some jewellery components under supplies I was surprised at how little there was in the category I was going to list in. Now this could be viewed either as negative in that there was less choice on this website, or positive as there was less competition and my listing wouldn't get buried like it would on Etsy. In fact the forum is the best part of Folksy for me (same for eBay now) and I have had some useful advice for improving my shop and am glad that I've now changed the banner more to my liking.



I remembered a seller on DaWanda who I had bookmarked as liking her banners so bought one from her, which I'd seen via a link to her website and which was also listed in her Etsy shop where I finally bought it. So I think this illustrates how having a presence on a number of websites is the way to go, but to maybe have a couple where the most effort towards listing is directed. For me I've decided to open an Artfire shop recently (or studio as it's called there) as my USA presence and to have DaWanda as the European one. At the moment I haven't found one based in the UK that I feel happy about joining, not that it matters as everything is shipped from the UK from any of my shops and Paypal converts the currency.

What I like about Artfire is the way you can see everything in your own currency and can also link to your other shops like Etsy. I've only taken out a basic account which allows you to list 12 items for free. For unlimited items and other features you can pay $12 dollars a month for an upgraded account as a verified member.

At the moment they have what they call a Freeride Program which involves referring 12 people to sign up for a verified account for the $12 a month subscription, and when you get 12 others to also sign up you can have your account (plus one for a friend) free for life - which means no subscription, no listing fees, no commission on sales, everything free - for ever! So check out Artfire yourself via my link below. I've only recently opened an Artfire shop so am still listing my items. If you decide to join as a verified member via my link (thank you!) I am one point nearer to having no fees and you can do the same once registered by referring others.

This promotion is for a limited time only, so act fast to start qualifying for your free account for life.

Click on this link to join Artfire's Freeride programme as a verified member and refer 12 others to get your account free for life.

Related posts:

Buying and Selling on DaWanda

Where to sell handmade products online

Buying and Selling on DaWanda

I've now opened a shop at DaWanda, a German owned shopping website for handmade gifts and craft items, so will be listing my jewellery in euros there as well as in dollars on Etsy. Have yet to decide which UK site to go for but feel occupied enough with listing on those two for now. DaWanda has versions of their website in English, French and German and you can buy or sell on any one of these, although selling on the non-English ones really does require language skills if you are to interact with customers, sort out queries etc. I'm told that the German one is the most successful one to sell on, but as I have zero German I'll only venture as far as the French one once I've listed enough in English.

Having said that I thought I would buy some jewellery supplies on the German DaWanda in order to start off my feedback score, as it is hard to start selling as a newbie with zero feedback on any website of this sort. Some items I also bought from Singapore and Turkey, but I could happily pay via Paypal for those using my credit card. Most people in Europe pay by bank transfer rather than by credit card when buying goods online, so as I use online banking I bought some coin charms from a lady in Austria for 2.70 euros. What I hadn't anticipated was the £9.50 in bank charges that my bank added on for this transaction. Rather than confirm and complete the transaction today, I'm having to phone my bank tomorrow to find out how I can pay such a small amount without such hefty charges.

And to make matters even more ridiculous, when I set up this international bank transfer I had to wait for an automatic phone call from my bank and type in a special code before they would allow me to proceed with transferring the sum of 2.70 euros. Give me Paypal any day, and fortunately most sellers on DaWanda accept Paypal. You do have to check the payment methods accepted by each seller though, as they vary. It makes me wonder whether I should scrap bank transfer as an accepted payment method from my own customers, although I don't recall ever having this sort of problem when I was selling on eBay a few years ago.

You are given up to 7 days to pay on DaWanda and I emailed the seller to tell her what had happened (in English) although I'm sure she thought I was talking about the currency exchange rate rather than my bank charges. Hopefully this will get sorted out somehow or other, but it does go to show how important it is to become familiar with a new website as a buyer first.

Where to sell handmade products online

Even though I only have a handful of jewellery items recently listed on Etsy.com so far, I was a bit concerned about something I read in the etsy forums regarding their search engine not working properly. Whether it is still a problem I'm not sure, but I have no intention of re-listing the same items on a daily basis just to ensure they can be visible on the site to potential buyers. I shall continue listing there as well as elsewhere so I can monitor the results, although haven't got around to doing any more to my Etsy shop lately. Am going to upgrade my camera, undo some of my existing jewellery work that hasn't yet been listed, and re-do the photos, upload listings on multiple sites including my own website which is under construction, and just delete any duplicate listings when something sells.

