My take on Etsy's Free Shipping Guarantee, final part - Why I Turned it Off

In the last few posts we've talked about the pros and cons of Etsy's Free shipping guarantee (TLDR version: it's a good thing and you should try to price to accommodate it.) but I'd like to end with a post sending some questions out there. I've emailed Etsy a couple of times but have never heard back, so I'll just get these thoughts out here and hope they'll be resolved in the future.

Again, let me emphasize, I love the fact that Etsy is urging us to think about offering free shipping. It bugs me when someone thinks Etsy is "forcing" shops to offer free shipping ("pushing free shipping off on shop owners" is another term I've heard. Ugh, c'mon people!) or that it's "unfair" of Etsy to place shops with free shipping higher in the search ranking. We don't get mad when Amazon or other online stores do the same thing because it's convenient for us as shoppers. Why not make it as easy for your customers to find you and buy from you?

Anyway. Onward before I digress all the way back to the first post.

In the last post I ended by mentioning that I turned off Etsy's Free Shipping Guarantee for my shop.

There is one thing that bugs me about the Free Shipping Guarantee, and that's the lack of customizations available. I'll describe my problem:

My minimum purchase amount for free shipping varies depending on the time of year and whether I have special packaging (so things don't get melty). Right now I offer free shipping on all purchases over $15. That might go up or down in the future, but I love having the freedom to change it myself.

Etsy's Free Shipping Guarantee doesn't allow this. The minimum is set at $35 and you can't lower it. (When Etsy set up a survey about this before they implemented free shipping I even suggested a nifty slider bar. I'm so disappointed that it didn't happen.)

In my case, I have to offer free shipping using a sale or coupon. Etsy doesn't recognize this as a free shipping offer- only items that are already free to ship are eligible to be higher in the search rankings. And what's worse, I can't have the free shipping guarantee on and have my own coupon for free shipping at a lower minimum. The free shipping coupon doesn't apply to items with a free shipping guarantee. 

In short, my free shipping offer is better than most offered on Etsy but I don't get the search ranking perk. Not placing high up in the search rankings for opting out of the guarantee is definitely not a punishment. But not placing in the search rankings because you have a better shipping guarantee than Etsy that just isn't accommodated by their setup kinda feels like an oversight at the very least.

I've asked people to explain and nobody has been able to help me understand the logic behind the locked $35 minimum. Is it because of Amazon's minimum? Then why lock it at $35? Are they worried that shop owners would expect a higher ranking in the search if their shipping has a lower minimum and that seems too complicated? 

Maybe they just didn't like the slider bar idea.

(Pshhh, impossible! LOL!)

In any case, I really hope Etsy allows us to customize our free shipping offers in the future. Until then, I'm going to make it my goal to improve my SEO, photos, and marketing, including building my email list instead.

Have you already implemented free shipping, or are you making different improvements to drive traffic to your Etsy shop?

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Etsy's Free Shipping Guarantee, part 3 - Things to consider

Happy October! :-) To recap- in parts one and two  we've already discussed why Etsy offering free shipping is a good thing and why we shouldn't panic if we decide not to turn it on. Today I'd like to chat about two points that are closely related to the issue of free shipping (aka, if you have a product based business, these two points should be considered even if you're not on Etsy.).

Want to offer free shipping? Don't feel like you can? Two things that should be on people's minds since Etsy has us all thinking about it:

1. Etsy's introducing free shipping should be a reminder for all of us to check our pricing.

You are checking your pricing at least once a year

... right? Experts suggest checking your pricing every quarter or even once a month. But pretty much every day I see posts from people who set a price arbitrarily and/or have never recalculated their pricing.

Sad fact: most handmade businesses underprice. 

Maybe they use the "materials plus labor times 2 equals wholesale, double that for retail" pricing formula alone, or maybe they have based their pricing on someone else's pricing, or maybe they started out pricing low due to their local economy. Then they keep telling themselves "I can't charge any higher, people won't pay it, I'll lose my customers", etc.

If you are a maker and you don't feel you can ever offer free shipping, there's a good chance your overall pricing is too low. The cost of materials, overhead, and the cost of living goes up daily, yet a lot of us think we have to keep our prices the same for years, sometimes even decades, to be "fair".

"I can't ever change my pricing" is a myth that kills a lot of businesses.

