Do You Sell On Etsy?
Are you SICK of all the
ENDLESS FEES and MASSIVE Competition Making it
Harder to Get Sales?
Special Invitation
Whether You Sell Physical
OR Digital Products:
Join the NEW Marketplace
and put More Money
Back in Your Wallet.
Tired of endless fees? Or are they holding you back from even starting to sell on Etsy?
Unfortunately these fees are just getting worse... and it isn't going to get any better.
Just between the listing fees, transaction fees (on TOP of the transaction fees charged by processors), commission fees, etc., it can be a minimum of 15%... to as much as 40% of your costs. (One person said this was even higher for her!)
Even worse, some are getting slapped with reserves for no known reason, and coming out with only 10% of their revenue. (How do you run a business like that, when it's physical products??)
Here's a news clip from one of our local news sites just a few weeks ago:
Another seller said she had a reserve put on for NO reason (and they won't tell her why, she just keeps getting a roundabout response - as if the staff doesn't even know)... and is receiving ONLY 25% of her sales revenue... BEFORE Etsy takes off their added fees, transaction fees, commissions etc., reducing that to just 10% coming to her. From that, she STILL had to pay her suppliers.
How do they expect sellers to survive??
Add to that, the competition is insane. (With over 4 million sellers, you can't expect otherwise).
Yes, I know there are courses out there on how to make big money with Etsy, but let's be completely honest: It's NOT that easy to get sales that fast (especially as a new store), and definitely not consistently, unless you already have a following.
Adding a shopify store can help the sting... however there's other things involved there too. You aren't part of a marketplace where it's as easy to find products, and Shopify can be just as crazy expensive if you have to pay for add ons (which most charge a monthly fee or percentage of your sales), added transaction fees, and so on.
The solution: Introducing, InspiredFun - the Marketplace designed for Creators - both physical AND digital products.
(See this short video for a brief intro).
A quick note...
You might be wondering who I am to be releasing this, and why.
First off - In case you don't know me, I'm Amber Jalink - I've been working online for over 25 years, full time. Yes, since May of 1997!
I've seen a lot, tested so many things, and for the past oh, 10+ years I've been focused mostly on selling a lot in the printables space, templates, journals, planners, and so much more.
I'm the founder of software as a service sites such as the The Journal Creator, the Activity Book Generator, MyCustomJournal (re-launching in the fall) and more.
I occasionally teach some online business courses and workshops, and I also dabble in a few other things (hobby related). I also have SEO clients that I've been working with for years.
The fact is, with running both the Activity Book Generator, and the Journal Creator (all versions), we are constantly having members ask questions, particularly for help on selling on Etsy.
Others have said they want to sell there, but the competition, the fear of all the fees, and the restrictions are holding them back.
To be honest, I created this system a few years ago, but I never released it - partly because I wasn't sure there was enough of a need or demand for it, and partly because I didn't like the initial software I was using for it.
But after reading several news articles in our local news, that triggered me to start looking at other comments and frustrations... not to mention I got notices a little while ago of fees going up and so on for my own stores on Etsy.
So I decided it was time. We completely rebuilt the site with a brand new (far more powerful) system that did exactly what I wanted (with more power for you), and now we're opening it to the public.
I invite you to enjoy a DIFFERENT approach, one that puts far more into your pockets (and the pockets of your customers!)... and join InspiredFun.
InspiredFun is a new marketplace dedicated to family friendly/family oriented crafting, printables and more. Kind of what Etsy originally was - before they took on investors and skyrocketed fees.
Etsy now has 4.36 million active sellers. ... BUT it has over 96.3 MILLION active BUYERS... waiting for more products!
So while yes, there's competition, there's a HUGE opening waiting for YOU.
Let's cut to it and see what you get when you join InspiredFun.
The Feature Highlights
Full Dashboard
This is where you can see everything you need, to add products, add images, and so much more.
Full Seller Stats
See how your sales are doing, what products are most popular, and more
Digital products
These can be "digital" (downloadable) or "virtual" - like access to software! YES you can sell either and more! (And yes, you can upload the digital products so that they are instantly downloadable for your customers after purchase)
Physical Products
Sell physical products with a full shipping system you can manage on your own. Full stock management if you wish to use it and more, everything you'd expect to have to ship products to customers.
An example of part of the dashboard (A few slight tweaks from what you see here, but this shows you how the stats appear etc.)
(Obviously this is a partial screenshot of my test dashbaord, so no stats are in there)
And an example of how a real product looks in the system...
And so you can see the full page including the descriptions...
But that's not all. Let's look at the features even closer:
Product Features
Seller Features
Seller Dashboard Features
And SO much more. While I could go into "overkill" mode to show you every little thing, it could overwhelm you - so I won't do that. If you want a feature, it's probably already there.
