5 Reasons I Like ArtFire

Edited to say:  In light of Artfire's recent decision to display ads on paid shop's listings, I can no longer recommend it.  March 5, 2015


When I first decided to sell my handmade jewelry online, I did what a lot of people do.  I opened a shop on Etsy.  I thought customers would come to me.  They didn't.  Jewelry is a very competitive market, and I soon realized that if I didn't list something in the last few hours, it wasn't likely to be seen in a search.  Also my listings were only good for so many days.  Once they expired, I had to relist them again, and pay the listing fees again.  Obviously many people are successful on Etsy.  I just never figured out how to be.

Then I found Artfire.  It's been a slow process, but I am now getting regular sales from people I don't know who find me online.  Here's what I consider to be the advantages of being on Artfire:

1. On Artfire, I can link to my other sites.  Facebook, Twitter, your web site, etc.  This is something that most venues will not allow you to do.
2. A flat monthly rate with no additional charges.  No more paying listing fees on items that don't sell, or having to pay more fees to list more items in the hopes of being seen.  As a result, I can

   

   Amethyst stud earrings, sterling posts

   list multiples of an item.  This comes in handy for pearl stud or amethyst stud earrings, because they are perfect for bridesmaids earrings.  Actually, you can do this on Etsy, but you pay listing fees for each, so people usually list just one.  I have a Facebook friend on Etsy who frequently posts the status "sold and relisted". 
3. They submit my listings to Google and other search engines.  I regularly see incoming traffic to my shop from the search engines.
4. Tools I can use include being able to edit multiple items at a time, coupons (displayed publicly or to send to your customers privately), an in-shop blog (used for posts of interest to customers), collections to promote yours and others items, and two kinds of vacation mode.  I also have a gallery of sold items where potential customers can see one of a kind items that I have sold in the past.
5. Help is available in many forms -- help guides, tutorials, the forums and by phone.  There are so many other artisans on Artfire who are very generous with their time and always willing to help.  I am also in a few guilds where we cross-promote each other's shops through collections and social media.

Let me close with the thing I wanted to change about Artfire.  I say "wanted" because now I'm having second thoughts about it.  For a long time I have wished they were strictly handmade.  They offer commercial shops, and a shopper can do a general search, or search only within handmade.  Now I'm thinking, if someone wants handmade, they can search for it.  If they don't care, they might find my item and like it.  So I think I'm ok with that!