How are sales going for you?

[3 Bags Anda Tote]

I have been an iCraft member since March 4, with many views but only one sale. :cry:

I am just wondering how it is going for the rest of you? I do hope you are making sales right and left. :lol:

Edie

[Nora Demirjian]

Well it is a fairly new website, iCraft. I don't think it's even been a year. But Congrats on your sale! That's great! Just keep being optimistic!

I've been here since April and I'm just concentration on having fun! Just showing people what I've done, blogging and roaming the 'boards. Keeping in mind this is a new site, I don't worry too much about sales although it would be great getting one, don't get me wrong!  

This experience is fun and ultimately that's what I want to take out of it so that I'll keep going.

[simplylovely]

I joined in march, as of right now...

I have been on front page twice
133 views
13 items
I am about to add 3 more

0 sales

 :cry:

[JillsTreasureChest]

No sales.  49 views.  I've been here for a couple months.  I should put more items in the shop, and I'm trying to promote it more.  We'll see.

[designs by vickyvk]

I have had 1000 views, 32 products and have had 10 sales. Unfortunately only 1 of those sales has been someone that I didn't know. The rest has been friends and family. I am hoping that other sales start to pick up but we'll see.
Trying to keep the shop fresh!

[Beajoux]

I just hit 200 views (hooray!), but no sales yet (boo!).

However, I really like this site a lot. I love the fact that it's still new and that when I add new listings or update existing ones, they get a chance to be seen on the first page, rather than get buried in 7 seconds (like on another site I could mention).

I know that ultimately it's up to me to drive traffic to my site, so I use my blog, flickr, word of mouth, etc. Unfortunately, I don't always have the time to do this on a consistently regular basis, but I'll just keep going and see what happens!

[MudHutt]

:cry:
Oh my... this is a wee bit discouraging to read. I just joined iCraft this week so I wasnt  expecting too much right away, but reading these responses worries me.

I also have my shop on another site which does not require an up-front  fee to join, however they do charge a tiny fee per item listed (4 month listing for .20 cents (USD). Ive reached 218 sales so far in my first 60 days on the other site.  

Here's wishing everyone here MANY, MANY SALES soon!

[lilbritknits]

I joined here  a week ago. I'm getting views but no sales. I'm on the 5 free listing, so not sure if this makes a difference, but hoping I haven't wasted my $25 one time fee.

I do love the look and feel of the site, and I came here from another site where I was being buried. - It will be interesting to see how this site grows.

Fingers crossed it can take off.

[The Knitting Lady]

I don’t believe that you wasted your money, lilbritknits. You can keep 5 free items here forever and eventually build your fan base at one place, make sales at no cost and be a part of this very friendly community. (Glad to have you with us!   ) You have great products (I can appreciate the work of a fellow knitter   ) and I am sure you will be very successful. We just all need to cheer up a bit and be more optimistic and start promoting our stores too. (I haven’t done much of that either). I am planning to post a few free ads a day on craigslist and kijiji and see how that goes. I've heard about those 2 sites from a friend who says it helps with bringing more customers to your store. Have anyone tried that? I am just not sure how better to word my ads and under which category I should post them. Any help is appreciated!

[ficklefaerie]

I have had 6 sales when I first started on here and they were from my bath and body line which I no longer do. I have switched my products so we shall see. I will try to list a few times a week.

I think we all need to try and coax our fellow Etsy or Ebay members over here to get the ball rolling...

Maybe admin should allow free stores and free unlimited listings and just have a fee for sold items. It may encourage more people to join.

I think I would have a hard time talking someone into paying 25.00 to list 5 items on a site that is this new and slow.

I think icraft is a fabulous idea but you need more to offer people to get this site really hopping!!

Good luck everyone!

[Beadlam]

I've been a member since February 2008 and have sold 4 items. Of course, I'd love to sell more, but have been pleasantly surprised by the sales I have made since this site has not really been up and running for that long. Administration has been wonderful, and I'm hoping things will pick up as time goes on.

