Amazon Handmade vs. Etsy: Choose the Best Option for Selling
Are you looking for millions of potential buyers for your handcrafted products? The ecommerce world offers various successful online platforms for selling handcrafted products, but finding the right place to start can be challenging.
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To help you out, we'll compare the two most popular online marketplaces: Amazon Handmade and Etsy. Take some time to read these tips before making up your mind.
What is Amazon Handmade?
Amazon Handmade is a place where craftsmen can sell their handmade products to online shoppers. The Handmade category has its own set of requirements that sellers must adhere to in order to sell their products there.
This market is not intended for products made by machines. In addition, you will need to submit an artisan application so that customers can confidently make purchases from your new store on Amazon.
Amazon Handmade sells a wide range of products, including:
Handmade t-shirts
Arts and crafts
Embroidered dresses
Hand-knitted bags
Bath bombs
Hand-assembled jewelry
Lip balm
…and lots more!
Sellers can use Amazon Fulfillment to offer free shipping on their handmade products and deliver them right to their customers. In fact, the Amazon market is an amazing place to sell hand-assembled items.
Even though the majority of Amazon customers prefer buying mass-produced items, you can still have opportunities to find customers among millions of buyers who use Amazon globally to purchase things online.
So, let’s examine the ups and downs of selling handmade products on Amazon Handmade.
Pros:
Huge Market - Amazon is a well-known marketplace. Its popularity makes it an attractive place to sell your product. In fact, Amazon is more popular than eBay and Shopify combined. Amazon Handmade gives you the opportunity to make your items visible to numerous visitors.
Growth Opportunity - There are different analytical tools designed to help you increase your sales on Amazon. For instance, AMZScout PRO Extension is a browser tool that is used to find and evaluate products, forecast sales, and check on competitors. With AMZScout’s Product Database, sellers can find hot product ideas by filtering among over 16 different attributes or using pre-packed filters.
Simple Keyword Research - Sellers use a variety of tools to grow their businesses. The AMZScout Keyword Search tool saves time in the long run by providing effective keywords, and helps sellers create PPC ads that attract new buyers. Another tool called the Reverse ASIN Lookup helps you to see the keyword strategies your competitors are using.
Great FBA Service - If you use FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon), Amazon will pack and ship your stock items for you. You can also have your products featured with a Prime badge and offer customer support if you have any problems with shipping or returns, ensuring you a pleasant experience with the company. In addition, you can also make extra money by taking advantage of the Amazon affiliate program.
Cons:
High Selling Fees - Amazon charges a hefty 15% selling fee for each sale, regardless of the free pro plan and no listing fees. Also, if you join the FBA service, keep in mind that the company will charge you on a monthly basis for placing your products on its shelves. Amazon also collects a fulfillment commission if you make a sale in your store. Fees can eat into your sales and make it harder to turn a profit.
Huge Competition - You'll have to compete with other sellers on Amazon, but you'll also be up against the company itself. Amazon's own brands are sold alongside those from vendors, so you're effectively in direct competition with Amazon. Just keep in mind that people aren’t buying from you—they are buying from Amazon.
What is Etsy?
Etsy is a worldwide online platform that allows millions of sellers to create a storefront, where millions of buyers purchase a unique product. This website features thousands of thousands of unique items, including merch, jewelry, art, and more! Handmade goods make this marketplace a favorite among customers who are drawn to unique products created by independent artists.
Etsy is one of the world’s most famous ecommerce sites where sellers can easily open and grow their online shops, giving them the chance to reach a built-in audience. Here, artists can focus on things like designing the perfect product, sourcing the best materials, and sharing their passion with their customers. Etsy is especially appealing to young female visitors.
So, let's take a look at the positives and negatives of using Etsy.
Pros:
Low fees - Etsy requires sellers to pay only $0.20/product listed for sale. Moreover, if you run your own online business and sell products, you will be charged a 6.5% transaction fee. On top of that, you will be liable for the payment processing fee of 3% and $0.25/sale.
Plan options - Etsy's standard plan provides information about traffic volume and how visitors can find each seller's shop. Etsy Plus includes a selection of personalized coupons for in-store items, Etsy Ads, discounted store domain, advanced store features, and more.
Fast product listings - Just five minutes, and your products are live. Just add pictures and descriptions for each item in your shop, set shipping and refund policies, enter payment information, and tell people about it on social media. You are all set to go! No rigid requirements like Amazon!
Established Brand - Etsy is a trusted marketplace, since it allows customers to shop online confidently. And customers will trust you, because they know that when something goes wrong, Etsy will be there to help them. This way, you don’t have to prove yourself over time.
Cons
Recurring fees - Etsy's recurring monthly charges might be expensive for some people. If a seller doesn't sell any of their listings within four months, then Etsy charges $0.20 cents to relist each one again. Store owners with a huge number of listings may experience financial loss if they don’t generate enough profits to cover their listing costs.
No fulfillment service available - Etsy will save you money on Etsy shipping labels if you use them. But as a shop owner, you are solely responsible for handling all orders and customer service, as well as shipping your merchandise to customers on your own or hiring a third-party logistics company.
Amazon vs. Etsy: A Comparison
To help you decide on the best marketplace for your shop, let's take a look at the ways Etsy and Amazon differ.
Both ecommerce marketplaces are designed to help craftsmen earn money by providing them with a vast online marketplace for their products. However, the most significant differences between the two lie in their fees, fulfillment services, start up times, and interface.
Selling Fees
Amazon Handmade listings are free to create, and there's no monthly fee. You only pay a flat 15% sales commission when a customer makes a purchase from you. Etsy charges an initial listing fee of $0.20, plus a 6.5% transaction fee, as well as additional processing fees of 3% and $0.25 on top of that.
Fulfillment Services
Amazon offers FBA, which means if a customer buys a product from you, Amazon will take care of all logistics, including packaging and shipping. You just need to ensure the quality of your product is good enough to sell. On the contrary, Etsy does not help with warehousing or shipping - you have to do it on your own.
Start Up Process
In order to start bringing in sales on Amazon, you need to apply and go through an approval process. This may take a while due to the large volume of sellers, as well as strict eligibility criteria.
Amazon may also require you to provide a form of ID and credit card details. On the other hand, Etsy makes it easy to set up a shop and get approved in no time, so you can start selling your items instantly.
Interface
Although the two platforms differ in many ways, they actually have one thing in common: they were both created to make your life easier. This is why their dashboards are both user-friendly, and you shouldn’t encounter any problems viewing your sales statistics so you can manage your business effectively. However, Etsy's dashboard keeps track of your visitors and how they got there. This type of data isn't available on Amazon.
In a nutshell
Both marketplaces offer pros and cons. Your choice should be made based on your particular audience, business size, and products.
There are some similarities between Amazon Handmade and Etsy, but make sure you’re familiar with their different fees, policies, and fulfillment services. Otherwise you might find yourself confused about which platform is right for your needs. In short, if you want to sell a few items at a high price, then you should try Etsy, so you can pay less for the listing fee. However, if you want to sell a higher volume of products, then go for Amazon Handmade with FBA service.
Whichever route you choose, remember that Etsy and Amazon Handmade provide a platform where your products can reach millions of potential buyers worldwide. Both will enable you to start growing or scaling your business right away!
