Venturing into the World of Etsy

I have been going back and forth about whether to start an Etsy shop or not and I have finally come to a decision... I'm going through with it! It's a great site for people to buy and sell handmade items and I would definitely recommend checking it out if you haven't already! I've looked through their photography section and specifically at nature macro photography and I do feel like I could eventually sell some of my work.

My main worry about setting up a shop is having it turn out to be a complete failure and not sell one item! I suppose this is many people's concern when they are thinking about doing this but obviously a lot of people still go through with it. I've done a lot of research about setting a shop up and it will definitely be a lot of hard work and will take a lot of patience.

It seems to be that getting traffic to the site will be very important because obviously if people aren't looking at your shop then you arent going to be getting any sales! So before I actually set up a shop, I am trying to get more of a following and social media is a fantastic way of doing this.

I have made an Instagram account that is just focused on my photography and isn't personal. I feel like this will be a good way to show my work because of the hashtag system they have. I have a link to my online portfolio on there so if people are interested in seeing more of my work then they can. If you want to check out my Instagram, my username is: katherinepowellphotography

I am also planning on setting up a twitter account when I've set up an Etsy shop as this is a good way to tell my followers when I've put new items on my shop.

There is also this blog, which is my way of showing what I am up to with a bit more detail.

I have looked at a lot of other photographers on Etsy and a lot of them don't just sell prints. They also sell phone cases, mugs, coasters, bags, cushions etc. with their photos printed on them. This is definitely something I am going to look into more and check out prices.

This is just one example of what I could sell. I think my style of photos would work well with phone cases. This particular photo is of a Sow thistle head with water drops on it.

I think it would be good to have a range of products to sell because it would hopefully introduce a range of customers instead of people just looking for a photo print.

Setting up this shop will by no means be what I pay the bills with. I am being realistic with it and realise it will be difficult to get even one sale. It's more of a project for me to do up until I go travelling and then once I come back and get a full time job, it can be something I do on the side. It is also a good way for me to still do photography and I am really looking forward to getting the shop up and running! It will take a while before I do start putting my work up for sale because there is quite a lot I have to think about first and there's lots of planning to do but I am really excited!

If you have any advice on how I should start an Etsy shop then feel free to comment! Any help is welcome by me!

If you would like to see more of my work then check out my website using the following link: www.katherinepowellphotography.com