making a banner for your etsy shop can be a bit of an overwhelming task at first- but after this post (hopefully!) you’ll be able to make one with ease!  before we get to the nitty gritty- let me show you some of my favorite banners first.

katy daisy does a great job here with the wheatfield by setting the tone for her shop.  her banner coordinates with the shop and gives you a sneak peek of what’s to come!

lorasea intrigues the viewer with this banner.  not giving too much information but just enough to get you curious and clicking for more!

rust belt threads gives you bold and bright- and it certainly catches the eye.

lost and fawned’s banner is straightforward and simple.  simplicity in itself can sometimes be the  most intriguing- leaving you wanting more.

be happy now gives you insight into their shop and what you can expect.  a great way to show off your best work and let the people know what’s coming!

city light photograhpy is simple. elegant. timeless.

finding a photo or scanning one in and then cropping it to fit (760 x 100 pixels) can be an easy way to get the look you want- without much hassle. {shop :: photographic artwork}

the house of hearts did a wonderful job with their fun banner.  banner’s that change with the season and/or annoucnes a sale you have is eye catching, fun and a wonderful marketing technique.

simply taking a picture and then cropping it to size can be a useful, easy, and fun way to get exactly what you’re looking for in a banner. {shop :: miniature rhino}

no matter how you get your banner- it can be an important step in setting up you shop.  your avatar is just as important as well- because it’s seen on every page of your shop as well in the forums, workshops and the like.  your banner is also shown on your facebook page if you use the my etsy facebook application.

here’s a quick tutorial that you can use to make an easy (and free) shop banner- as well as an avatar!

boston handmade offers this great tutorial :: ‘how to make and etsy shop banner’.

etsy for everyone offers this tutorial on how to design a banner using power point.

and a few helpful forum posts can be found here: ‘how to make a banner without a fancy program’ and here: ‘how to make a banner using picnik’

etsy offers a free banner generator- which is a great way to get started!

and, you can always use one of etsy’s free banners to help promote your sale or announce that you’re on vacation.

etsy member catherinetterings offers a few free christmas banners on her blog :: catherinetterings.

finally- here is a list of some free image editing websites:

picasa - free photo editing software from google

picnik - online photo editing service

aviary - web-based photo editing with lots of fun tools

gimp – free image editor, alternative to photoshop

last but not least!  if you still don’t feel comfortable creating your own- do a simple search for ‘etsy shop banners‘ on etsy to find tons of designers that will make one for you!

hope this helps!  please share any advice or extra links you have in the comments!

xoxo, bonnie

wrap up: {banners} {etsy savoir faire} {etsy shop help} {shop} {tutorial}

do you have a new line of work coming out? celebrate it! rather than just start listing your new line that you’ve spent countless hours on, build up some suspense to it.  people will be just excited about your work as you are- so start making a fuss!

friendly forest bundle

it’s best to start talking about new items early on.  if you blog, give your readers some teasers to let them know that you’re working on something new.  and what about all those social networking sites? twitter, facebook, youtube, flickr- (you do use those, right?) start posting hints of what you’re working on, maybe some pictures of your work space or a video of your design process.  if you blog, you could even take a poll for some outsider advice.

goldsboro jacket

don’t give your line away, but post enough to get readers interested in your ‘coming soon’ line.  also, don’t forget about your shop announcement.  announcing big news and a check back on ‘this date’ will surely get your customers excited- you can believe they will be back on the date you specified (so, make sure to stick to it!).

floral coptic stitch journal

no time for a blog? etsy also has some great resources you can use.  their promotions area allow you to post any self-promoting material!  announce your new line, or maybe even a discount or sale.  their are lots of people scouring the forums all day long, so it’s important not to miss out on all these potential customers.

autumn dress up dolls :: fabric wall decal

remember us? bloggers? are you there?  put together a press release!  e-mail your favorite bloggers!  i think most of us love to hear from you and like to help promote the handmade world any way we can (why would we be doing this if we didn’t?)

