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  • The first step in selling your handmade jewelry online is choosing a location. There are two basic kinds commerce sites, auction sites and marketplace sites. Choosing one depends on your temperament and how much time and money you want to invest.

    Common characteristics

    Auction and marketplace sites have a lot in common. They both offer a "storefront" to display products, and both have capabilities to accept online payment. They both also offer search functions for buyers.

    Auction sites

    All auction sites generally work the same way. After you register with the site, you enter items for sale. In addition to descriptions and photographs, you choose shipping options, minimum sales price and the length of the auction. You then activate the auction and wait for a winner. Some sites charge a fee to list an item, others take a fee when you sell the item. Before you register, review the fee schedules. eBay, the best-known online auction site, has a crafts shopping site, http://crafts.shop.ebay.com/. eBay's biggest advantage is that it is big. Shoppers can search the site using keyword or category searches. They can browse new items and bookmark their favorite sellers. But eBay's size is also a disadvantage. Your jewelry will compete with a lot of other sellers. Overstock.com auctions, http://auctions.overstock.com/, has a handcrafted jewelry category, as well as vintage and artisan categories. Overstock.com auctions is much smaller than eBay, so there is not as much traffic, but buyers will find your jewelry easier. Another auction site for selling jewelry is Just Beads (http://www.justbeads.com/). This auction site specializes in beads, findings, stones, cameos and finished pieces. The scope of this site also will limit traffic to your store, but buyers will be focused on your speciality.

    Marketplace sites

    Like auction sites, you must register with a marketplace site. After setting up your storefront, upload descriptions, photographs and prices of your jewelry. Unlike auction sites, prices here are not negotiable. These sites also have fees to list items, or fees when an item sells, or both. Etsy (http://www.etsy.com/) is a leading marketplace site for handmade goods of all kinds. This is a user-friendly site. Buyers can browse by category, location or seller. Sellers add a banner to their storefront for a unique look, and they can categorize and tag their items for easy searching. Buyers and sellers can communicate with each other via a message application. But like eBay, Etsy is big, and your jewelry can get lost. Sellers on Silkfair (http://www.silkfair.com/) have a lot of options to customize their storefront. This site specializes in selling handmade goods Ruby Lane (http://rubylane.com/) specializes in antiques, art, vintage items and jewelry. The site has a clean, relaxed look with no pop-up ads or other distractions.

    Source:

    Beadage

    How to get your jewelry seen on Etsy

    How to sell jewelry on eBay

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