Today I'm seeking out other online selling websites for handmade jewellery and compiling a list of possibilities - so if you are successfully selling at any sites (apart from eBay or Etsy) please let me know so I can add them to the list, especially if they are based in the UK or Europe and therefore not priced in dollars. A few of the sites listed below are still fairly new so are not widely known to buyers yet. But if we advertise them on our blogs or websites we can soon spread the word, not just for the artisans and creators of handmade goods and art but for those seeking original or unusual gifts as many of these quality handcrafted goods are very good value and even underpriced compared with some of the lesser quality mass produced goods found in the high street stores. All the websites below allow you to open your own shop on the site.

UK

FOLKSY - Folksy champions cool crafts and design talent. We marry up designers and crafters with buyers who want individual, quality stuff that's made with love. Plus, we run design competitions and other fun stuff. Small scale production and handmade goods offer ways to manage resources effectively and support local economies. We're not anti-globalisation but we just like a thriving cottage industry too.

PINKDOODLE - Pinkdoodle is an online marketplace for buying and selling creative goods and services. Based in London, UK Pinkdoodle enables creative professionals from all over the world - ranging from artists and designers to craft specialists - to reveal their talent and market their products and services internationally, as well as offering buyers products and services that are rarely found on the high street.


EUROPE


DAWANDA - DaWanda is the place for unique and individual products and people.
Everybody who makes handmade products or offers customised and tailor made items can become a seller on DaWanda. Creating your shop is free. When you sell a product we take 5% commission from the sales value. Listing your items is currently free as well but we are planning to introduce a small listing fee per item in the future. Currently the listing period is not limited, so that every item stays listed until it is either sold or you unlist it. When you list a new item you can create your item in additional languages. Payment is by bank transfer for UK/European sellers.

(Note - Some sellers have said they found it hard to contact customers directly and needed to go through admin for this. Orders also need to be confirmed by seller via a link before buyer can pay).


USA


SILKFAIR - At Silkfair we aim to be the premier e-commerce site for users to buy and sell their handmade goods online. As long as you've got a valid credit card you can sign up. We're working on making Silkfair an international marketplace loaded with diversity of product from all around the globe. Sellers with existing eBay feedback scores can have their rating integrated into Silkfair profile. How much does it cost to sell items on Silkfair? Final Sales Fee : 3% of per item price sold. Listing your items to build your store at Silkfair is FREE, so upload as many items you want to sell as you want! However, although we would like to keep the system free from listing fees in the future as a long term permanent policy, we reserve the right to raise the possiblity of applying listing fees if abuse to the system occurs.


ARTFIRE - The premier online marketplace for handmade products designed by artisans around the globe. Our free community is designed for artisans to buy and sell their works, while celebrating unique handmade items and designs.

It is always free for buyers of handmade products to search through our listed artisans, buy, or request for items to be specially made. No matter if you are looking for local handmade crafts, or handmade products from artisans around the world Artfire is the marketplace for you.


RAMBLES - (To sell wholesale) Rambles is a retailer. If you are an artist, crafter or designer who wholesales and are interested in doing business with Rambles, please contact us by email with the info listed on the website.

We prefer to purchase items at a wholesale price. We also prefer to carry items that retail for less than $100. However, in special cases, we will carry more expensive items. We also carry items on a commission sale basis occasionally. Please indicate your preference (wholesale or commission) in your note.
Rambles is also your great gift hub. Know someone who’s stylish, different, eclectic, adventurous, unique, a true original? Rambles has the perfect gift for him or her.


MADEITMYSELF - Madeitmyself is a new online marketplace where users can buy and sell handmade goods. It’s the perfect way for vendors to display their unique wares while buyers search for and purchase one of a kind, hard to find items. Painters, sculptors, woodworkers and other artisans now have a way to turn their hobbies into profitable businesses. Registration is 100 percent free for buyers and sellers.
Along with the online marketplace, madeitmyself.com also provides a community feature where buyers and sellers can make special requests, share new ideas, collaborate on projects and much more.


