There’s plenty of things you can do to make sure your Etsy products are reaching your potential customers.
But when it comes down to it, what’s most important is how many of the people who look at your products actually buy them.
That’s why conversion rate is so important to know, and why increasing your conversion rate should always be a priority.
In this article, we’re going to take a in-depth look at how to increase your conversation rate on Etsy!
What Does Conversion Rate Mean on Etsy?
‘Conversion Rate’ is a complicated sounding metric. However, it actually just measures the percentage of people who look at your Etsy product page and then go on to order that product.
You can think of it like this: If a hundred people look at your product, how many of them buy it?
You can have a storefront conversion rate as well, which is the percentage of people who land on your Etsy store then order any of your products at all.
And if you run advertisements or promotions, these will also have a conversion rate — the percentage of people who saw your ad or promotion and then went on to buy one of your products.
The Importance of Increasing Conversion Rate
You might think this is a bit of a silly statement, since you should make more sales by increasing conversion rate. However, that isn’t always the case.
As you’ll see below, the calculation of viewers versus buyers can be more complex.
Increasing your conversion rate is important as it factors into the prominence Etsy gives to a product in the search results.
If more people who search for an item look at your page and then buy it, Etsy’s algorithm learns that your product is a good one to show any future customers who search for the same thing.
Therefore, icreasing your conversion rate on Etsy is also important because it allows you to determine where to focus your attention in your marketing.
What Is a Good Conversion Rate for Etsy?
A good conversion rate for Etsy will depend on the product you’re selling, the time of year, and other various trends.
In general though, if your conversion rate is at or above 3%, you can regard it as decent.
That might sound surprising, if you think about it. However, if out of every 100 people, 3 of them buy your product– then you’re doing well!
Average Etsy Conversion Rate
The average Etsy conversion rate is between 1% and 3% percent. The top performing stores might have a conversion rate up to 5%.
Again, this fluctuates, and given the diversity of items available on Etsy the average for your product might be at the higher or lower end.
How to Calculate Your Etsy Conversion Rate
Calculating your Etsy conversion rate is easy.
Simply go to your Shop Manager and check out your stats.
Etsy will calculate your shop conversion rate for you, but the formula they use is simple: (Orders ÷ Viewers) x 100 = Conversion Rate
So, to break this down:
- If you had 275 viewers and 6 orders
- 6 ÷ 275 = 0.022
- 0.022 x 100 = 2.2
- Therefore, your conversion rate would be 2.2%.
This is safely within the average range.
You can monitor your overall conversion rate, or check whether you have any very successful products which have higher conversion than others. You can then use your rate to monitor whether promotions have specific effects.
If you use advertising, you can measure whether people who see the ad are more likely to buy the product, and if the advert is worth the money!
Etsy Conversion Rate vs. Etsy Traffic
We mentioned above that increasing conversion rate may not necessarily mean selling more items. That’s because it’s calculated by the volume of traffic.
If we go back to the 2.2% conversion rate in the example: Imagine that instead of 275 views and 6 sales, you have 500 views and sell 9 items.
By that math, you would have: (500 ÷ 9) x 100 = 1.8%.
So, while you might have sold more items, your conversion rate has actually gone down.
This is why it’s important to look at all the areas when you’re working on increasing sales from your Etsy store.
If you have a good conversion rate, then your focus might be on increasing traffic.
If your conversion rate is low, then focusing on getting more conversions means more sales without having to increase traffic at all.
What Impacts Your Etsy Conversion Rate?
Product Photographs
Getting that first click is usually down to the first photo of your item. After all, that’s what shows up on a search page and your listing.
Good photos throughout the listing are important, but this first photo is crucial — that’s what gets the clicks, after all.
Listing Title
Along with the photograph, the listing title is highly important. This is what gets your product in front of people who are searching for what you’re selling, and encourages them to click.
Product Descriptions
An exciting photo might get the clicks, but a product description that is too dry, poorly written, doesn’t include important specs about your item, or all of the above is going to have viewers clicking elsewhere.