When relatively small things like Etsy's program for free shipping over $35 come along and people freak out because their business just can't support it, their pricing is possibly to blame. 

Here's an easy-read book recommendation: "Pricing For Profit" by Kendra Cote. It's for bath and body product makers mainly, but the principles apply to any business and it will completely change the way you think about, and calculate, your pricing.

But wait... *fake shocked gasp* Is it ethical to tell people their shipping is free while they're basically still paying for it in your pricing? I've come across this issue a few times in recent months. This leads me to #2...

2. If you check your pricing and decide to turn on Etsy's free shipping guarantee, you aren't ethically obligated to eat the entire shipping cost!

Why does this come up? There has been some debate about the term "free shipping" and some business owners have a really negative feeling about it: "If it's free, the customer should not pay even one cent for it. I have to pay it." If you feel that way, it can still work! Especially with Etsy's reasonable baseline of free shipping after a $35 purchase.

When I decided to offer free shipping over a certain purchase amount I changed my packaging a little and found a faster way of doing a few things in other areas. I had already raised prices previously (to actually pay myself for the first time in ten years, don't get me started on that story...) so free shipping fit into my pricing with very few changes.

If you feel the need to pay shipping instead of spreading the estimated price out over several items, don't be tempted to just pay the shipping out of pocket. See if you can make your supply and materials costs, labor costs, or overhead percentage stretch just a little more to help cover it. 

If you are thinking of raising your pricing to help accommodate Etsy's Free Shipping Guarantee, (or if you'd like to offer free shipping even if you're not on Etsy) don't feel guilty that you're not paying out of pocket for shipping. Buyers don't mind that we don't justify how we break down our pricing. When was the last time you walked into the store and demanded to know why their prices went up, or for a breakdown of their costs? No sane person does this... yet many business owners worry constantly that they must justify their pricing or explain how they can offer free shipping. This can cause pricing paralysis, stopping you from ever raising prices. (aka, slowly killing your business.)

"Free shipping" conveys to shoppers "shipping is included in the price you see up front". In other words, no matter how much they purchase, they won't get to their shopping cart and find an unexpected astronomical shipping cost on top of what they're already spending. (Cart abandonment comes from this more times than any other factor.)

Here's something to think about: Whenever a company (big or small) offers you free shipping, your shipping has been factored into the costs you pay. Did they raise prices a little over their whole product line? Did they find one or more of their raw materials at a better price? Did they skimp a little on quality to make up the cost? Since companies never disclose to us how they price their products, we never know- but most of us would agree that we'd prefer the first or second option. It's okay to do the same in our businesses. (Just stay far away from option three, amiright?)

Okay, so now that we've talked a bit about the financial and ethical side of Etsy's Free Shipping Guarantee, and you have seen how happy I am with the idea, the final topic might come as a surprise:

Why I turned it off for my shop!

Talk with you again soon!

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Etsy's Free Shipping Guarantee series, part 2 - aka, "Things Everybody Should be Working On Anyway"

We last chatted about why Etsy offering free shipping is a good thing. Now let's discuss two reasons why you don't have to worry about the Free Shipping Guarantee ruining your Etsy sales.

1. You don't have to turn in on. How is this a good thing? If you look over your pricing and decide it's not going to be feasible, no problem! Etsy hasn't made it mandatory. You're not going to be penalized for not turning it on. (Before you say anything about the search rankings, wait for #2.) Free shipping is a good offer as a rule, but there are always exceptions- if you've got larger items or heavy items, or items that have to be packed and shipped with extra care, free shipping might just not be possible. That's fine too! Because...

2. A higher place in Etsy's search rankings does not necessarily guarantee one shop will make sales over another. If someone lands on Etsy looking for something handmade, they are not going to arbitrarily buy the first thing on the search page. 

They'll be searching using the same method anyone uses anywhere else- search, narrow their search to something more specific, narrow their search again, then look for a brand and shop they feel fits, then choose a specific item. This is a pattern most people follow when they're shopping, even if they think they're just browsing.

It's true, as I type this Etsy is causing another frenzy with the news that you might not be on the first page at all if you don't offer free shipping, and "oh-btw-83%-buy-from-page-1". Please don't panic! Most of the people who find you will find you because of your overall marketing strategy, not through Etsy search alone.

While it would be nice to be the first thing they see on a search page, there are a lot of factors at work in getting your products noticed.

