My Etsy Journey Timeline

I started this Etsy Journey about 3 weeks ago (late August, 2018). (Click the purple link to read why it took me so long jump on that bandwagon.)

Even though I have decades a few years (ahem) of serious crochet experience, I only now joined the Etsy crowd. 

Week 2

I accidentally went live about a week ago. I have been creating new designs and patterns which naturally takes time. I was making about one new item every couple of days. The pattern writing takes the longest. 

And then there’s the photos. Yeow! That is a pain in and of itself. I don’t yet have professional photo equipment or easy access to models. So I’ve been making do with an Ipad camera and myself (cropping my head as much as possible!).

This post contains affiliate links which means I may receive a small commission for purchases made from these links at no additional cost to you.

So, I was taking my time adding items to my Etsy shop before going live with it when I got an email saying I needed to complete the payment page. Ok. So I did that thinking it was just another step to complete BEFORE going live. But oh no…turns out once you complete that page YOU ARE LIVE.

Uhhhg. I only had about three items uploaded. So I had to scramble to create more pronto! 

You don’t give customers a lot of confidence if they only see three items in your shop! 

I now have 11 items uploaded. Whoo hoo!! Ok, well, it’s a start. And that’s quite a lot in such a short time frame. I”ve been working around the clock designing, pattern writing, photographing, editing, setting up this blog and writing articles.  Whew! Such a whirlwind and I”m having a blast!

Want to join me? Start here.

Oh, and so far no sales on Etsy. I didn’t expect to have any this early on. So it’s all good. Check it out: CrazyCoolCrochetUS

In case you’re wondering why my Etsy shop has US tacked onto the name, somebody else already took the name Crazy Cool Crochet. Drat. So Etsy sticks US (as in United States) on the name to differentiate. 

That’s the update thus far. Check back to see when I make that coveted first sale!

Update to Week 2: 

Got my first Etsy sale on day 13! Whoo hoo! Sold a pillow pattern. I had 14 listings at the time and had a spike of activity after a Facebook post. Feeling rejuvenated!

Update to Update! Made another sale on the same day! Double whoo hoo!! I can get used to this. Update to the update to the update…two more sales! Yeow!!

Week 4

Sales at my Etsy shop, CrazyCoolCrochetUS, continue to trickle in. Each sale is still a thrill. Then I get all mopey if a day goes by with no sales. 🙁 I have to remind myself it’s only been 4 weeks! It will take time to get found. And of course with no reviews yet it makes people wary and hesitant. I’m assuming. But I keep crazy busy designing, creating, writing patterns and taking photos. And I LOVE it all! 

I have 19 items on the Etsy shop now. It’s coming along! UPDATE: a few hours after writing wk 4 the largest transaction to-date came in! Five patterns. Very cool!

Again, if you want to join me on this journey and set up your own blog to feature/sell your crochet creations, head over to this page: Start a Blog

It all ties in. This CrazyCoolCrochet.com blog sends readers to Etsy. And for the Etsy customers who find my shop from Etsy searches they see all of my references to CrazyCoolCrochet.com in my profile and in the pattern descriptions. It’s a big beautiful circle! Not to mention all the social networking on Pinterest, Instagram and Facebook. Ok, I guess I mentioned it. LOL 

Week 6

I have 22 listings up, all crochet patterns. Sales come in about 3 or 4 per week. I only have about 4 or 5 visitors per day. Usually half come from social media and the other half from Etsy searches. Considering how little traffic I’m getting, the sales are pretty good. Can’t wait to see how sales improve with more traffic.

I did a review of my sales and I’ve made 23 sales in exactly one month’s time from the date of my first sale!! Holy Toledo Batman! I consider that an amazing success rate! Look at all those exclamation points!!

If that’s not validation that having your own blog/website improves your Etsy sales I don’t know what is. I’m telling ya’ll…you gotta get that blog started! And with that, I can help: Start that Blog!

Week 8

Traffic to my Etsy shop has grown quite a bit; tripled over the past couple of weeks. The traffic to my blog grew even more. As I keep repeating…the blog, this blog, CrazyCoolCrochet.com is having a huge impact on the Etsy traffic. 

I have written an income report post that shows exactly how much I earned from Etsy in month 2. Check it out: Income Report

Week 12

Etsy sales are brisk now; from 1 – 3 per day. I now have 27 listings (patterns). During the Thanksgiving season traffic slowed to a crawl. People were in holiday mode and I only had one holiday themed item. I scrambled to create and write a Christmasy pattern. The instant I hit  “publish” a sale came in. Doh! Lesson learned. Next year I will be better prepared!

About 40% of the traffic is coming from this blog; 20% from Etsy searches; and the remainder from social media (Pinterest; YouTube). As you can see, a crochet blog such as CrazyCoolCrochet is crucial to the success of a new Etsy shop!

Week 18

Sales on Etsy are going well. I have 29 listings and really need to step it up! Sometimes I’ll do a freebie pattern at CrazyCoolCrochet.com and not a paid pattern for Etsy so the Etsy shop needs more attention.

Traffic to the blog is growing, but slower than hoped. However, my YouTube channel is taking off nicely! The most popular video for the Pumpkin Spice Fall Poncho , as of this writing, has over 10,000 views! Holy Smokes! Per new 2018 rules, you cannot monetize on YouTube until you get 1000 subscribers and 4000 viewed hours in a 12 month period. Subscribers are starting to really pick up. They say subscribers start growing exponentially once you get some traction. I’m confident that by the time I hit the required numbers I’ll be getting some decent income from the Google ads. Fingers crossed! Oh…if you haven’t already subscribed…PLEASE SUBSCRIBE! Click the little red button at the bottom right of any video (links are above). I so much appreciate it!!

Oh! Another milestone: I reached 1000 followers on Pinterest! Yay! I remember in month two worrying that I only had 200 followers. Hard work pays off! Read more about that journey here:

How to Monetize with Pinterest

As you may have noticed, I’ve added a more detail about the blog and YouTube and less about Etsy. This is just to show that all the various income streams are totally tied together. The journey is all inclusive.

If you are on the fence about starting an Etsy shop, or have a shop that does not generate as many sales as you would like, do yourself a favor and START A CROCHET BLOG now!

Look here to see how to get started: Start a Crochet Blog

One Year Update

Etsy. At about the one year mark I have made about 450 sales (crochet patterns) with 41 patterns.

I have been placing a lot more emphasis on my YouTube channel. Word is video will replace blogs in the near future. Dunno about that…but in any case…I’m hedging my bets. LOL. I did finally get monetized on YouTube and it’s nothing to write home about. Uhg. SO much work for about $1 a day. I have about 3100 subscribers which is nice but not great. It is, however, growing exponentially day over day.

So all in all, my original plan for my overall crochet business is going well. I still have a long way to go before getting to full-time income status…but it is definitely going to be there someday. Yay!