Getting the product descriptions right is something you should spend a decent amount of time on!
Pricing and Shipping Costs
It might sound obvious, but it’s worth reminding yourself that buyers don’t want to pay more for something than they think it is worth.
And if they have to add shipping costs onto that, it’s going to be harder to get them to put your item in their cart.
Shop Policies and Customer Reviews
Buyers take reviews like personal recommendations — if you have poor reviews or few reviews, a buyer will feel like they’re taking a risk buying from you.
And if you have policies which don’t allow for returns or which make returns difficult, you’re likely to lose them from there.
Advertising
If you get it right, ads can push up your conversions by pre-selecting people who are already interested in your product and sending them to your page.
On the other hand, if you get it wrong, advertising can send more people to your page who have no interest in the product. This will not only add views without adding conversions, with each view costing you more money.
Etsy Listing Quality Scores
This might seem somewhat circular, but Etsy will consider your product quality if it has high conversions.
If Etsy pushes your product higher, this will then affect your conversion rate positively!
How to Increase Your Conversion Rate on Etsy
1. Write Clear and Conversion-Focused Etsy Listings
This is probably the most important thing: Make sure you not only highlight what’s great about your product in the listing, but to make it appealing to read as well.
Be sure to answer the question, “Why buy this thing rather than another?”
Remove barriers to conversion by making sure all the information a buyer would want to know is at the top of the description: Materials, sizes, colors, and ordering instructions.
Make sure your keywords are in the first few sentences.
However, try not to sound too much like a robot! Etsy buyers are looking to buy from real people.
If you’re selling items targeted to a particular community, show that you support them, or that you’re a member of the community yourself.
2. Have Professional-Looking Product Photos
The first photo gets the clicks, but the other nine photos in the listing sell the product. You want to use them all to your advantage.
Make sure you include photos which look clean and professional.
Show the item clearly, up-close and detailed, and how it might be used or worn. You might even show a photo of you making the item, or the packaging you include if that’s particularly attractive.
Really make sure you use all your ten photos to show your product in its best light.
3. Clarify Your Etsy Policies
Make sure there’s no ambiguity about what happens if the product gets damaged or isn’t what the customer expects.
Detail returns and refunds, processing time, and if the items will arrive in time for a special event– as well as what will happen if they don’t.
Your policies won’t necessarily be different for every item you sell, but they should definitely be different for custom items as opposed to standard items.
Also, try to err on the side of being generous! You’re unlikely to be ripped off, and offering a coupon as well as a replacement if an item is damaged in shipping might net you a lot more sales.
4. Have a Good and Competitive Pricing Strategy
Be aware — “good” doesn’t necessarily mean “cheap”.
You want to make sure you’re making a decent margin. Also, when it comes to premium goods, customers can equate cheap with something that is low-quality.
Do your research to make sure that the price you charge isn’t way above the average for the item, but don’t feel the need to undercut everyone either.
Being competitive is about offering good value, instead of just offering the lowest price.
5. Customer Service
This is what turns one-time customers into repeat customers, and nets you positive reviews that will increase your conversion rate and visibility.
If you’re offering custom products, tell prospective buyers what you can offer them in terms of updating them and including them in the process.
Make sure you process and post orders in time, communicate with your customers, and include personal messaging both over email and in your packaging.
If something doesn’t go right, work to put it right as quickly as you can! A good response to a problem can turn a negative review into a positive one.
6. Keep an Eye on Your Advertising
An ad which isn’t working can tank your conversion rates and cost you money, so keep track of any advertising you’re running. Also make sure you don’t get views from people who aren’t interested in your product.
On the other hand, if your ad has a high conversion rate, you might want to spend a bit more to broaden reach or run the ad for longer.
The Bottom Line
Your conversion rate is an important metric to keep track of, because it can affect how many products you sell, and how much you can make.
However, it’s worth bearing in mind that ultimately it’s Etsy who decides which products will increase your conversion rate.
A few small tweaks might be all you need to take an underperforming product and make it extremely successful!