Here's one: People will see your photography before they really notice where your item sits in the search rankings. Do you have a good grasp of who your target market is? Are your photos designed to catch the eye of your target market? (I'm guilty of boring, unbranded, untargeted, photos. Working on it!)

Here's another: Have you worked on refining your SEO or are you still using random tags for your items? That has an effect on where your items fall in the search results.

And one I mentioned already, are you marketing your products well on the platforms your target market is on and keeping in contact with your email list, or are you sticking only to the platforms you feel comfortable with and neglecting the people who want you to keep in touch with them? (I'll admit, I'm sooooo guilty here too. *hides face*)

In conclusion... the good news: While being higher in the search rankings is a nice bonus, it shouldn't be what any seller pins their hopes on to get sales. Whether you decide to use Etsy's Free Shipping Guarantee or not, working on your target market, clear branding, and marketing, will put you ahead of many of the sellers on Etsy. (For example, when someone finds me, it's usually through Instagram or Pinterest, not the Etsy search. My "people" are also on YouTube, which for most Etsy sellers is a completely untapped resource!)

Next time, we'll chat about things to consider whether or not you decide to use the Free Shipping Guarantee.

In the meantime, let me know what aspect of your marketing strategy you're trying to improve on...

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My take on Etsy's Free Shipping Guarantee, part 1 - It Really Will Be OK!

It's been a while since Etsy introduced this new program but there is still a lot of division in the camp about it. Popular bloggers and YouTubers have panned the idea in very strong terms, and nearly every day I see angry comments on social media where someone thinks it's unfair, honestly believes that Etsy is trying to kill their business, or has decided to leave Etsy and try and sell on another platform.

I'm going to take the next few posts to discuss a few positive points about Etsy's free shipping guarantee, including some things to keep in mind whether you turn in on for your shop or not.

I have to admit that the negative response in many places was a surprise to me! My first feeling when I heard about the Guarantee was excitement. Offering free shipping is a win for many businesses- studies have been done that show, oddly enough, that more people are more likely to buy more items when a shop offers free shipping. For example, you're on Amazon looking for something and choose a $25 item with free shipping over exactly the same item where the price is $20 plus $4.99 shipping. Or you're buying online and spend $10 extra so you don't have to pay that pesky $5 shipping fee. It doesn't seem to make sense, yet most of us have done it!

Etsy getting onboard with offering free shipping is a good thing for Etsy sellers. Etsy wants more people to buy more things from more small businesses.

I have a feeling Etsy urges free shipping to get more people to come to the website and shop, instead of shopping through Handmade on Amazon or finding a brand through a web search. Etsy wants to be THE place to get all things handmade, so they're helping us sellers stay competitive with these other sites. They've added the incentive of placing items with free shipping higher in the search rankings, but this shouldn't worry you if you decide not to turn the guarantee on. (More on that in the coming days.)

Stick with me over the next few posts while I talk all things free shipping. 

(And let me know in the comments if you're one of the many who will spend $10 extra not to have to pay $5 shipping!)

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Soapy Haul featuring Whipped Upp!

While we've been taking a break we've been having a good time using soaps made by fellow soapers, and I wanted to share a special package we received recently. We first received some Whipped Upp goodies during a soap swap and I was really impressed and excited to try more! Let me take you on a tour of our soapy haul from Amy at Whipped Upp! :-)

When I opened the box I couldn't help but say "Mmmmm!" I could already smell the soapy fragrances! (And are you as jealous of Amy's wax seal as I am? What a nice finishing touch!)

What a surprise when I cut around the seal (no way I was going to break it!) and looked inside! Amy included TONS of soap samples! Thank you, Amy! :-D

It takes a lot of time to put personality into soaps that are only an inch across! I LOVE the added detail that makes these little samples special. Clockwise from the top left is Lovely Day (a bright, sunny, lightly fruity fragrance), Cran-Citrus Fig (which makes me think of Autumn fruit harvests!), Falling in Love (with a fresh, spiced fragrance) and Room with a View (musky without being overbearing- I automatically thought of a hot late summer breeze). In the center is Maiden Voyage (a gorgeous blend of rose and ozone).

Amy also included a cute bath bomb scented in Ocean Air (fresh, slightly salty, and ozone-y, love the scent)! I can't wait to use it! Another huge thanks to Amy!

Now, on to the stars of the show, Whipped Upp soaps!