Leanne

[Beadlam]

Hi, ficklefaerie -

I believe there is no cost for five items or less. Given that, I'm not sure what I'll do when my free year is up. Even $15 per month may get to be too much unless I really get a good customer base - I may go back to five items. I love this site, but I do agree that if the cost is more than I'm selling, I may not be able to handle it.

 I've copied the following prices from the iCraftGifts.com site:

1 to 5 Items (interchangeable) – ALWAYS FREE!

Starter
5 to 20 Items (interchangeable) - $15.00 CAD/month. Every additional item is $2.50 CAD/month.

Professional
5 to 30 Items (interchangeable) - $25.00 CAD/month. Every additional item is $1.50 CAD/month.

Elite
5 to 40 Items (interchangeable) - $35.00 CAD/month. Every additional item is $1.00 CAD/month.

[Beadlam]

Ooops - sorry ficklefaerie - you must have been referring to the $25 start-up fee. Forgot about that![/code]

[iCraft Admin]

This thread is turning into a very interesting discussion. I felt I should comment on a few points.


Here is why we’ve decided against commission on sales:
1. You can find sites like Ebay and many others who take commission on sales and not that many that don’t.

2. Since we provide a Service, we thought we should charge for that Service and that’s it.
The money from the sale belong to the Artist.


Regarding the $25.00 Registration Fee:

1. We wanted to make sure that those who are registering with us are indeed legitimate artists and crafters.  The upfront fee should keep away all “fake” sellers and anyone else who would want to abuse our system. It is required in order to verify the seller's identity, ensure credit card validity and to encourage honest transactions.

2. This preventative measure will also give your buyers confidence that they are dealing with serious, honest sellers.

3. It is a one-time fee and it will allow you to:
• Have your own storefront in minutes
• Showcase your ready-made merchandise online, and accept requests for custom orders or commissioned work
• Post 5 free items. Never pay commission on sales
• Never see your products listed beside food items, used or resale items. iCraftGifts.com is for Arts, Crafts and Fashion only
• Take advantage of our marketing tools to promote your store
• Get your questions answered by responsive Admins or by “Live Operator”
• Belong to a friendly community of truly talented artists and crafters
• Suggest ideas and improvements, and become an active contributor to iCraft’s development

We thought this was a fair trade.  :wink:


As for the Subscription Fee

It’s a tough question. We need those monthly fees to cover our own monthly expenses to run and to promote this site. At the same time we want our fees to be fair and reasonable to all.  

We’d like to hear what would be an acceptable fee structure, given the fact that the site is new. What else can we offer to make iCraftGifts.com more attractive to new and existing Creators?

We view our Creators as equal partners and contributors, so please don’t hesitate to speak up. Your opinion counts!  

[Beadlam]

First, I want to say that I love this site and would love to stay with it after my free year is over. However, I do have to take cost into account.

Right now I've been on this site for four months and have sold four items in three buys. That's less than one item a month. I also currently have 27 items and could easily keep adding every day for a while. But even at the starter rate, that would be $15 for one item - a huge chunk out of the cost of my items. I keep my items as low as I can, so it would be very difficult for me to charge more for any one piece.

Given my experience on other sites, there would certainly be times that a month or two (or more) would go by with no sales. As you know, my area, jewelry, is a very competitive field with any number of wonderful designers and fabricators out there.

If I was making more, I wouldn;t mind paying a monthly fee - and I certainly appreciate that you are running a buisness, also. However, I think one of the reasons that ebay and other sites like etsy have taken off is because they charge a commission or charge per item.

This has all been off the top of my head right now- it's really something I'll need to do a lot more thinking about.

Thanks so much for asking out opinions!

Leanne

[designs by vickyvk]

First I would like to thank the admin. for asking our opinions on these matters, it is much appreciated!

Second, I also want to say that I love this site. The setup is great, listing is easy, the new arrivals on the homepage was an excellent idea and it is neat and concise.