What "isn't" there yet? We're adding in a few things very shortly, like more payment options (as above), as well as we're doing a few tweaks to some of the store views.
** NOTE: ** We've had many ask if we integrate with some of the print on demand companies, or could you do 'drop shipping' as part of your stores. The answer is YES it's coming! So while the connection to print on demand companies isn't there "yet" - it is definitely being added during the month of August. And you CAN manually do drop shipping now.
But what kind of FEES will InspiredFun take?
I'm glad you asked!!
Being in this market, I realized that the fees are sometimes crazy ridiculous. Now - you're about to get a special offer, but let's look first at what the fees WILL be to the general public, when we turn it on for anyone to join as a seller: (Right now, you're seeing a launch special - people CAN NOT join to sell free right now, they will be declined).
Originally, I was going to do $1 per sale, regardless of the price of the product. But I realized, that was great for people selling $25-50 products... but not so great for people selling $2 printables. That's a whopping 50% fee, and I just said I didn't want to drive people crazy with fees.
So let's get more realistic.
* Note when I talk about fees, I am excluding whatever Paypal, Stripe etc. will charge - those are their fees and we pass that to you exactly as they charge - but we don't add onto that like others do. I don't control what Paypal, Stripe etc charge.
FOR THOSE WHO JOIN AFTER THIS LAUNCH: Pricing will be 3% flat commission fee.
So if you sell a $2 product or a $200 product - the fee (commission we charge) is 3%.
BUT... before I get into this special launch deal, let's first take some examples of what it will be like to sell at InspiredFun vs Etsy...
You'll find this a crazy eye opener.
(All of this information was gathered through actual sellers, and Etsy's website).
Scenario 1:
Let's say you have 100 products, and you have them listed at an average of $25 per product. And for the sake of simplicity, let's say these are physical products you would ship (like a mug or shirt). But for this example, we aren't adding in variations... that would increase the fees Etsy charges.
Let's say your shipping fees were $5 per product (so $500 in shipping fees).
In this example, I'm going to say you sold 100 different products once. (Remember, this is for example only)
FOR A $2500 sales total:
Fees Charged | InspiredFun | Etsy Fees |
---|---|---|
Listing Fees | 0 | $0.20 each x 100 = $20 |
Transaction Fees on top of payment processors | 0 | 3-4% plus $0.25 per product sold |
Commissions per sale | 3% = $75 | 6.5% = $162.50 |
Commissions (Fees) On Shipping Costs | 0 | 5% = $25 |
Mandatory Ad Fees | 0 | Yes - 12-15% = $300 min |
Regulatory Operating Fees | None (you pay these if you are required to, i.e., your local sales taxes) | Yes (dependent on area) |
Additional Ad Fees for in-site ads (optional) | Optional | Optional |
Extra Commissions charged if sales come "from an ad" | 0 | Up to 32% (Let's assume 25% came from ads, which is very low from reports) = $200 |
TOTAL FEES PAID FOR 100 PRODUCTS | $75 | $807.50 (This is nearly 33% fees!) |
NET PROFIT AFTER FEES PAID ($2500 minus fees = ) | $2,425 | $1,692.50 |
How did I come up with the 32% commission number? Let's assume 25% (a quarter) of all orders came from ads, which is very low from reports - so $2500 x 25% = $625 came through ads. Now Etsy charges up to 32% commission on those sales = $200
Scenario 2:
The average "low" seller on Etsy makes $537.50 per month ($6,450 per year).
For the sake of this example, let's say that this one is all printables, no shipping, and the same 100 products have sold, at let's say $5.37 each (only selling one per product).
Watch how this plays out.....
Fees Charged | InspiredFun | Etsy Fees |
---|---|---|
Listing Fees | 0 | $0.20 each x 100 = $20 |
Transaction Fees on top of payment processors | 0 | 3-4% plus $0.25 per product sold |
Commissions per sale | 3% = $16.12 | 6.5% = $34.93 |
Commissions (Fees) On Shipping Costs | 0 | 5% = $0 (no shipping) |
Mandatory Ad Fees | 0 | Yes - 12-15% = $64.50 min |
Regulatory Operating Fees | None (you pay these if you are required to, i.e., your local sales taxes) | Yes (dependent on area) |
Additional Ad Fees for in-site ads (optional) | Optional | Optional |
Extra Commissions charged if sales come "from an ad" | 0 | Up to 32% commission. (See calculation below) = $43 |
TOTAL FEES PAID FOR 100 PRODUCTS FOR ONE MONTH: | $16.12 | $203.55 |
NET PROFIT AFTER FEES PAID ($2500 minus fees = ) FOR ONE MONTH: | $521.38 | $333.95 |
NET PROFIT AFTER FEES PAID FOR | Fees paid x 12 months; $193.44 | Fees paid x 12 months; $2,442.60 |
How did I come up with the 32% commission number? Let's assume 25% (a quarter) of all orders came from ads, which is very low from reports - so $537.50 x 25% = $134.37 came through ads. Now Etsy charges up to 32% commission on those sales = $43.
