You’ve heard of Etsy. You know, it’s the place you go when you need an adorable print of your favorite quote. It is the center of all kinds of precious, unique and handmade jewelry. It’s the perfect e-commerce website for finding organic products, vintage items, and craft supplies.
You may already have your own job on Etsy and know all about selling your own made items. by hand. items online.
What you may not know about Etsy, however, are the exact numbers that prove Etsy’s success.
For your information, reports show that Etsy generated $603.7 million in revenue last year alone, according to Statista. Not to mention, as of July 2019, the company had a market capitalization of $7.46 billion, and Etsy is projected to grow revenue at a CAGR of 22% between 2019 and 2021.
Lo What this means in regular terms people talk about is this: Etsy is the perfect place for crafty people to start a successful side hustle.
Although using Etsy is an amazing way to list and sell your products online, it’s only half the battle of growing a successful online store. The other half is running, operating, and integrating your Etsy products into your own website.
This article will explain why you need your own website alongside your Etsy shop, how to build your website, and how to integrate your Etsy shop with your website.
Why every Etsy shop needs its own website
Etsy is a great e-commerce platform for listing and selling your products. However, that’s where Etsy begins and ends.
If you’re looking to turn your side job into an income-generating machine, then having a website is a must. Let’s look at some of the reasons why a website helps you increase your sideline.
1. You can increase the sales of your products
The first reason to start your own website is so that you can have complete control of the sales of your products.
To illustrate this point, Let’s meet a successful con artist, Rebekah Welch. Rebekah Welch is the owner and operator of Cherish Bath + Body.
Welch describes what she does in her own words. She says, “I make bath and skincare products from scratch using natural, organic, and plant-based ingredients.”
Although Welch started out selling products with just one Etsy shop, she soon realized that she lacked full control of her sales. As a result, she used HostGator to build her own website and increase her income.
Welch says, “I recently finished building my own website. Previously, I relied on Etsy for sales. Now that I have my own site, I can sell my products on my own terms. ”
Now that Welch has full control of her online sales, she has plans to future growth. About her future plans, she says, “I’m going to grow my business into a full-time income. I would like to open some wholesale accounts and see my products in boutiques, as well as build a physical store.”
Key takeaway: Creating your own website will allow you to sell your products on your own terms.
2. You can get full control of your business
Since Etsy is its own company with investors, stakeholder pressures to grow quickly, and a list of terms and conditions you agree to, Etsy often works on an agenda different as its sellers.
For example, at any time, Etsy can increase its transaction fees to increase profits, make any design changes you want, and change its search algorithm, which can lead to downtime in traffic to your Etsy shop.
These potential changes can have a negative impact on sales and the overall success of your Etsy shop, and there’s nothing you can do about it.
The best way to ensure that your business is not subject to “Big Wig decision makers” on Etsy is to create a website, a website that you completely control.
Key takeaway: When your shop only exists on Etsy, Etsy is the boss. When you build your own website and sell your products in your own online store, you are the boss.
3. You can invest in solid online marketing
Another benefit of having your own website is the ability to invest in online marketing, content marketing through your blog, and grow at your own pace.
When you have your own website, you have full control to optimize it for search, invest in paid advertising and create a content marketing plan.
All of these efforts will help you grow your fan base, increase your clientele, and generate more sales.
Key takeaway: Operating your own website will help you allows you to engage in online marketing to increase your traffic and increase sales.
Grow your Etsy business by creating your own website with HostGator
One of the benefits of Etsy is how easy it is to get your store up and running. The good news is that setting up your website with HostGator is also an intuitive process, especially if you’ve already set up an Etsy shop.
To set up your own website, you don’t need to know how to program or be an expert in web design. You don’t have to spend an arm and a leg to hire a professional to help you, either.
All you need to do is follow six easy steps, and you can have your website in less than a day. Here’s a quick overview of each of the six steps.
Step 1: Choose a hosting plan for your website.
All websites need hosting. Purchasing a hosting package essentially means that you are renting server space from a third-party company to store your web files.
HostGator is a web hosting company that offers three website building plans including: that you can choose for your online store. You can choose your plan based on your needs and how much functionality you need for your site.
The starter plan includes a free domain, 200+ templates that will work well for someone looking to promote a book, cloud hosting, a drag and drop editor and website analytics.
The Premium plan includes everything in the Start plan, plus access to priority support when you need it.