Artisan Jewelry at RUBY LANE - As a seller on Ruby Lane, both you and your customers will be able to enjoy the pleasure of only Antiques & Art, Vintage Collectibles and Jewelry offerings on the site. There are no pop-up ads, no computers, cars, music CDs or other unrelated distractions. Ruby Lane's pricing is affordable even for small sellers. No commissions! There is a one time 30 cent Listing Fee to add each item; a once a month Maintenance Fee where the first 150 items is 30 cents for each item, and then each item over 150 is 20 cents (minimum $15 per month); an Advertising Fee of $20 per month per shop. Plus a one-time set-up fee of $75 which is refunded if your shop is not approved.

(Note - Well established and well advertised site, with more quality upmarket goods).


SMASHING DARLING - SmashingDarling is a place for EVERYONE who loves fashion that thinks beyond the mall. Whether you want to shop, sell your own designs, meet others, or just see what's new and hot in independent fashion...Smashing Darling is the place that brings all of these elements together and is a community like no other.

Who can sell? We accept most fashion items in clothing, jewelry, vintage, and accessories categories. If you’re not sure whether your items are suitable for our site, please feel free to drop us an email. Unlike just about every other site out there, SmashingDarling.com is absolutely FREE to designers until you actually make a sale. We do not charge for image uploads, listing fees, or anything of the sort. You’re welcome to have as many boutiques as you wish, with as many images and items as you want. When an item sells there is an 18% fee, otherwise, it is free to be there with as many stores and items as you would like.

( To sell if not in the US , contact us at info@smashingdarling.com)

YESSY ART GALLERY - Yessy promotes artists around the world. You can view artists in your country by using the Advanced Search to search by "Region". The annual fee is only $59. When a buyer pays through the Yessy ordering system, then a low 10% escrow/payment processing fee applies. This covers credit card transaction fees, escrow service, and related payment processing costs. There are no other fees. Funds are transferred to you directly into your bank account, or into your PayPal account, or by mailing you a check. You choose these options through your Commerce form after you have created your gallery.

What items can't I display on Yessy? Do not post anything that is not art. If it wouldn't be on display in an art gallery, don't display it on Yessy. Categories include jewellery, textiles, glass, drawings/paintings, ceramics, photography etc.
To avoid being charged the annual membership fee, you are fully responsible for canceling your account before, or on the exact date/time your 14 day free trial expires.

Related posts:

Selling on Artfire for free

Buying and Selling on DaWanda

World of Handmade - 1000markets.com

Thought I would do a monthly write-up of handmade jewellery items I’ve found on the web by other sellers that I like. It also gives me the opportunity to learn about different materials and beads that I’ve never heard of before, as well as stumbling upon interesting new selling websites for handmade goods. I have yet to do a thorough exploration of Etsy’s jewellery-makers, which is the only selling venue I have listed on so far. I hope to feature different sellers each month of handmade jewellery, whether on Etsy or elsewhere. There is also a new UK site like Etsy called Folksy, and no doubt I shall eventually register on there too. And now I have discovered yet another online selling venue for handmade goods, still US based and in dollars, called 1000markets.com.

This is the blurb that describes 1000markets:

Our merchants are small, independent, artisan businesses built by people who love their craft. They make and sell unique products, based on their own vision, personality and story. Working together, these artisans create marketplace

communities - gathering places where merchants can

exchange ideas, and customers can browse and talk. Our markets are large and small, broad and narrow. Some have themes, like food, crafts, or art. Others cultivate a sense of place around a region. And some exist simply because the people in them share friendship or common values. Each market fosters its own one-of-a-kind community, always unique and interesting.

To buy products or contact any of the sellers you have to register on 1000markets.com with a username and password. If you choose to purchase products on the site, you must have an Amazon.com account. When you're ready to checkout, you’ll be asked to enter your Amazon.com email address and password. Then you’ll be able to easily and quickly access your account information from Amazon.com and return to 1000 Markets to complete your purchase.

I have just found out that 1000 Markets, being new, is currently only available for US buyers and sellers, but will no doubt expand internationally later on.
Jewelry Artisans' Marketplace is a good place to start browsing the jewellery shops, although there are plenty more markets featuring jewellery on 1000markets.com. Not easy picking a couple of examples of the month from so many interesting jewellery pieces, but this bracelet really fascinated me.

Dragonfly Sterling Silver Cuff Bangle Bracelet $196.00 USD

From the shop Musthaves, the seller says : This one is not for someone that likes dainty pieces of jewelry. This cuff bracelet makes a statement and is sure to get noticed! I made this bracelet with different gauges of sterling silver wire, one heart charm, one dragonfly charm, cubic zirzonia briolettes and some Austria crystals for sparkle. I have oxidized, hardened and polished the sterling silver in this bracelet.

