Etsy Free Shipping: Will it Increase Your Sales? (Or will it Just Hurt Your Profit Margin?)

August 13, 2019

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Get your hands on this free A to Z guide to starting and growing a successful handmade shop. Know what to do (and in what order) to build a wildly successful handmade shop.

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  1. Ellen says:

    Excellent summary and good suggestions. So far, I have kept my free shipping over $75 (which works with my pricing model) but I am penalized in search by losing the “eligible orders ship free badge”. Still strategizing on my next move. Thanks for the article.

  2. Emma says:

    Great summary and analysis, Debs. I don’t sell much to the US, and have just removed free delivery on my domestic items, as it didn’t seem to make much difference to sales and was actually making my items look more expensive in search. So far, removing free delivery doesn’t seem to have damaged sales either, but we’ll see.

  3. Kevin says:

    Though this may not be the time nor the place – has this issue been addressed elsewhere at Tizzit? – the ‘elephant in the room’ re pricing and free shipping continues to be the growing proliferation of ‘fake’ makers selling product on Etsy direct from China while calling it ‘hand made’… to include drop-shipped items! A direct violation of Etsy’s supposed policies, obviously, but I see no soon resolution – certainly not one that would affect their bottom line negatively…
    No doubt this issue affects virtually all item ‘categories’, making pricing decisions just that much more difficult. How does the ‘true’ maker compete in a ‘race to the bottom’? It is difficult to raise prices to cover such things as promoted listings and free shipping when the Chinese product is offered at Amazon prices. And on Amazon, as well! I look forward to a discussion of this issue here at Tizzit HQ, if it hasn’t already taken place.

    being offered at 2x… or less!

    • Hi Kevin, yes we are discussing it inside the private Tizzit HQ forums too 🙂 Come and join us! With that said, don’t try to compete with Chinese prices, people who want to buy at big retailers can and will, we need to attract true handmade product lovers, people who understand the work of an artisan and are willing and ready to pay a much higher price.

  4. Julie says:

    Great article! I have not adapted to this new policy and don’t know that I will either. I would have to significantly raise my prices to cover the cost of shipping to do this. So far my sales on Etsy have not slowed down. My focus is now going towards my main site and driving traffic there so I do not have to rely on Etsy.

  5. Beth P says:

    Oh my gosh. You have covered all the topics, sensitivities and other things we handmade and OOAK sellers need to know. You were clear on all topics I was concerned about, even to the point of “getting real”. I am bookmarking this blog page for further reference.

  6. Deb H says:

    Thanks so much for this article, Deb. As always, your advice is level headed and helpful with real suggestions for working with the change. I got a lot out of this and am ready to implement the new policy – in a smart manner. Thanks!

  7. Patrick says:

    As always, another great video Deb. You seem to have a talent for making them. I will be offering this ‘FREE SHIPPING’ lie on some of my products, but I will not call it ‘FREE SHIPPING’, althought Etsy will when they list the products. In my description, I will state that the shipping charges are included in the product price. Honesty is always the best policy – not LIES & TRICKERY.

    • I think that’s a great way to make the “free shipping” on Etsy happens while staying true to your values Patrick. Great points. Thank you so much for the kind words, truly appreciated! make ure to share this article with anyone you think it might help 🙂

  8. Mineke says:

    This is by far the best and most thorough article I’ve read about Etsy’s “free shipping” policy, so thank you! I am based in Europe, and the way I see it, I’d be charging my European customers an unreasonable price in order to offer “free shipping” to people in the US. I find that unacceptable, so I’ve elected not to do it. I only offer free shipping on a few higher priced items of original art, because the margin is more forgiving, i.e. if I have to absorb an extra $10 or $15 in shipping to a US customer, it’s no skin off my nose. I’m still a relative newbie on Etsy, so all this info is very helpful!

  9. […] products might not always cut it. For instance, Etsy recently implemented a change in algorithm to prioritize sellers that offer free […]

  10. Emmanuelle says:

    Thank you so much Deb for this article. When I had first heard that Etsy was ‘forcing’ the artist to allow for free shipping in order to be given priority, I didn’t realize that this was for US purchasers only. With what I make, and after taking your suggestion to find out where my sales come from, I will leave my prices where they are now and offer free shipping when I want to promote a specific item only. I have book marked this page and have opened your links for further reading. Not only have you offered great advice but you’ve written it in easy to understand language and you’ve offered further articles to follow-up on. Thank you again.

  11. […] products might not always cut it. For instance, Etsy recently implemented a change in algorithm to prioritize sellers that offer free […]

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