That being said, I would have to admit that after my free year I will have to think about whether I would like to continue or not. Currently I have had well over 1000 views and 18 sales. Sounds great, but unfortunately all but 1 of these sales were from traffic that I brought to my shop from a facebook group (people that I know or connections). I am really hoping that more buyers will find icraft. If that is happening by the time my free year is up will help determine whether I stay or not.

I do find that the pricing is a little steep. Right now I have 54 items listed, and I continually list to keep my shop up to date. If I did not have my free year it would be costing me almost $50 per month right now (it's $35 for up to 40 items and then $1 per item per month after that).
If I was selling like crazy then perhaps this amount would not bother me so much.

So here I am, being honest. I would love to see this site pick up and hope that it does happen by the beginning of next year... but if not I will need to reconsider whether this is the best and most economical place for me to sell my products.

Thanks for listening!

[BetaBoutique]

well.. i am also a big fan of this site but unfortunately had no sales yet (still.. i don' t get upset as i am pretty sure sooner or later they will come) and this is my first time online selling as well so no big experience. and i am trying to do little advertising but have not so much time so it is really little

but still.. still.. i like site, it is friendly and i believe i will have some sales soon and i will be able to afford to pay fees after a year all big things starts somewhere so i hope iCraft will be also one of these big things soon

uh, and, damn, my english is not so good so sorry everyone for torture you may have while reading this

[iCraft Admin]

Thanks everyone for your feedback and support! No promises, but we'll definitely consider all the comments and suggestions.

[beadznthingz]

I opened my shop on June 23 and I am ecstatic with the number of views I already have.

I did not join this site in time to take advantage of the free year, but I think that the fees are fair. I have previously been on another site that had low listing fees and then added a commission fee to each transaction, but also required frequent relisting or renewing. The total monthly fees that I paid on that site are about the same as the monthly fee on iCraft.

I joined this site because of the extra selling resources that iCraft offers, such as the automatic uploads to googlebase, and easy links to Kaboodle, etc. Other sites that I have tried do not offer this.

I am very optimistic that iCraft, and hopefully my little shop on iCraft, will do great in the long run. This site is still fairly new and most sites have slow sales in the summer.

To all of you, hang in there...the sales will come!

[BetaBoutique]

hey!

till today i have:

42 items listed
561 views
4 sales

--
i believed that sooner or later i will have my first sales even though i was not promoting much my shop and, yes, here they came.
--
best wishes and sales for everyone!

[beadznthingz]

Congratulations on your sales BetaBoutique!  

[iCraft Admin]

Update on iCraftGifts.com Pricing Policy

You’ll be happy to know that we are currently revising our Pricing Policy to see how much we can lower our monthly Subscription Fees.

The registration fee will stay the same, as we need some mechanisms on the site for keeping “fakes and spammers” from posting on the site and therefore putting buyers at risk.

The new Pricing Policy will be in effect August 1, 2008.

We are also preparing two separate emails – one to all Creators and one to all Buyers - outlining recent site developments and updates. So make sure you add iCraftGifts.com to your “Trusted List” in the Outlook or any other mail program that you use to receive our important communication.

Thanks for all your feedback and Happy Crafting!  

[Beadlam]

Will be looking forward to the new pricing structure! As always, Administration takes the time to listen and then make decisions. Thanks!

[Penny Glass Girl]

Is there a new pricing structure available yet? I don't know if I am looking in the right spot or not. Maybe it is not available yet.

I am new, and am still looking around, but are there a lot of people making sales? When I browse through shops, I'm just not finding them, but perhaps, I need more investigation.

For what it matters, my opinion:

I don't think that I will continue to pay the subscription fees as they are if the sales aren't forthcoming.  I just began here, with many successes elsewhere, and am hopeful, but I know I can and should sell. I love selling my craft, but won't do so at a loss.
 

[GalleriaLinda]

I am beginning to love this site.

I joined for the free year the end of April but only had one item listed and did not nurture my shop.