First up is a family favorite, Vanilla Spice. We first smelled this scent in a soap Amy included in the swap I mentioned earlier, and it was instantly snatched up by my younger brother, who likes spicy, warm fragrances. He was not at all deterred by seeing "vanilla" on the label. He kept asking “where can we get more?" So I'm really glad that Amy heard our plea for more of her lovely scent blend, this time including pumpkin ale in the soap for an awesome Autumn twist! Amy's soaps are rock hard, lather beautifully with a bubbly and creamy lather, and have nice strong fragrances that leave your skin with a light fragrance and soft feeling. Give this soap a try for sure! It's musky and spicy, and I am confident the guys in your life will enjoy it as much as the ladies. (Amy had thanked me for reminding her of how much she liked this fragrance blend, and she slipped an extra bar into our box! My brother sends a huge "thank you", he is SO excited that he gets more of his favorite soap! We're forcing him to share, LOL...)

This is the soap I chose for my Mom. :-) Funny story: she didn't have her glasses on when I handed her her bar, so she took a deeeep smell and really excitedly said "This reminds me of the Violet pastilles my mother used to buy me!!" Don't you love when a scent takes you back in time? I also love the "geode" look this soap has, isn't it cool?

 

Last, but not least, is the soap I chose for myself, Southern Sweet Tea. The swirls are gorgeous like the the other soaps (love the delicate colors in this bar!) The fragrance of this bar is dead-on! Some tea fragrances are a bit strong, like cedar chips, but this soap is a perfect blend of black tea and sugar. Again, Amy has really hit the mark with her fragrance choice! As you can see from the pictures, all of the soaps are clearly labeled with their ingredients and Whipped Upp contact info.

 
My family and I are so thrilled with everything! Amy's efforts in the quality of her products, her clear labels and lovely packaging reflect her hard work and the heart she puts into her products. I just can't gush enough about the overall shopping experience we had with Whipped Upp.

I'll put all of Amy's info below, BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE! Amy gave me a special promotional code to pass along to you! Use the code HAPPYDAY at the checkout when purchasing from Whipped Upp on Etsy for a discount on your order!

Etsy: http://whippedupp.etsy.com (remember to use the code "HAPPYDAY")
Facebook: https://facebook.com/WhippedUpp
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whipped_upp/

Have fun trying some Whipped Upp soaps!

Pomegranate Peach Minis on sale!

The Pomegranate Peach Minis have reached 300 "favorites" on Etsy, so they'll be on sale for two weeks! Hope you'll try one of this fun flavor while they're only 79 cents!

***  Sale ends Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2014 ***

Another Milestone, another sale!

I don't care what anyone says, the opposite of Vanilla isn't Chocolate, it's Peppermint! Think about it- vanilla is calm, seemingly simple, soothing. Peppermint is complex, energizing and in-your-face. I think that's why this flavor blend is such a surprise to people... these two flavors are polar opposites, but they blend like they were meant for each other. (Because they were!)

And, here at Canfield Crafts we're pleased to say that since the Vanilla Mint Minis have reached 150 "favorites" on Etsy, they're the next balm to go on sale for two weeks! :-) Starting today, they'll be on sale for 79 cents. Hope you'll try one!

SALE!

Woohoo! It took a while, but the "Earl Grey with a Slice" Minis have reached 350 "favorites" on Etsy! They'll be on sale for the awesome price of 79 cents for the next two weeks, so we hope you'll think about giving one a try! :-)

(The sale will end at midnight on August 13, 2014.)

https://www.etsy.com/listing/112238570/earl-grey-with-a-slice-shea-cocoa-butter

Update on the Earl Grey Minis

Only four more "favorites" and the Earl Grey minis will go on sale! For two weeks, they'll be at eighty cents each!

There are a few other Minis that are coming close to milestones as well- I think the first one after the Earl Grey sale will be Pomegranate Peach. They'll get their two week sale as soon as they hit 300 "favorites". :-)

Earl Grey Minis going on sale soon!

Our "Earl Grey with a Slice" Mini lip balms have almost reached 350 Favorites on Etsy! That's pretty exciting! So, when they do reach 350 Favorites, we'll be having a special sale on them- keep checking back and we'll let you know when we get there...

http://bit.ly/EGMini

Thank you, Rustic Escentuals!

