Zazzle vs Etsy: Today’s post is something that is near and dear to my (Elke’s) heart! If you’re an Etsy seller, then this is definitely worth reading. I’m going to be talking about how you should work your way over to the Zazzle platform as an Etsy seller. This is especially pertinent for those selling digital products on the platform. I have some very compelling reasons to do this, so let’s start going through them!
When I was on Etsy myself, I realized that I was limited in my earnings potential. But on Zazzle, there’s no ceiling to how much I can earn because I don’t have to physically make the products, AND, those earnings can happen more passively. Does this sound like something you want for yourself? Keep reading to learn how you can make it a reality…
I first want to debunk a myth that you can only make money selling on a platform like Etsy or Zazzle if you’re highly artistic and creative. Instead of having to design all your own graphics, you could buy them and use them on products within the Zazzle marketplace. This allows you to be creative in other ways.
Some of our clients do this same thing and have been able to build excellent businesses in doing this. That goes to say that even if you’re not creative, there are resources for you!
There are quite a few differences between Etsy and Zazzle that are worth noting for sellers. First, let’s list where the real differences in these platforms lie:
– Fees
– Manual creation vs. automation
– Method of driving traffic to store and products
– Customer touchpoint demands
– VAT sales tax burden
– Possibility of burnout
In the next section, I’ll dive deeper into these discrepancies so you can understand how they affect a selling experience.
Etsy makers face quite a few struggles, which prompts many to leave the platform altogether or at least to pair their efforts with other options. Here are the major issues they face:
There are listing fees and you must pay for ads to drive traffic to your Etsy store. That’s less money in your pocket.
Etsy makers that sell physical products must take time to produce each item physically and then spend time shipping them. You’re also in charge of getting all the supplies you need to make your physical products. This means that makers are subject to supply chain issues for what they produce and are limited in how much they can make and sell since the process is so manual.
It can be trying to drive traffic to your storefront on Etsy. For instance, Etsy sellers have to pay for ads to promote their business and have to maintain and create followers on an external website to drive traffic to their store. A failure to be consistent with this may lead to low visibility on the Etsy platform, as it’s getting harder and harder for customers to organically find shops as of late.
On Etsy, sellers have a lot of interaction with their customers. They have to answer inquiries, generate receipts, and physically ship out their orders.
On Etsy, many sellers report leaving the platform because they simply don’t want to deal with the sales tax demands put on Etsy sellers.
Because Etsy sellers are manually making the items they sell, they face the reality of burnout, especially during peak shopping and selling seasons.
Next up, I will get to the good part: the compelling reasons that Etsy sellers are making the jump to the Zazzle platform.
Now that you know the issues that Etsy makers are faced with, I want to counter that with the reasons that so many sellers are turning to Zazzle as a better selling alternative. Here are the ways that Zazzle negates the issues discussed above:
Zazzle does not have the fees that Etsy does, facilitating a more straightforward earning structure for sellers.
On Zazzle, once you upload a design to a product once, it can sell over and over again without any more manual creation on your end. If a product sells once it could sell again without more labor or material costs – EVER! This has happened to me with products I created in 2008. In the past 12 years, I’ve made over $10,000 in royalties on single products that took me one hour to design and upload. That’s an amazing return on investment if you ask me!
I call Zazzle a “business in a box” because all you have to do is upload your designs to products, tag them appropriately, and then let them sell. There’s no touchpoint with customers as Zazzle takes care of everything from that end. You don’t have to worry about fulfilling the order, shipping it, or even dealing with customer inquiries. In fact, Zazzle takes care of 80% of what Etsy sellers do. Imagine having all that time back?!
Zazzle is constantly making changes to help sellers make their storefront visible on the platform, which results in more customers and – of course – more sales. All you have to do is ensure your products are labeled and tagged properly for customers to see them, even if they don’t specifically visit your store.
Now, do you see why Etsy sellers are switching to Zazzle? It makes their lives easier and helps make their profit a lot more passive in nature, cutting out much of the hard work that is required on Etsy.
I ask you this: Even if you make 6-figures in sales on Etsy, what are your true profits? Think about what it is costing you in material, ad spend, your hourly rate, and loss of sales because you are doing busy work instead of creating more marketable products. Also consider the limits on your income because you have to spend time making a product physically rather than sourcing that out to Zazzle. On top of this, if you make products – even prototypes – what if they don’t sell? Doing so takes time away from you doing other things that are valuable to you, and you also have to consider the labor and material costs.
More and more people are making the shift from being an Etsy maker to a Zazzle creator, and with good reason! Making this jump allows sellers to shed the costs, sales tax headaches, and burnout for much more: an unlimited earnings potential, greater profits, and all in a more passive manner to give you time back for whatever you want to focus on.
Thank you so much for reading!
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Jen and Elke Clarke are a mother-daughter duo that empowers women entrepreneurs to make money online. Through courses and coaching, Jen and Elke help women (and men) become successful creative entrepreneurs on Zazzle and e-commerce. Combined Jen and Elke have sold over 15 million dollars-worth of products, and earned over $1.5 million combined through their businesses on Zazzle. Jen and Elke have influenced and transformed the lives of hundreds of thousands of people worldwide with their free content, paid and private coaching.
They are international, award-winning authors. Click the links to purchase their books through Amazon: Earn Around The World and Create Online and Grow Rich.
Jen and Elke Clarke have been featured in Yahoo Finance as TOP 5 e-commerce coaches.