New! Etsy descriptions and rewrites available

Are you creative, but hate writing?

Do you overlook some of the minute details in your item descriptions that cost you sales?

If you love Etsy but hate the time it takes to post your item descriptions, or if you feel like any of your descriptions need a little life breathed into them, let Alicia in Wonderland do it for you!

This item is for an Etsy description you have already posted in your shop (or written). Yet, would like to have edited for clarity and grammatical accuracy. Or, for those of you who would just like to catch your buyer's attention with descriptive language.


Did you know...

1. When buyers notice small details such as grammatical errors and mis-spelled words, they may doubt your attention to detail in your craft, as well.

2. The flow of your writing can affect the way a buyer connects to your product.

3. Most buyers will skim through a product description, and important product information such as the dimensions, materials, and buying instructions are often overlooked if not organized in a way that is clear to your customers.

Your description will be written within 24 hours. If you are unhappy with any of the written material, please convo me, and I will rewrite your description until you are completely happy!

A newbie's guide to Etsy

I've worked in customer service for over 10 years, and I never thought I would actually use any of the advice, tips, and tricks I've learned along the way. You see, the problem was that I was always selling someone else's stuff. I've worked for Habitude Salon and Spa, Aveda, Best Buy (as a sales associate, and later for corporate marketing) The Body Shop, Track and Trail, and Old Navy- just to name a few.

You have a completely different perspective when you're selling someone else's stuff. Not only are you trying to convince the customer they need to buy, you're trying to convince yourself the customer "needs" what you are selling.

But when you are selling your own items, you are selling a part of yourself as well, and its important to remember to distinguish yourself from your product, just as it is important to sell yourself through your product.

Needless to say, I've encountered some learning experiences on Etsy (even though I have only been on the site for a few weeks) and I'd like to share them with everyone and encourage everyone to share their experiences in the comments section. We are all going to fall down every once in awhile, but we can all be there to help each other back up.

1. The admins are not joking when they "strongly recommend" good pics. I've seen some so-so items on the front page that I'd gladly fork over $100 for, based on the pictures alone. If you know anyone who has studied photography, ask them to help. Better yet, have a photo shoot with your items. Literally, bring them around town, and try taking pictures of them in crazy places. Its fun and you're sure to get some great pics! Ditch the flash and opt for natural light!

2. The customer is always right. The customer is always right. The customer is always right. What happens if they're not wrong? Trick question! They are always right! This is super important for beginners. Setting aside your pride and making your customers happy is the only way to run a successful business. Feel free to ask them, "what can I do to make you happy?" It shows you care about them, even if you're not sure why they are upset.

3. Don't buy a showcase until you have 2 pages of stock, and tons of fabulous pictures! I spent $7 on my first showcase, went to bed, and expected to wake up on the day of the showcase with hundreds of sales! Not! I think I got around 45 hits that day, which is the same amount of hits I get from an hour in the forum. Don't buy a showcase until you are ready.

4. Network, network, network. Try to learn a new networking technique every week, day, month, whatever. Set a goal and learn Twitter, Facebook, Stumbled Upon, or whatever network site you choose. And don't just tweet or stumble your own stuff. That technique is network suicide! Its like walking into a party and only talking about yourself. Networking is promoting others to promote yourself.

5. Buy a banner! Unless you are a graphic design goddess, pay someone else to do it for you. Banners range from $5-$20. Its worth it. I bought a custom banner from ThompsonDesigns and it was worth every penny. I make around $22 an hour at may day job, and had I tried to make my own banner it would have taken two, and it would not be as beautiful as the one I bought. I get compliments all the time.

6. Don't try to do everything yourself. Ask for help. Offer trades. I trade cards and candles with my hair stylist. Every time I get a haircut, she gets to pick out a few items. Whenever people go over her house for dinner, they smell the candle burning and she give them my card. Whenever I go anywhere people compliment me on my hair and I give them her card. Its win-win.

7. Stick with it! A watched pot never boils and its always when you look away and aren't trying so hard that the sales come rushing in!

Who Wants a Mustache Ride?

This has inevitably become my most popular greeting card. Sweet, simple, and to the point. Plus, mustaches are way in right now-especially ones of the handlebar variety.

Josephine wished she had used a condom

This is the very first card I made. I bought the photograph from a man at the Fremont Sunday Market who purchases old photos in bulk from estate sales. I was really excited when I started to read the inscriptions on the back-sides of the photos and postcards I had purchased when I realized most of the photos were (or belonged to) the same woman at different stages of her life. Her last name had changed on many of the more recent photos and cards, and I knew she must have gotten married at that point!


If the camera steals your soul when it takes your picture, my apartment is getting pretty crowded with old souls!

Outside: "Josephine wished she had used a condom."
Inside: "I'm glad your parents didn't. Happy Birthday"

Introduction

Let's face it: I've spent the majority of my 27 years attempting to be ridiculously funny. Fortunately for me, I always manage to crack myself up immensely. Unfortunately for others, not everyone enjoys my humor (boo).

Luckily, I've found a healthy medium to channel my funny and equally crafty nature: cards. Duh. It was kind of a no-brainer. My sister, who is also incredibly crafty and insanely funny started card-making a few years ago, and now she's stampin' right up to the top with her designs.

I am fortunate to have a creative and loving, supportive family, that includes not only those who I am endlessly bound to (my relatives) but the family I have inevitably chosen to share my life with- my friends.

A few things in my life inspire me to create:

1. Bacon- I don't know when the first time its salty, greasy, goodness came in contact with my mouth, but except for a near-death incident that required the heimlick maneuver, I don't ever want to remember a time without my pork-bellied friend. Sadly, I'm only allowed to enjoy it now, under supervision, but its usually worth the wait.

2. Finding humor in everyday life.

3. Enjoying my life through the understanding that the world is much, much larger than my immediate world- There is a blind man who lives in my neighborhood and I often see him walking near 1st ave and Mercer with his daughter, who must be about seven years-old. Every time I see them, I notice no matter how slow the man walks, his daughter is always extremely patient with him. She never rushes him or looks bored- she's always focused on what he's doing. I can't imagine having that kind of patience. Sometimes I feel impatient with cars that drive too slow when I'm trying to cross the street.

4. Always looking for a way to better my life while learning new ways to enjoy the one I have.