triptych spring circles

would you like some guidelines? i remember when i first started out, i thought it was really nerve-racking to compose an email and approach a blogger- but as long as you know a little etiquette and approach honestly- it’s always going to be ok.  what’s the worse they’ll say? no? oh well- move on to the next one!

thank you card

would you like some guidelines? first of all, try to never mass email.  no one likes to be another blogger on a big long send list. we want to know you care, you read our blog, and you know our name (should be easy to find!).  so, try to take the time and email one blogger at a time. we like to feel that we have in-sider info- and we try to bring fresh new material every day.  if you don’t hear back, maybe send a second follow up e-mail the next week.  if still no response move on to the next blogger (i always try to respond!).  it might take a little while to land a feature, but when you do- it should be well worth the wait.  put together a quick, honest email about you, your shop, and your product.  don’t forget your release date, your shop url (yes, people forget!), and 3-4 small jpeg images.  just try to be yourself and everyone will see it come through. here’s a few more articles that should help you!

design sponge’s advice from bloggers

the ultimate press list from modish biz tips

weathered gray hook board

taking some of my own advice? check my shop on wednesday, sept. 16 for *lots of new items- including a brand new line of funky christmas aprons!

birds go green

extra reading :: {pimp your shop},{broaden your target audience} & {etsy promotion forums} from etsy and the storque :: {advice from bloggers} from design*sponge :: {build your own ultimate press list} from modish biz tips

wrap up: {advice} {bloggers} {etsy savoir faire} {etsy shop help} {new line} {promote} {shop}

{if you’re new to savior faire or etsy- visit our first post to learn more}

taking great photos that reflect your style and represent your product well is the key to online selling.  your customers can’t feel, smell, or wear your product, so they must rely on the quality of your images.  having simple, chic, stylistic photos can work wonders in boosting your online sales.

|ethanollie|

lighting :: if at all possible, use natural lighting.  flash generally won’t work for smaller items and usually gives an off-putting effect.  try setting up by a window or outside.  or, if you’re outside, shoot in the morning or afternoon as the noon sun is a bit harsh for photos.

|almeda pottery|

background :: this is where you can really style your photos and brand yourself.  however, you want to keep your backgrounds as simple as possible.  no one wants to see your cat or that 50′s mixer in the background.

work to create an overall theme for your shop.  use the same or similar elements in all of your shots and your shop will have a nice, inviting, cohesive look.  generally, a lighter background works nice and puts your product in the spotlight.  this ‘how to style your photos‘ article gives great advice and how-to’s on styling.

|maries vintage|

what works :: take as many photos as you can, from as many angles as you can.  play with light and see what works best.  your buyer will want to see the front, back, and sides, along with some detail of you work.  you can always crop in and edit later, but you want to know that you have plenty to choose from later on.

one of my favorite photo editing tools is picnik.com.  if you don’t have fancy editing software like photoshop, picnik allows you to edit all of your photos- for free!

|sarah seven|

the shakes :: try to use a tripod, if you have one, to reduce camera shake.  blurry photos never make you say- i have to have that.  if you don’t have a tripod- get creative!  steady it on a table or the back of a couch.  even leaning on something to help stabilize will help reduce camera shake.

|french logic|

get creative :: get creative and a bit editorial.  take from interesting angles and play with cropping.  using a more editorial pic as your first item’s picture on etsy might grab attention and make your browsers click out of curiosity.  you don’t necessarily want to give it all away up front, right?

|efia fair|

do you have any tips on taking great photos? please share!

wrap up: {etsy} {etsy shop help} {photo} {photography} {sales} {savior faire} {shop}

thought i would share one of my favorite shopping spots with you today :: makool loves you.  they have everything from underpinnings to tabletop accessories and best of all? free shipping and easy returns.  such a sweet style and beautiful photography- make it hard to get enough.  ~blog~

wrap up: {shop}