Since you have an online store and will be selling products, the best package for you is the e-commerce plan. This package includes everything the Premium plan offers plus full eCommerce functionality. In other words, you can sell your products online with this plan.
Once you have chosen the eCommerce plan for your online store, click “buy now” and you will be able to set up your account.
Step 2: Choose a domain name for your website.
Each Gator Website Builder package includes a free domain. This means you don’t have to buy a domain from a separate domain hosting company. To choose your domain, simply type something in the “get domain” box.
Since you already have an Etsy shop, the best thing to do is choose your Etsy shop name as your domain. For example, Rebekah Welch chose cherishbathandbody.com, the namesake of her Etsy shop.
If you’re just getting started and don’t have an Etsy shop or domain name yet, here’s a helpful article on how to choose the perfect domain name.
If you already have a domain name that you’ve been saving for when you launched your own website, you can connect it to your HostGator account by clicking “connect it.” here.”
Step 3: Create your account.
Once you have a domain name, it’s easy to connect your HostGator account. All you need is a Facebook account or an email address to sign in. Then, enter your payment information for the package you selected, and you’re ready to choose a template for your website.
Step 4 – Choose a template for your website eCommerce.
As mentioned above, you don’t need to build your website on your own, Gator Website Builder comes with templates, and all you have to do is choose the one that matches the style from your Etsy shop.
Once you create your account, HostGator will direct you to the “choose a template” page.
You can scroll through more than 200 professionally designed templates and select the template you like best. The next step is to customize it however you want with the drag and drop builder.
Step 5: Add content to your online store.
After you’ve selected a template, it’s the It’s time to start customizing your website with content. Click “start editing.” This step will send you to your dashboard where you can add, edit, and remove pages like your home page, about page, online store, product pages, blog, and any other pages you want to include.
With With the drag and drop builder, you can make your website look the way you want it by pointing, clicking, dragging, and dropping the elements you want to include.
It’s an intuitive process, but if you have any questions , HostGator provides a free and easy step-by-step guide for reference that you can access at any time.
To access this helpful guide, click the “menu” icon next to the Gator by HostGator logo and select “getting started tour.”
Plus, since you signed up for the eCommerce plan, you have access to priority support when you have questions.
Step 6 – Review your content and launch your website .
The last step is to review your website, make the desired changes, and publish your website. By clicking “preview” you can see your entire website.
If everything looks perfect, click the “finish preview” button at the top and then “publish website ” at the top of the board. Gator Website Builder will present a series of quick steps to help you get up and running.
How to integrate your Etsy shop with your website
Already have your own website? So, you’ve already done the hard part! All that remains is for you to integrate your Etsy shop into your website.
Etsy used to offer a service called the Etsy Mini where you could copy and paste a unique code onto your website, and the code would pull your products to your website.Unfortunately, Etsy no longer offers this service, and without deep research and intensive solutions, it’s difficult to integrate products with an Etsy code.
However, even if the Etsy Mini is no longer an option, you’ll You’re out of luck. You can still add your Etsy shop to your WordPress account. Here’s how.
1. Add the Etsy Plugin
The first step to integrate your Etsy shop into WordPress is to install and activate the Etsy plugin
After activation, remember to go to Settings and then the Etsy Shop page and enter your Etsy API key to connect your shop.
2. Copy your API Key
Once you’ve connected your shop, you’ll see your Etsy API Key. Copy this key for the next step.
3. Paste your API key
Next, go back to your WordPress admin area, paste your Etsy API key and save your changes.
4. Create a page or edit an existing page
Once you’ve saved your changes, you’re ready to sell products from your Etsy shop on your WordPress site. You will only need to create a new page in WordPress or edit an existing page and add your shortcode.
And that’s about it!
It’s worth mentioning that Etsy is its own eCommerce platform and won’t have the same functionality as WooCommerce. As your sideline business begins to pick up steam and you’re ready to turn it into a full-fledged business, you may want to consider ditching your Etsy shop entirely and creating your own eCommerce platform on your own. website.
Grow your Etsy shop with your own website
If you’re in Etsy and looking to gain more control, make more sales, and market your products online with more freedom, now is the time. to set up your own website.
To learn more about getting started building your own website, visit HostGator and check out Gator Website Builder.
With the help of Gator Website Builder , you can have your own website up and running in less than a day.
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