On July 1 (my birthday!) I made a committment to "work" my shop here to see what happens and started listing every day. Within 4 days I had one sale. Now, that may be all I get but it sure was energizing!

At the end of the trial year I will seriously consider a paid subscription - likely the lowest level as I am not in the big leagues yet, but I too am excited about the promotions that iCraft is doing.

[PaintersParadise]

I have not made any sales yet also, I would love some feed back on my items and let me know the pros and cons about them.  also I don't know how to set shipping charges, any ideas?

[iCraft Admin]

I would consider Shipping Internationally, Painters Paradise, otherwise you are limiting your customer base to Canada and US only.

You have the ability to attach up to 3 Shipping Profiles per product. I would recommend creating one profile for Shipping Worldwide.
Even if it costs a lot to ship abroad and the total price will be significantly more - let the buyer make that decision "to buy or not to buy".

[iCraft Admin]

iCraftGifts.com Introduces Reduced Subscription Fees!
See our latest Press Release for more details https://icraftgifts.com/community.php

[Beadlam]

Thanks so much - this will give me more to think about. I think the Starter fee would be very reasonable while seeing how the shop grows - especially if we can change up to 15 items at any time we wish.  Thanks again for your review.

[beadznthingz]

Thanks so much iCraft Admin!

It is wonderful that you reviewed the fees so quickly and I love the new rates - they are completely reasonable and allow creators more flexibility in determining how to set up their creator exhibits.

I am also pleased that the outside advertising will be removed from the bottom of the creator exhibitor pages for all those using the Starter, Professional, and Elite packages. I think it will make each creator exhibit page look more professional, and allow shoppers to focus on the creator exhibit items only without other distractions.

It is very refreshing to belong to a site where the suggestions made by creators are not only considered and listened to, but the suggestions are acted on and implemented by Admin. in a timely manner.  

[tamaris]

I've been here since March and have had 87 views and no sales.  I only have the five jewelry items but still I would hope for more views.  Since five items may be listed for free I will stick it out a while longer but I must admit I'm finding it discouraging.  I would like to know how this site is being promoted because I think we all need a lot more buyers.  Thanks.

[Earth Expressions]

I have sold 4 items, the last one is a Custom List.
I am a member since January 2008 but I think I have to Update my entire Shop, I have so many products to list...  take a look!   :wink:
http://flickr.com/photos/earthexpressions/

[Beajoux]

I've been here since March and have had 87 views and no sales.  I only have the five jewelry items but still I would hope for more views.  Since five items may be listed for free I will stick it out a while longer but I must admit I'm finding it discouraging.  I would like to know how this site is being promoted because I think we all need a lot more buyers.  Thanks.

Tamaris, I see in your shop your last update was in April. That might be scaring off buyers who may think you aren't keeping up with your shop. A simple edit with one of your listings will bump it up to the front and get you some added visibility on the replacement pages.  

[iCraft Admin]

Great advice, Beajoux!

In addition to keeping your store frequently updated and fresh, offering more products in your Creator Exhibit will give your potential buyers a larger inventory to choose from and more chances for you to make a sale.
Tamaris, I see that you are on a Free Offer, which means you can upload as many products for free for the entire year. I would use this opportunity to showcase all your products.

Also, a little bit of advertising of your Creator Exhibit on other Message Boards and Social Shopping sites would help a lot.
Have a look at the interview with Vicky Vander Kooi (aka 2bebold https://icraftgifts.com/designs-by-vickyvk) https://icraftgifts.com/blog/icraft-spotlight-the-bold-and-the-beautiful-designs-of-vicki-vk-62.php She had a lot of great ideas for self promotion and we wanted her to share them with others.

Hope this helps.  

[normas bath and body]

Admin,
thanks for sharing that article. very nice!
~Norma

[iCraft Admin]

Hi ficklefaerie,

Just wanted to mention that we’ve lowered our subscription fees https://icraftgifts.com/community.php and introduced “Referral Program for Creators” https://icraftgifts.com/community.php to make it easier for you guys to promote our services to your crafting friends. Hope this helps!