Pinning for Etsy Sellers: Tips for gaining Pinterest Followers

T.E.S.T.'s own Michelle of  Kiriki Press has found that Pinterest a useful tool for running and promoting her modern, handcrafted embroidery kit business. She's managed to gain thousands of followers over the last half year, without spending much time daily, and has found Pinterest helps drive traffic to her Etsy shop.

Hi everyone! So I just reached 10,000 Pinterest followers (from 200 last summer). I know 10,000 isn't a ton compared to many other pinners, but I thought I'd share what I did to get to 10,000 because I've noticed that a lot of my Etsy traffic and sales are coming from Pinterest these days:

Barn Owl DIY Embroidery Kit by Kirikipress on Etsy

•  Only pin large, good quality images - (images with a vertical orientation look the best)
•  Link any images of your work directly to your online shop. I have a separate board for my own work.
• I've been extremely selective with which pinners and boards I follow. Don't follow people just because they follow you. This will clutter your feed with pins you don't care about repinning.
• I have one board that I have put the effort into building up, Pattern Inspiration, which has over 2000 pins and makes up about 90% of my followers. Through this board I have had hundreds of repins on my personal work board, which only has a few dozen pins that were pinned months ago and no one would have seen otherwise.
  
• Choose cover photos for all of your boards that spark an interest for what's inside as well as work well together compositionally as a whole.
• Have other boards related to your specific craft. Other popular boards of mine focus on illustration, DIY crafts and needlework.
• I only spend 15-20 minutes all together throughout the day looking at my feed and repinning (I post 10-20 pins a day on average)
• Sometimes an image just isn't greatest quality or doesn't really fit in anywhere, but you still want to keep it as reference... I pin these to a "hidden" board that only I can see.



Tabby Cat DIY Embroidery Kit by Kirikipress on Etsy

• Pinterest is an amazing survey of what the market wants. I chose to focus on building up my pattern board so that I could instantly tell which designs/colours/motifs are currently the most popular based on which pins get repinned the most (final conclusion: yup, it's cats).
• Above all, your Pinterest should be your personal inspiration board. Only pin things that you find interesting or beautiful. I've had tons of new ideas for projects since I started using it.

T.E.S.T. Interview: Loulou James Creative Studio

We hope to introduce you to all the great Etsy sellers to be found right here in Toronto. Here at the T.E.S.T. blog, we plan to interview them all. This is the 41^st in our series with Tracy of LoulouJamesCreative

Why PDF maternity patterns on Etsy?

When I was expecting my older son I started sewing a lot again. I was making and modifying clothing for maternity wear, decorating the nursery, and making baby items. I found it frustrating that there were hardly any maternity sewing patterns (let alone nursing wear) and the options for little boys' items in particular were limited. I would just drool over the lovely things on Etsy but there wasn't really anything for me to make, and I knew there were sure to be other crafty types out there with the same dilemma. So the entrepreneurial side of me decided to create and sell my own! I was used to buying traditional printed patterns, but I love the instant gratification of a downloadable PDF - when I want to make something I want to start now!

Tell us a bit about your fashion design background.

I have been making clothes for myself and others for as long as I can remember. I would use store-bought patterns and modify as I wanted. I moved to Toronto almost 20 years ago to study fashion design at Ryerson where I really enjoyed the patternmaking and draping classes - when you can take an idea and draft it up as you like it's quite rewarding as a designer.

In my 'day job' I work in a creative field, not designing clothes, but home fashions. The two industries are so linked today - we study the same trends, have the same inspirations. Working on Loulou James allows me to channel all my apparel ideas that I can't otherwise work into an item like a shower curtain or a soap dish!

What are the advantages of sewing your own maternity clothes?

The advantages are huge! There are certainly a lot more options out there now in maternity wear but the fit can be tough if you are taller, shorter, have longer legs, broader shoulders...we become loyal to brands and stores based on fit and style, but with maternity wear your options are so greatly reduced. When I'm designing a piece I also try to think about it's 'second life' - can it be used for nursing wear? Can it be modified for before and after maternity? I know that moms don't have a lot of time to spare sewing so getting another use out of a design is really helpful.

The presentation of your shop is wonderful. Did you do the illustrations yourself?

Thank you! Yes, these are my own illustrations, and I based them on the style of vintage sewing patterns. I love how the women always look so feminine - the way the hands and are feet are posed, the facial expressions and hair. I've always loved fashion illustration, and it's a great way to keep improving my Illustrator skills.

What is your most popular design to date?

The sleep sacks are all very popular, especially the "Stargaze" style. It's perfect for a new sewist, and best of all, I think, something you can make for a little boy. Having two little boys you realize how few patterns there are out there for them.

For women, it's the Celia wrap top - it's good for maternity and nursing, and so easy to make. You could even reuse pattern later by eliminating the camisole insert and just make a great wrap t-shirt. A lot of people are scared to sew with knits so this gives me hope that there are a lot of creative, confident sewists out there willing to experiment and perhaps challenge themselves!

Would you ever consider selling finished clothes on Etsy?

I've thought about it and had a few requests. I may in the future add a one-of-a-kind 'sample' section since I don't really need any more maternity clothes...

Where do you see your shop in 5 years?

I'd love to expand or set up a separate shop to feature more baby & toddler items, specifically for boys. I have a lot of experience in textile design so it would also be fun to do a few little limited-run collections of printed fabrics to accompany the patterns.

Check out the other items available from Tracy in her Etsy Shop! You can find more of her work on her blog, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter.

Interviewed by Darlene of BijouxBead in Toronto in January 2013.