Musthaves also has a shop of the same name on Etsy.

From the lower price bracket, I liked these furnace glass earrings by Charmed I’m Sure.

Strawberry Mint Furnace Glass Earrings $13.00 USD

Handcrafted earrings of David Christensen’s furnace glass chubs of crystal clear glass with green and white stripes, and wide bands of pink, combined with tiny corrugated Bali spacers, green Czech fire-polish beads, and 5mm rose Swarovski crystals. They dangle slightly more than 1.25 inches (3.18cm) from 20 gauge hand-formed sterling silver ear wires.

Featured in Etsy Treasury already

Was listing a few more jewellery items on Etsy for the second time the other night, bringing my inventory up to around 7 (I’m sure I’ll get faster at listing with practice), so was pleasantly surprised yesterday morning when I read my emails to find one from an Etsy member who informed me that one of my items had been chosen to be featured in her Treasury! I took this as a good omen for my new venture , but being a newbie I needed to find out what exactly a Treasury was. This is what it says about it on Etsy:


Have you ever wanted to pick the Etsy.com home page items? Do you have the desire to choose and feature only 12 items from the list of thousands currently available for sale on Etsy? The following is some info to help you on your way...if you're diligent and lucky enough to snag a spot on the Treasury (it's in high demand!).

The Treasury is a member-curated gallery of short-lived lists of 12 hand-picked items each (plus four alternates). It functions as a high-demand (and pretty!) promotional tool that many devoted Etsians fight to get. Members can feature their favorite items, items selected on a theme, or just however they like. The Treasury is not intended for self-promotion, but instead to acknowledge and share the many cool things for sale on Etsy.


So, my shop is cool already! :-)
I feel quite honoured to have been included in someone’s Treasury on only day 2 of listing some items for sale, and I’m sure my Karnak earrings are now destined for fame and fortune !! (especially if this Treasury is ever picked for the Etsy home page). I've since reduced the price of all my Venetian glass earrings from $20 to $17.00 (£11.95) as a special introductory offer until the end of March.

Karnak earrings
Cobalt blue Venetian glass bead filled with silver, topped with real gold filled yellow glass foil bead, with a clear AB crystal bead on top for extra sparkle. Tiny copper coated smooth crystal bead at base. Supplied with silver ear wires.

The blue is quite vivid (I've not touched the colour in the photo) and they have an inner glow due to the real silver inside the bead.

Artefact Creations - my Etsy shop

Artefact Creations started off as an idea to make jewellery pieces based on museum exhibits, amongst other things. I may still get around to going to the British Museum for some inspiration, but meanwhile I'm having enough fun just using my imagination or letting the beads themselves suggest combinations of form, texture and colour.

Having looked on the internet and seen other websites attempt similar things, I decided I didn't want to create exact looking replicas but to use ancient jewellery as a starting point for my ideas. I also knew that I didn't want to use any modern materials like acrylics or plastics, and neither did I want any of my beads on stretchy elastic or any modern thread. For me, even the parts I couldn't see were still important.

I prefer to work with mainly with copper and brass wire or chain. My beads are either threaded directly on to the wire itself or linked by a handmade chain. Sometimes I use ready-made chain just for the extension chain, if I use one.
It takes some restraint on my part not to hammer and harden the links until daytime, as I'm sure my neighbours would not appreciate that at two or three in the morning.

As I have described in my etsy shop, I see my jewellery as being a blend of both ancient and contemporary style. I like unfussy designs that are bold and interesting enough to make a statement, as well as being intensely colourful. One of the reasons I love Venetian glass beads is that they are very colourful and have an inner radiance that glows when the light shines on them, due to the 24k gold (or sometimes silver) that they are filled with.

I have to search in different places to get the colours I want, eg. my local bead shop does not do a very good red Venetian glass bead but they do a very good gold - still, the treasure hunt is all part of the fun! I also like using a mix of swarovski crystal beads and semi-precious or glass beads, so there is some variation and contrast of shape, texture and sparkle.

Looking around my local department store recently in the costume jewellery section, I was amazed at some of the high prices charged for designs made from very inferior looking metals and cheap materials. I think quality is as important as design and I may get around to copying that necklace I saw priced at £65, which could have been made out of tin in Taiwan, and can't wait to see how it will look using better quality materials.