The Etsy Treasury , Tips for Making it To the Front Page...Selling, Exposure for Shops

From our very own  Leuckit, Fill me with love.....

 We've been talking a lot about the *free* Etsy Treasury tool lately.  Our team requires one per month, and I know plenty of you do them more than that. *BIG THANK YOU*  If we have 200 members, making 200 treasuries a month, featuring 16 items per month, the chances of your shop being in it is pretty great--do the math. *If you have three shops you can simply make your quota of 3 treasuries out of one store if you wish.*

Cornerstop offers these cute I love Etsy Tags!

PROOF IN THE PUDDING:
Here is proof of what a Treasury can do for a team.  This one, posted by the Vesties, hit THE FRONT PAGE of Etsy and almost all the items have sold.  That is amazing. That's what WE NEED.  The Vesties have found a way to make it to the front page several times recently.  

They are reading the Storque, and articles such as THIS ONE FROM MERCHANDISING DESK talk about what Etsy is looking for for the given month.

If you make it to the front page, your item will get lots of close-up views. This bow by JenLucasDesigns.

Once a treasury I was in hit the front page, and that day I had over 700 views to my shop and sold a crapload of items later that week. Some of those customers still shop with me now.  I find that even if people don't buy right away, they may add you as a favorite shop and come back again and again. You can find out if your item ever made it to the front page  by using this cute Craft Cult tool here. It's all about the FRONT PAGE!

To get our team to the front page here's what we need:
a) Good pictures only!
b) A Title or Target from this STORQUE ARTICLE,
c) Lack of yourself or any of your shops in the article.
d) Helpful Hints by Heather HERE
e) Use this Whale Shark Tool to put it in your website or blog.

  Even if we don't make it to the front page, a treasury is a FREE TOOL FOR:

a) Bringing exposure to the items featured.
b) Allowing you to show off your curating skills to Facebook, Twitter, and share to other places
c) Helping your Team Members get item views, hearts, and perhaps some new lookers!

Hey, stop reading and start treasury making...
Enjoy this one in the meantime by one of our lovely Team Leaders aka Forums Diva:

'Hearts on Fire- A Valentine Treasury for Etsy Recyclers Guild' by Retreauxgirl

Just a little love................

Art Sculpture Robot Valentin... leuckit $110.00	Cherry Red Beaded Knit Top H... TranzendentalA... $65.00	Hoot NobleUpcycling $25.00
Dragon Heart Necklace - Recy... islandgirlzjew... $9.95	Red Gray Black Dress Off Sho... Brokenghostcou... $64.00	Red Sweatshirt Fingerless Gl... ohzie $10.00
Eco Passport Cover with Red ... wrapcycle $16.00	Shabby Chic Shelf Red prettydarncute $24.00	Super cute Valentine Gingham... mattiereidchic... $15.00
Be My Upcycled Valentine SerendipiT $5.00	Upcycled Crazy Love Valentin... rekindleme $15.00	12 Upcycled Hearts Playing C... PaperPicker $5.00
Flower Power Button Brooch P... RetroChaletStu... $22.00	Vinyl Record Bowl- The Harts... thesmurtis $7.00	Valentine Fairy Mushroom Gar... WanderingLydia $30.00

Treasury tool is sponsored by Lazzia.com A/B image testing.

Do You Picnik ? Easy Way to Fix Photos and Promote Your Etsy Shop on Your Website or Blog

Camera and photo from VintageSpark on Etsy.

 Many of us look at some of the photos that make it to the front page on Etsy and are in awe. Etsy's Storque blog is full of good articles on  fixing your photos in your shop.  I hate to break this to you, but most of these people just like you or I and did not take photography lessons. They have however found a way to "bond with their camera" and  found their "MACRO" zoom button.  They usually use neutral or white backgrounds, and sometimes stage props in, but more often than not use natural lighting.

Gorgeous picture, feels like you can reach out and touch it , how about giving me some lessons? Item and photo by AnBlathPaipeir

I'll be the first to admit, most of my photos SUCK.  My husband thought it time for me to upgrade from one of those "point and click" Kodak with "three functions", so when he got me one of those fancy Ashton Kutcher jobs I wasn't sure whether to thank him or cry. (Soon it was the latter).  I was and am still clueless.   I have read and reread the manual 100 times and honestly can't process it. (If it's not just point, click, zoom, I'm no good.)  So if you are thinking your photos aren't good enough, put yourself in my shoes. Imagine having crappy photos but owning a super duper camera, that's pretty bad.  I don't own those expensive software programs like Photo-shop.  Then someone told me they were using Picnik for years. I played around.  You can join the service for a small fee, but I made all the below using Picnik's FREE services.

THE MISSION:  Make a banner link for someone to add to my blog. 

BEFORE:

I had to use a photo from Modern Plastics shop.

AFTER:  I used free Picnik services to brighten it, saturate it, add text and a "museum style frame".  Now it works as the perfect "photo link" to her site. 

 

THE MISSION:  Have some fun with this picture by Ohzie, and zoom in closer to the hat.

BEFORE:

I had to use a photo from Ohzie shop.

AFTER:  I zoomed in and made it into a playful polaroid, that she could use in any Etsy listing, blog post or on any website. I thought it important to put the recycle symbol on it as her products are recycled. Perhaps seeing her name over and over will drive customers to her shop.

THE MISSION:  Spice up my glove mold photo.