Scenario 3:
So let's go a little "crazy".
The average SUCCESSFUL seller on Etsy makes between $43,000-$46,000 per year. We're going to use the $43,000 per year amount for this example.
We're going to keep to the same 100 products, obviously selling multiple times.
What would that look like in fees?
Fees Charged | InspiredFun | Etsy Fees |
---|---|---|
Listing Fees | 0 | $0.20 each x 100 = $20 |
Transaction Fees on top of payment processors | 0 | 3-4% plus $0.25 per product sold |
Commissions per sale | 3% = $1,290 | 6.5% = $2,795 |
Commissions (Fees) On Shipping Costs | 0 | 5% = $0 (no shipping) |
Mandatory Ad Fees | 0 | Yes - 12-15% = $5,160 min |
Regulatory Operating Fees | None (you pay these if you are required to, i.e., your local sales taxes) | Yes (dependent on area) |
Additional Ad Fees for in-site ads (optional) | Optional | Optional |
Extra Commissions charged if sales come "from an ad" | 0 | Up to 32% (Let's assume 25% came from ads as per the above explanations, which is very low from reports) = $3,440 |
TOTAL FEES PAID FOR 100 PRODUCTS FOR ONE MONTH: | $1,290 | $13,780 (That's about 32%!) |
NET PROFIT AFTER FEES PAID ($2500 minus fees = ) FOR ONE MONTH: | $41,710 | $29,220 |
# how did I get this number of $1,075? I divided the 43,000 into an average of $10 each, that's 4300 product sales. 4300 sales x $0.25 per sale on top of the transaction % = $1,075.
Now obviously two notes here:
#1 - these numbers are not exact, and as you saw, I didn't take into account if you had variations (like product sizes or colors or customizations), and I didn't take into account shipping costs if you charged for shipping for examples 2 and 3.
and #2 is this:
LEGAL DISCLAIMER: I do NOT promise how much money you can or will make. You could make far more, or less than this, or nothing at all. These are HYPOTHETICAL examples based on real stores and real products, but the calculations are mine based entirely on what Etsy says in their policies, and that of sellers in their posts elsewhere.
What our customers are saying:
"...I was able to get it all set up in under 30 minutes!"
"Amber, the site is lovely.
I've toyed with Etsy for so long, but the site was just so overwhelming to me. InspiredFun is so pretty and so easy to use.
I had been working on a product, and I was able to finish it and get it all set up in under 30 minutes.
I'm so thankful you set this platform up! Thank you!"
Suzanne Sukhram-Farmer // Business Owner, SuzanneSFarmer.com
This is your opportunity to join InspiredFun - at a crazy special rate.
The fact is, we need more sellers! Yes I have some, and we're JUST turning on the site now (actually last week), and our founding members have started adding products.
We are already beginning our social media promotions AND ads, to bring BUYERS to the site, but the site needs more sellers so that we have more variety and even more products.
** UPDATED ** - we received several emails and tickets asking how we intend to bring buyers to the site. Well obviously I just answered that, but apparently it wasn't clear enough (or big enough to be noticeable) so I want to assure you:
We have BIG promotions planned to bring buyers to the site, multiple ways - and it WILL be ongoing.
I have been working online for over 25 years as mentioned above. I do SEO for clients, and consistently bring them thousands to 10s of thousands of real visitors every day to their sites. And, obviously if I've been here for that long, I am NOT one who creates something and walks away. I am very determined to help InspiredFun sellers have great success with this system.
This is very familiar territory for me, so be assured, I will be using this experience of course to bring buyers to the site. (It helps that we're coming up to the most popular shopping time of the year to get our name known and out there for you!).
Think of it this way:
Imagine you are a buyer, and you're told of a new site where you can find products... but you go to the site and there's only maybe 10-20 products on there. Will you be sticking around?
Probably not.
So this is why I launched it in this order - we NEED the sellers with products (even if you need some time to get them up) - but the more sellers we have with products, the more likely people will come and buy.
Plus, having the products in the system helps ME be able to do promotions and feature sellers.
Hopefully that makes sense!
This is NOT a prelaunch, we ARE in the launch phase. YES that means your store can go live, as soon as you're ready to make it so!
And for that reason, I'm giving you a crazy deal.
