Etsy Shop Guide, Part 1: How to Find Your Niche
In case I haven’t mentioned it enough, my goal is for you to see success on Etsy. I love sharing with you all that I’ve learned as an Etsy seller since 2013. And, my hope is that this website serves as your creative companion, helping your creative business continue to flourish and evolve.
In my newest blog series, The Etsy Shop Guide, I’m going to share with you some of the most fundamental things that I’ve learned and discovered as a wedding stationery business owner who started with a profitable, successful shop on Etsy.
Today, I want to discuss one topic that I’ve become increasingly passionate about: finding your niche.
Before We Begin…
You might be thinking, do I really have to have a niche? And, if you can’t tell, my answer is a resounding yes.
Finding your niche is foundational to starting an Etsy shop or any type of business, really. Every decision you make in your business will build upon your niche. While I don’t want you to feel too much pressure from that statement, I do want you to understand why this step is so important.
There are so many other sellers on Etsy. Whether you want to start a wedding stationery business, stationery shop, or other creative business on Etsy, there are likely thousands of other sellers doing the exact same thing.
Your niche is what makes you special and what sets you apart from all of those other businesses out there.
Now, that we’ve established the importance of your niche, it’s time for the fun part! Here are some tips for identifying your niche and taking your Etsy shop to the next level.
How to Find Your Niche
I. identify your strengths
What are you the best at? It seems like a no-brainer that you would focus on all the areas where you excel. Playing to our strengths often makes us bolder and more confident, which is extremely beneficial in business.
Where people often get stuck is that they’re unsure how to combine their strengths with consumer need. Rather than thinking about how to highlight just one of your skills in your business, make a list of all your strengths. Consider how multiple strengths can play a role in your business.
For example, my strength isn’t actually in design. I don’t have a graphic design degree, and I’m not a whiz at Illustrator. It’s one reason why I don’t design fully custom stationery. I’m much better (and more confident) in other areas of my wedding stationery business, and I can serve clients best by playing to those strengths.
My strengths are with typography, customer service, and efficiency–just to name a few. These strengths are what led me to create stationery with a focus on traditional typography, generate over 1,000 five-star reviews in my Etsy shop, and offer clients high quality stationery with an incredibly quick turnaround.
ii. what makes You unique?
I do the exact same thing as every other wedding stationery business–I make wedding invitations and day-of paper.
So, how can I make my Etsy shop stand out from the rest?
I used to think that meant I was supposed to have a unique product–focusing on a unique style (i.e. Rifle Paper Co., back in the day) or a unique method (i.e. laser engraved wood wedding invitations). And maybe you fit into one of those categories. Maybe you have a really unique style of watercolor wedding crests or a unique medium to print invitations on, like acrylic, leather, or handmade paper.
But don’t forget about the magic of your process. Your process could be what makes you unique.
My process (and philosophy!) at Betty Lu Paperie is to make everything easy for my clients. That means things like an easy checkout experience, providing etiquette help so they don’t have to stress about it, along with a quick and simple proofing process. Proofs are emailed to clients in one to two business days, and most orders are shipped within seven business days upon approval. It’s very much “what you see is what you get” with unique and luxurious touches in between.
iii. competitor analysis
I hate the word “competitor”. It sounds like they’re enemies when really, they’re just people like us trying to make a living doing something amazing. And while I’m all for community over competition, it’s still important to analyze our competitors.
First, competitors help us validate our area of expertise. Competition is a good thing in business—it means there is consumer need for our products and we can make a living from it. Naturally, it’s also important when you start an Etsy shop. If you have a lot of competition on Etsy in your niche, that means a lot of other sellers are making money selling that type of product.
Second—and I don’t think this is talked about enough—competitors influence our pricing. The truth is, we’ve all looked at our competitors’ pricing, and we’ve either set our prices higher, lower, or about the same as them. And that’s okay. It helps us see what the market can bear. It can also increase confidence in our pricing. If you see another stationer selling for double (or triple) what you’re charging, that’s an indication that you can raise your prices.
Lastly, competitor analysis can help you find the sweet spot in your industry that only you can serve. This is honestly my favorite thing about it! There are so many other wedding stationery businesses that I love and admire, but I never wanted it to seem like my brand was a “copy” of something else.
As I began to rebrand Betty Lu Paperie in 2020, I dove head first into competitor analysis. I wanted to see where my brand “fit” in the market and if there were any voids in the market I could fill.
To do that, make a list of five to ten competitors in your industry. It can be any company from big box competitors to small business owners.
Think about why you chose these competitors and write down what you come up with. Ask yourself:
What do you love about what they’re doing?
Where do you feel these competitors fall short?
Are there any niches or sub-niches that aren’t being served within this list?
Are there variations on what your competitors are doing you could explore?
How can you set your brand apart?
How can you start an Etsy shop or a brand different from theirs?
One last thing…
Copying what everyone else is already doing is the easy way out, and it’s not profitable in the long run. But developing a brand that is unique and fills a void in the market makes your business stand out among the rest.
Your niche determines what products you decide to create, the audience you’ll serve, and the purpose behind your brand. It helps you build a profitable foundation to start your Etsy shop, so spend some time thoroughly mapping it out. I can't wait to see what you come up with!
I hope you enjoyed Part 1 of the Etsy Shop Guide series! Follow along to the next post, where we’ll explore how to increase your traffic.