BEFORE:

My photo is just blah....lacks luster and bad exposure.

AFTER: Perhaps good for something around Halloween?  Brighter and fun! I added a frame with picnic and some "free stamps" which you can move around and turn...it would have been okay just making it brighter.

THE MISSION:  Make this picture of DoLoBo Jewelry stand out for a small mention in an upcoming blog post.

The original is okay for Etsy, but we needed to add some spunk and make it artsy.

Spunky for a sidebar on his blog!  I used a saturation and grainy look on Picnik.

MISSION:  Make a collage, if you  have too many photo angles and can't fit them all into Etsy, use a collage for one of your pictures.

Here's a mini collage with only two photos!

 Photo collages are available in any size. I sharpened the dress to show more floral design, and added the writing, as you can tell I really like that font.  Photos by TexasVintageThings.  

Or you can just make basic collages if you have too many photos for Etsy. This one I made from  Modern Plastics.

I truly believe photos sell your product. All of the above are just tools to help you spice yours up a bit.  There are so many items on Etsy now, it's not hard to find a few of the same.  I would rather pay more for an item that looks prettier or better than less for an item that I can't see detail in or is grainy. So, why not have a Picnik date ?

Handmadeology Etsy Bug 433 Treasuries and Counting! The Timothy Adam Revolution is in full swing..

Tim's team has love for treauries like these earrings by ModernShadesofGrey

I have to say I'm in shock, well, sort of.  Handmadeology recently formed their Etsy team, and their treasuries have gone "viral". This Just in as of a few minutes ago: 433 Treasuries tagged with the HMET team tag.  This is 433 treasuries containing 16 items each.  If you don't want to grab your calculator, that's exposure for almost 7000 items!  (6928 and counting to be exact.)  By the time I finish posting this, it will surely be over 7000....

Can you believe this?

This one treasury above, called "Violet Crush" is working on 500 views.  Don't make me do the math, but if one  treasury getting almost 500 views, and went viral, how many items do you think will sell out of those team member's shops?  And so on, and so on...I knew TimothyAdamsDesigns  (a metal artist turned community go-to-guy) would start this new revolution..I even forecasted this second coming of the handmade revolution...Tim is amazing.  Metal artist turned SEO expert, he shares a lot of helpful marketing and Etsy selling tips on his website and I love it!  This can help anyone with an Etsy shop or handmade selling, that's why I rushed right out to preorder his book (For under $12 now if you hurry!). Part of that book is interviewing top sellers. I'm going to learn their tips and tricks one way or another!   So see for yourself about the makings of a power treasury,ChoochMagooz did a wonderful job. Note the photos are clear, the theme is together, and it's lovely:

'Violet Crush' by ChoochMagooz

My violet heart belongs to you, a different love, a different hue.

Lavendar Love-newborn gift o... angelaalvis $22.00	Earrings with Brazilian Amet... Arctida $45.00	Textile Paisley Flower Origi... keishia $37.00
The Rosaline Capelet, Mohair... tyarkoni $95.00	Shy girl. Wooden brooch ireneagh $15.00	NORTH POLE STAR Necklace, Sw... DorotaJewelry $36.00
Antique Skeleton Key and Ame... chrdesigns $28.00	Marie Antoinette french lace... lucietales $85.00	Beaded Bead Choker on Lilac ... gr8jewellery $30.00
Handmade lamp, lamp shade, p... FiligreeCreati... $31.00	Purple Amethyst necklace - R... Jealousydesign $80.00	Aleina Leather Bag in Laven... iragrant $160.00
Crochet applique hearts whit... violasboutique $2.50	Lilac Garden with Snow - lon... vadjutka $32.00	Lavendar Plumeria v2 - Earri... creationsbyshe... $21.00

Treasury tool is sponsored by Lazzia.com.

Which brings me back to the point of treasuries and how powerful of a showcase tool they are for your team member's wares.  Not to mention it brings exposure to YOU.  Your teammies will certainly remember the favor and hopefully feature you back.

For those of you who don't blog, tweet, or facebook, why not use the Etsy Treasury Tool?  If you shop is not where you want it to be, why not make a treasury today?   Heather gave us these great tips for making a treasury!

Speaking of treasuries, I'd like to say thanks to new member soulrust!

'Brighten Your Day' by soulrust

Recyclers Guild Team wares

Bulky, buttoned cowl GlassAcorn $30.00	Vintage MONET Tassle Assymet... HHDollhouse $49.99	Sun Yellow 1 Inch Necklace AnBlathPaipeir $20.00
Oatmeal jersey vest recycled... Relogyyy $22.00	Vintage Syroco Starburst Sun... RetroClassics $189.99	20% OFF 40s Vintage Butterfl... TexasVintage $20.00
Lemon Yellow 1970-80s Safari... TranzendentalA... $40.00	Mr. Mojo Newspaper Mannequin... RetroChalet $42.00	Vintage Style Bird Nest Mobi... loveismyreligi... $14.00
Edward Cullen Twilight Charm... islandgirlzjew... $19.95	Signature Style with this Li... lizziecaye $139.95	something nessie - n e c k l... morganjoyminea... $25.01
Amy Lovely Repurposed Vinta... Retreauxgirl $25.00	Warm Sunshine-Late 1950s-Yel... slapsymaxi $28.00	I Heart Vintage Notebook relove $16.00

Treasury tool is sponsored by Lazzia.com.