It takes a village to maintain a successful small business! These are my favorite resources that I use every day.
I go over how to use each and every one of these in my Etsy Sellers WORKSHOP and JUMPSTART, so let me know if you have any questions.
ETSY Etsy is the number one global marketplace for handmade and vintage goods. Use this link to get started with Etsy and receive 40 free listings: (I will get 40 free listings too!) But if you don't already have an Etsy shop, don't start until after you attend my Etsy Seller's JUMPSTART so you can start the right way, trust me!!
ETSY SELLER HANDBOOK This is an amazing resource for all things Etsy. They have valuable information in here (but they leave a lot out!)
SHOPIFY A user-friendly, online business platform used to build 100% customizable stores. Use this link to sign up for Shopify Free 14 day trial.
SQUARE FOR IN-PERSON SELLING (Can be integrated with Etsy!) Use this link to sign up for SQUARE and receive free processing on $1,000 in sales for 180 days: https://squareup.com/i/KTLADY2021 (I will get it too!)
USPS will send you free shipping boxes! I love the Priority Mail Flat Rate Small Box for earrings and other small items, and the Priority Mail Box 4 is great for small mugs.
CANVA is a fabulous web-based design tool. I use it for ALL of my graphics (like the one at the top of this page!) They have predesigned templates sized for all social media, and beautiful stock photos and elements. You can even design and order printed business cards. I am seriously in love with CANVA. Use this link to join and get freebies (but the free version is totally awesome).
STICKER MULE I love STICKER MULE for custom branding items like logo stickers and my favorite Painted Lady Pottery packing tape. Use this link to get $10 credit (and I will too!)
CLAY STAMPS www.4clay.com makes beautiful custom stamps for clay in a variety of sizes. Made in the USA.
PAPER & SPARK Janet with
Paper & Spark is a great resource for small business accounting information for Etsy sellers and beyond. She is a maker herself so she knows what's up. I have used her spreadsheets in the past to help get organized since I am not a numbers person.
PHOTO EDITING Honestly, I do most of my photo editing on the basic, default program that comes with Windows. But when I need to blur or fix specific issues,
SNAPSEED is the amazing app I use.
PRODUCT PHOTOGRAPHY SCHOOL Chaitra with Pink Pot Studios has an
amazing course designed to help you take and edit better photos of your items. Use code SAVE100 to get $100 enrollment!
KEYWORD RESEARCH with
ERANK which is a free website that analyzes your Etsy shop data compared to competitors and helps identify keywords based on Etsy shopper behavior. An excellent resource!
EMAIL MARKETING There are lots of ways to go about email marketing. I use MailChimp because it is user-friendly and integrates with Canva.
Use this link to sign up and get credit (but the free plan is fantastic too).
PODCAST ETSY SUCCESS PODCAST is official Etsy content including tips on optimization, seasonal trends and inspiration for other Etsy sellers. They include updated SEO tips here that are not found anywhere else, and the holiday updates are essential for seasonal sellers.
SELLERS PERMIT (California) To collect and remit sales tax, you will need to obtain a
Sellers Permit with the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA).
SALES TAX GUIDE Here's a guide to everything you need to know about filing your CA state sales tax return from the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA).
FICTICIOUS BUSINESS NAME (FBN also known as DBA) For privacy and banking requirements, if your business name does not include your name (ex:
Painted Lady Pottery not
Katie Smith's Pottery) you should file a FBN for your business. They are filed with the
county in which your business is located. For
Los Angles County, file here.
FBN PUBLISHING After filing, FBNs need to be
PUBLISHED in a newspaper once a week for four consecutive weeks (I think this is leftover from snake oil salesman days when con-men would just regularly change names?). You can publish anywhere in the county, but I like to support my favorite local paper,
The Claremont Courier.
EIN An Employment Identification Number with the federal government. If your business has employees, or meets other requirements, you will need to
request one from the IRS. It is simple and immediate.
BRAND MOOD BOARD A brand mood board is a great way to focus your intention on the right customers and organize your branding ideas for consistency across all platforms. Canva has amazing
mood board templates to use for free!
LOGO DESIGN Canva also has a
LOGO MAKER program where you can design your logo from scratch or use one of their thousands of templates for a professional logo in minutes.
BRAND COLOR PALETTE Color palette consistency is a great way to intuitively communicate your brand story in all your materials. A super fun resource for exploring colors and creating a cohesive palette for your brand is
COOLORS. There is even a feature where you can select a photo and find the colors in the photo. After your palette is finalized, note the HEX CODES and apply them everywhere. You can even add it to your BRAND KIT on CANVA so they will be easy to add to all of your designs.
Have a resource you would like to add to our ETSY SELLER RESOURCES list? Email katie@paintedladypottery.com
