Photography as a career has taken a big stride in their importance to human beings, as people no longer see taking pictures as just something they should do. Pictures are now taken because, they serve as a way of recording memories and telling stories, both of which are important sentiments humans hold on to, especially with the influence of the internet.

The usage of the internet has greatly helped the work of the photographers, as they can now reach out to a wider audience with their work, and also to other sectors of  society. In selling their work through the internet as freelancers in the United States, photographers search for a closely-knitted network with their clients, where they can conduct their businesses easily.

A good website that has a close-knit network where photographers in the United States, regardless of their niche, can sell their photos is Etsy. Etsy is an amazing platform for photographers to sell their work, and it has a very easy registration process, along with a user friendly interface. This article intends to give a step by step description on how to sell pictures on Etsy, and the procedures involved.

WHAT IS ETSY ?

Etsy is the an American e-commerce website that deals in buying and selling of product varieties in several categories. The website helps photographers sell their pictures by creating online shops for the photographers in form of accounts, who then meet with clients and deliver clients demands in return for payment.

See Also: 15 Best Etsy Alternatives for Buyers – Sites like Etsy

HOW TO SELL PHOTOS ON ETSY ?

Selling photos on Etsy requires the photographer in following several procedures, all of which, will be described here for the photographers to have a proper knowledge and an easy passage in opening an online shop on Etsy. The procedures are divided into 7 main steps namely;

1. Creating an account.
2. Naming your shop.
3. Customizing and branding the shop.
4. Setting shop policies.
5. Uploading product images and setting up listings.
6. Selecting your preferred shipping process.
7. Promoting and marketing your shop.

 CREATING AN ACCOUNT.

To create an account on Etsy as a photographer, log on to the Etsy website, (https://www.etsy.com). On this page, the photographer should proceed with registering an account, which is a very easy process, as it only requires an email address.

After creating an account successfully, scroll to the bottom of the site and click on sell, where you have to complete the remaining registration processes which includes, choosing your category, which is photography, giving your account a name, and inputting your payment details.

• NAMING YOUR SHOP.

Naming the shop shouldn’t be difficult since there are no restrictions to how the shop is named. The photographer can choose to use his/her real name, or something more unique, the photographer should just make sure that they choose a name that fits the brand the photographer is trying to build.  Make sure not to leave spaces when picking a name.

See Also: 10 tips to increase Etsy traffic and improve sales

CUSTOMIZING AND BRANDING THE SHOP.

Customizing the shop is a very important part, as it helps to distinguish one shops brand from another shops own. The shop can be customized using three things namely, shop icons, cover photos and banners.

Shop icons are small, square images that are displayed at the top left part of the homepage, which serves as an attractive place to put your photographers logo.

Cover photos are the largest images on the shop page, and are displayed at the top of the shop homepage, and the cover photos should always go along with the shop’s branding. Though,  the cover photos are optional and can be viewed on desktops, tablets and devices.

Banners are another optional choice of customizing, they are similar to cover photos, but, they are small and cannot be viewed by a mobile device.

See Also: Top 10 High-Demand Product Categories on Etsy That Guarantees Profit

SETTING SHOP’S POLICIES.

Setting the shop policies involves stating down the terms and conditions to be used when dealing with the clients, so as to avoid potential conflict and unwanted financial charges, and also to meet customer expectations.

The procedures used in setting the shop’s policies are; stating your position in accepting returns and exchanges, listing your processing and shipping periods, listing shipping method and shipping charges. All these policies should be available in a document format attached to the page to help your shop appear professional.

UPLOADING PRODUCT IMAGES AND SETTING UP LISTINGS.

Getting to the point of uploading product and setting up listings means you are closer to getting your pictures sold. This stage requires the photographer to list images that they want to sell, which could be in form of digital files, canvas prints posters and other forms.

When creating listings, the photographer must make sure that they upload professional quality images, with thorough descriptions that has relevant keywords in relation to the product, and it should be in the category or subcategory that suits the picture.

However, setting up listings is not free, as one Etsy listing can only stay active for four months, before the listing can be renewed, the photographer has to pay $0.20 dollars for renewal.

SELECTING YOUR PREFERRED SHIPPING PROCESS.

Once the selling process has been completed, the photographer needs to find a way to deliver it to the client either by shipping it yourself or by using a shipping service that will take the order and deliver the product for you. The shipping service is advisable as it saves artists valuable production time, and also from stress.

PROMOTING AND MARKETING YOUR SHOP.

Every business has to make a research to find out it’s target market before they start marketing their products to that specified population and, it’s no different for photographers. Photographers selling on Etsy have to find a way to market their products to their own customer base.

Social media accounts such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter are a good way to promote one’s work and market the shop to their desired customer base. The listings should include keywords which allows the promotion reach a larger audience. The work for the promotion should also be creative, as it goes a long way.

After completing all the procedures above, you should be able to sell your work on Etsy as a photographer. However, there are other important details that need to be considered while selling. Customer service should be maintained at a high standard, communication with the clients should be kept responsive and professional.

Issues should be resolved quickly, Prints must be handled with care to avoid smudging, creases and scratches, before they are sent for delivery. Advisably, package your wraps, as they help your brand, increases the customer trust and gets the photographer positive reviews.

Now that I have described all the steps in selling photos on Etsy, I wish you Godspeed in selling your photos. Thank you.

👉 CLICK HERE to Subscribe for Canada jobs with visa sponsorship

Author: Simon RobertEasyInfoBlog is a multi-author blog. We have experts and professionals in various fields who share their ideas and expert knowledge to help you with your daily information needs. Thanks for reading!