T.E.S.T. interview: BLISSFULpatterns

We hope to introduce you to all the great etsy sellers to be found right here in Toronto. Here at the T.E.S.T. blog, we plan to interview them all. This is the 29^th in our series with Shannon of BLISSFULsew and BLISSFULpatterns.


Tell me a little bit about yourself

I am a happily married mom of two boys; 4 years and 6 months. I turned 40 last week and am actually pretty pleased with where I am at in my life so I feel very lucky. I grew up mainly in a small town a couple of hours north of Toronto and in Toronto and have always loved city life but possibly because I have the benefit of getting away to the quiet of my parents home regularly which keeps me a bit sane.

When and Why did you start your business?

I have always loved fabric, bought too much fabric, and have all sorts of ideas of sewing fabric, putting fabric color combinations together, dreaming of sewing and cutting and making new things with fabric, ... get the idea? I LOVE fabric; mainly cottons. So I have always mended and fixed clothes and other things for my friends, neighbors etc and about 4 years ago I started making lots of custom shower gifts for my friends who were having babies and becoming moms. Then I discovered Etsy and it became a bit more formalized.

What prompted you to open an etsy shop?

My BFF told me about Etsy 2½ years ago and I remember staying up all night, surfing through these amazing shops, seeing gorgeous fabrics I had never seen before and drooling at all the wonderful things people had made. I could not believe there was such a place to make the things I wanted to make and possibly pay for my hobby. I've never really been super net savvy or screen happy so I am sure there were tons of other places I could have looked at before that but honestly it just did not really occur to me. So I ended up opening up my first etsy shop BlissfulSew and listed and started selling things I made. I have to admit, I have since kind of abandoned it as I have branched off in too many other directions.

Besides your Etsy shop, what other selling, websites or shows etc do you do?

I opened a second Etsy shop called BlissfulPatterns about 2 years ago where I make PDF sewing patterns for all the ideas swirling around in my head. My second shop makes me very happy as I get to create and improve on all these projects and then provide a pattern for someone else to do it also. I am constantly amazed when my customers send me photos of what they made with my patterns and I see these amazing creations that are now out in this huge world of ours and have started with a little idea in my head. I know it sounds silly but it really constantly blows me away. My patterns are listed on 3 wholesalers outside of Etsy in the US and Australia. I also go to craft and artisan shows with my sewing to try to make a little money. (to buy more fabric of course!)

What is your source for inspiration?

For my sewing, I am always trying to improve on the things I sew and use every day; particularly mommy and baby things as that has been my main life the past few years. For example, I put snaps on my bibs instead of scratchy velcro, add little details on my bags and organize things in my house into fabric baskets, new blinds and curtains, pillow cases, etc. Just like most crafters, I am always working on about 6 different projects at a time (usually half for us and half for friends and family which usually pays for my little personal projects. I am inspired everyday when I am out and about walking as so many things are made of fabric of some sort and I am constantly looking at everything with an eye as to how to make it. I bought an iphone two years ago and it changed my life because now I take photos all over the place of things I like that I want to make or usually make and change somehow. For example, my new Criss Cross Bag pattern stems from a bag hanging off the sun umbrella next to us in the Dominican in January on our family trip. Its a little weird how I look at things as I deconstruct them in my head to see how they were put together and which order the layers were sewn and the various steps it takes to finish something. Its kind of like engineer sewing I guess! That is what led to my patterns shop.

Do you have a bread and butter or day job?

Not anymore, I lost my job in a restructuring in the financial industry last year while I was pregnant with baby number 2. I was a sales associate for an investment firm and mainly did stock trading and I did not realize how stressful it was till I didn't do it every day. I still miss the stock market a lot, and the steady pay cheque of course but not the hectic pace. I absolutely love being at home with my boys.

What is your best marketing/selling/entrepreneurial tip for other craft artisans?

Ask everyone who does something similar to you about their best tips, shows, websites, materials, shops, and write it down. I have learned so much from so many other successful artisans at shows the past couple of years by just asking what they suggest. However, make sure you recognize that we all have different standards and make different things. I made the mistake of doing a couple of shows recommended by people doing something totally different to me, with a different target market. It was a total waste of my time and vendor fees.

Your pattern feedback is outstanding, do you have a creative process to put these together? How do you decide what instructions/tips/photographs to include?

Thank you for the kind words, I value my feedback and customers comments a lot, I feel like it does reflect on me personally as a business owner and on my products. I have a standard template that I created that I use for all of my patterns now and I try to incorporate as many photos as I can cram in as I am a visible person myself. I include the sewing tips and suggestions I have figured out over many years of sewing and I make myself available by email if someone has any problems. I have incorporated several suggestions from customers into my revised patterns. I also always offer a free pattern of their choice to the first 2-3 people who buy a brand new pattern if they will critique the new one and give any suggestions. After looking at them and proofing them for so long myself, I think another set of eyes is great.

You have both a pattern shop and a handmade shop - is one easier to maintain than the other?

The pattern shop takes more regular work as I renew and email out orders throughout the day, but its less time overall as I am not packaging and going to the post office. However, mainly its less work because I have been ignoring my handmade shop to get the pattern shop going. [Editor's note: While Shannon has been focused on her pattern shop, there are still handmade items available in her sewing shop, so be sure to have a look at both.]

You can find more of Shannon's work in her Etsy shops BLISSFULsew and BLISSFULpatterns, and you can 'like' her BLISSFULSew Facebook Page.

Interviewed by Steph of stuffbysteph77 in May, 2012.