Bought a huge lip balm tube order from lipbalmtubes.com (CLEAR OVAL TUBES coming soon to the shop, those of you who requested them!), then remembered that they are affiliated with Rustic Escentuals and added a note asking for a sample of their "Red Maple Leaf" fragrance with the lip balm tube order. (I received a sample with my last fragrance oil order and instantly regretted not getting more sight-unseen from the description- it smells amazing!) And, yay, they sent me another ounce sample! I know EXACTLY what I'm going to use the two ounces for, but more on that in a few weeks.

So, thank you to the lovely people at Rustic Escentuals/LipBalmTubes.com! (I'll be back for your Peanut Butter flavor oil, which I completely forgot to order with the lip balm tubes...)

Samples from Majestic Mountain Sage!

I received a note on twitter that MMS would be sending me a sample of the Lemon & Basil lip balm that Taylor made on April 29th and I was thrilled because I have always wanted to make a more 'savory' lip balm, but wasn't sure exactly where to start in terms of how much of each essential oil or sweetener to use. Their recipe is a great starting point!

This balm is yet another example that there are many different (and awesome) formulas for different occasions! The balm doesn't go on thick or sticky, so it's perfect for everyday use; smooth texture, very light but still moisturizing. I didn't expect to like the flavor of basil in a lip balm, to be honest- I tend to associate it with our Basil Aromatherapy sticks, I think. But I really liked it! Basil is a complex flavor- you taste a strong herbaceous flavor (not quite "Italian food", but close) first, but that quickly disappears and you taste the "fennel", "black licorice" notes. The last thing you taste is a very mild herbaceous note mingled with lemon. Very nice! I noticed that I reapplied a couple of times to catch the different 'notes' of the flavor- I like that! It shows what a complex blend you could create with a few different 'savory' essential oils. I agree with what Taylor said on the blog- if I made this blend, I'd make the lemon more of the 'main' flavor, with Basil the background flavor. (Ooh, I wonder what Orange would taste like with Basil?) It had the perfect amount of sweetener, too, since it was just used in the recipe as a flavor enhancer. I'll try to remember not to overdo it on the sweetener when I start experimenting. :-)

Thank you again to the lovely people at MMS for sending this sample! We have a really nice starting point to experiment with savory lip balms now!

The second item in the picture above is a lotion sample we received in a recent order. This is very moisturizing for a light lotion and doesn't go on greasy, so if you're looking for a light, ready-for-summer lotion base to fragrance, it's worth a try! I was surprised to find that I like the tropical-but-not-suntan-lotion-tropical Green Mango fragrance in the lotion, even though I didn't like the scent 'out of the bottle'. My boss here at Canfield Crafts loved the lotion and fragrance so much that she stole it and I haven't been able to try it since... ;-)

Blog feature!

A quick note to mention that one of our hanger swirled soaps was featured on Bath Alchemy Lab's Soap Blog - check out their post, all the hanger swirls are gorgeous!

Two new items today!

 

We've been making them successfully for a while now, but today we were able to finally list these amazing multipurpose sprays on Etsy! You can get either a 2oz or 4oz bottle, and you can choose from any fragrance oil we have in stock. See the listing for more details!

Cucumber & Aloe soap - we've had soap with this fragrance in the shop for a while, but in this batch we also added some other nice oils and extracts. You can preorder this soap now, and it will ship after its cure ends on March 19th. :-)

Two new soaps and more to come!

There are two new soaps in the shop- one cold process and one hot process. Take a look!

Carlton fragrance - "Clouds and Sky" hot process soap

 We recently got a request to make a special hot process soap fragranced with Carlton and this was the result! We wanted to make the soap look like a cloudy sky, and since the soap is hot process, the edges and top are a bit more "rustic" than cold process soap- we think it just adds to the 'big fluffy clouds" theme. ;-) Carlton smells like orchid, with notes of champagne, rain, and musk overtones. (It's not a heavily floral scent at all.)

"Celtic Waters" - Shea and Cocoa Butter soap

Celtic Waters has a knock-your-socks-off fragrance that smells almost exactly like a popular brand of soap (of course, we can't tell you which!). We blended it with another clean, soapy, cologne-like fragrance for a little variation- the difference in this fragrance and the original is that this blend smells more like clean water, moss, and verbena. It leans more toward being a "man soap", but the fragrance is so fresh that ladies are sure to love it as well!

We have more soap to add soon, so check back with us! :-)