You don't have to pay 3% per sale.
That's right - for THIS LAUNCH TIME FRAME ONLY, you can become a Seller on InspiredFun - WITHOUT the 3% commission fees!!
When you become a seller right now, you get:
Remember, we're adding in more payment options (waiting for approvals before we can turn them on), and also more features, more store designs and seller requested features!
Once this launch time frame is done though, you will NOT be able to join for this crazy low price.
But wait - what does that mean, "for 1 year"? Is it automatically recurring?
NO it is not automatically recurring.
Not everyone loves automatic recurring. And the fact is, we figured this was the best solution for all - to give you a great rate as an intro price, but at the same time, not restrict either of us in the long run.
But the other part is - because we are just rolling out to the public, we obviously want to grant added time frames for you to get your products in, while we build the BUYERS coming to you.
This isn't an overnight / get rich quick scheme in any way. It's an honest to goodness store in a brand new marketplace, at a crazy good price. But like any business, it could take a short bit of time to really get rolling.
Which is why we have huge promotional plans - and you getting your sellers' account today helps us feature you too!
Will you be able to extend this pricing? Probably. But because we have this one year and not automatically recurring, it means we will likely extend your one year to probably more like 15 months on us :) At that time, you will get a note about the options you will have at that time, to either renew (and then it will be auto-renew), or to revert to the commission, whichever you decide at that time.
How do I know you won't just disappear?
As I mentioned above, I've been working online full time for over 25 years. Most of my sites are live for several years, my longest one running is 24 years old. :) So be assured I have no intentions of going anywhere.
Become A Seller On Inspired Fun RIGHT NOW during this Launch Special!
Important alert: If you choose to pay by credit card outside of Paypal, you may be asked for your address and/or phone number. This is for the sole purpose of preventing fraud or unauthorized purchases. We do not store your information, and it is not used for any other purpose except to verify the buyer is you.
Warning: Special pricing is limited!
This is a limited time offer.
So be aware of these few things:
1. The price WILL go up after so many sales... until the launch ends.
2. This price WILL NEVER be available again for new sellers.
3. FREE sellers (who pay the 3% commission) will NOT be able to sell on the site until (at the earliest), September 1st. I may even NOT allow free sellers at all for a while after that. Why? So that I can promote our launch sellers first! Additionally, free sellers will be restricted to the number of products they can sell (likely 20-25).
Get your store now, before the price goes up.... or disappears completely!
Amber Jalink
REMINDER: If you choose to pay by credit card outside of Paypal, you may be asked for your address and/or phone number. This is for the sole purpose of preventing fraud or unauthorized purchases, to protect both YOU as a buyer, and US as a seller. We do not store your information, and it is not used for any other purpose except to verify the buyer is you.
Frequently Asked Questions
This means you shouldn't have to worry about what your kids or grandkids may see if they happen to be behind you when you or others are shopping on the site. While I know it's big business, I think there deserves to be some family friendliness out there. (Not everyone wants to have stuff blaring in their face when they search for something as neutral as a coloring book).
There's a few things we won't allow listed in the site. These are not to offend anyone or be viewed as discriminatory, but we have sought legal counsel on this, and it was confirmed, since this is our site, we have the right to determine what we will and won't allow. If this bothers you - please don't join, there's lots of other sites out there that allow these.
What we don't allow: anything rude/crude/swearing* (see * below), sex related products, or anything related to political, horror or psychic/hypnosis/witchcraft/spells. Again, this isn't to offend anyone. All the other usual rules apply, no hate, racism, tobacco/drugs, weapons, illegal items etc.
To be honest, Etsy claims not to allow some of the above restrictions but they don't block most of it. (I've seen lots of horror and crude/sex related products that they claim to ban and the worst part is, they come up in normal "coloring" searches).
*Does that mean I won't allow swearing INSIDE the products? That's fine - I just don't want swear words on the covers or actual swear words in the listings. If you have that sort of a product, simply call it a "Sweary" product in your explanations so people ARE aware that inside there may be what some consider to be foul language, or clarify that it contains words that may be offensive to some. Every region is different, and what some consider to be offensive, other's don't - so I'm not being a stickler on this. Just please do not have it in the listings or spelled out on the covers.
As stated above, we currently have Paypal, and are completing the processes for Stripe. (Waiting on approvals). Then we'll be working on turning on other providers who work as well in other countries.
After you complete your purchase, you will be taken to a special page that will give you all the instructions to set up your store.
As per the previous questions, all of the instructions are given after your purchase on how to get your store activated and at the correct level, but by chance if you have issues, reach out to our support desk linked at the bottom of this page.
You will be presented with an option for more stores on the next page after your purchase.
© 2024, DIME Consultants Inc.