Do you design your own patterns? And I am not just talking about crochet... do you sew, knit, make beautiful embroidery designs? Have you been thinking this is the year that you start selling your patterns online... or maybe you already have an online shop and have been thinking of offering patterns but not sure where to get started or which selling platform will work best for you... well today I will talk about my experience selling my Signature Infinity Scarf Pattern on both Etsy and Craftsy.
I released this pattern August of 2012, and since I was already selling my finished items on Etsy via Don't Get it Twisted Crochet I didn't even question where I was going to sale... and I have to say that making the decision to offer this pattern in my Etsy shop was one of the best decisions I made for my business in 2012 and offering the pattern on Craftsy had to be my 2nd.
I released this pattern August of 2012, and since I was already selling my finished items on Etsy via Don't Get it Twisted Crochet I didn't even question where I was going to sale... and I have to say that making the decision to offer this pattern in my Etsy shop was one of the best decisions I made for my business in 2012 and offering the pattern on Craftsy had to be my 2nd.
Selling Patterns on Craftsy
I was introduced to Craftsy when someone who I admire in my crochet world
was offering an online class on the Craftsy platform...I loved the class and
how interactive things were but I really didn't explore Craftsy beyond the
online class aspect not until I started seeing Craftsy come up more and more in
my searches for different crochet patterns. So after a little research I
decided to list my pattern on Craftsy...and the response was about the same as
on Etsy. So which do I prefer... in all honestly I enjoy selling on both platforms for different reasons so I will just do a comparison and you can decide what platform may be best for you.
Etsy vs Craftsy for Selling Patterns
When my pattern sales on Craftsy...
§ Craftsy
does not charge any fees to list patterns on their site the only fees I pay are
Paypal fees which by the way is the only payment method that Craftsy currently
accepts.
§ Craftsy
also offers automatic downloads, when you purchase a pattern you can download
you receive a link that will allow you to download the pattern in PDF format. The pattern is also available in your library on Etsy.
§ Craftsy does not allow designers to sale finished items on the site only patterns/tutorials.
When my pattern sales on Etsy...
§
On Etsy in addittion to Paypal fees I also have to pay a .20 cents listing fee every time my
pattern sales. (I know .20 does not sound like a lot but trust it adds up
quickly).
§ Etsy
does not offer automatic downloads for pattern sales so every time my pattern
sales on Etsy I am responsible for sending that pattern to my customer
sometimes it can be done immediately and other times my customer has to wait
hours for me to email them the pattern.
§ Because
I also sale finished items in my Etsy shop I occasionally get a customer who
believes they have purchased a finished item instead of a pattern, but I also get more exposure to my shop... someone who may be looking for a finished infinity scarf may have found me via my pattern listing.
As I stated I do enjoy selling on both platforms however if I were not selling finished items Craftsy would be my platform of choice. From a business standpoint it is a win/win for both the seller and the buyer. So what are you waiting for go ahead and get your pattern ready to sale; and if you are looking to make an easy crochet scarf to get you through the rest of winter then don't forget to get your copy of the Don't Get it Twisted Crochet Signature Infinity Scarf Pattern.
