Etsy is one of today’s most popular ecommerce platforms among buyers and sellers. The online marketplace has 4.36 million active sellers and 81.9 million active buyers.
Starting Etsy businesses has become extremely popular, with many opening an Etsy dropshipping store.
Etsy has about 377.4 million monthly visitors, making it a great place to find suppliers and customers.
Dropshipping from Etsy is one of the latest ways to create a successful ecommerce store with less financial risk and hassle.
If you want to learn how to start an Etsy dropshipping business, you’ve come to the right place.
How does Etsy dropshipping work? Does Etsy allow drop-shipping? I’ll answer these questions and more in this article.
Table of Contents
What Is an Etsy Dropshipping Business?
A dropshipping business model is where you start your own ecommerce site while someone else handles fulfillment.
Dropshipping involves outsourcing these processes to a third-party manufacturer or supplier include.
Order packing
Delivery
Order tracking
Customer service
Returns and refunds
With a dropshipping model, you leave fulfillment, one of the most time-consuming parts of the business, to a third party. Thus, you can focus on promoting your Etsy shop or other endeavors you deem more worthwhile.
Dropshipping on Etsy is one way to start a business, and there are two ways.
First, you can partner with Etsy suppliers and merchants and sell your products elsewhere, like Shopify.
Etsy merchants are your suppliers, and your online store exists outside Etsy.
You can also create an Etsy storefront and source products from an external supplier. This method involves setting up an Etsy account and offering products to sell on Etsy.
How To Start a Dropshipping Business on Etsy
Here’s how to dropship on Etsy.
Create an Etsy Account.
Visit Etsy’s website and click Sign in on the top right corner of the screen.
Create a new account by entering your email address, first and last name, and password.
Choose a user name for your Etsy shop. Etsy requires sellers to provide basic information about their business, including their products and location.
Once you complete these steps, you can access the Etsy dashboard to create your shop, add Etsy listings, and customize your storefront.
Determine What Products to Sell on Etsy.
Finding products to sell on Etsy is your next step.
While there’s no list of Etsy-approved dropshippers (Etsy dropshipping suppliers), Etsy’s policies clearly state that not all products are eligible for sale on the ecommerce platform.
Here are the products you can sell on Etsy.
Vintage or Handmade items
The two primary product categories on Etsy are vintage and handmade products. Vintage items include anything at least 20 years old but in good condition.
Handmade goods include jewelry, clothing, accessories, home decor, furniture, pottery, and more.
Craft Supplies
If you have unused craft supplies like fabric, yarn, buttons, and beads, you can sell them on Etsy.
Digital Products
You can sell printable art, digital designs, patterns, and templates.
Customized or Personalized Items
You can also customize your products to make them unique to your customers’ needs and preferences.
Forward Orders to Your Dropshipping Suppliers
To dropship products from a third-party supplier to Etsy, you must forward orders from your Etsy store to your supplier. When dropshipping Etsy products from your store, check orders regularly to avoid missing orders.
Some suppliers have built-in integrations with your Etsy store, allowing orders to go from your shop backend to your supplier. Your only focus will be to sell products by promoting them on other channels.
How To Dropship Etsy Products on Other Platforms
Here’s how to find products from Etsy sellers and dropship them on other platforms.
Conduct Product Research.
Start your Etsy dropshipping journey by exploring the Etsy Best-Sellers section for top product ideas. You can use product research tools to determine what products sell well online.
You can use product research tools to find the products people search for on Etsy. Alternatively, you can check Google Trends to analyze a product’s popularity.
Note: Not all popular products are excellent products to sell.
Wall art might be popular, but many sites already offer those products. Niche down and set your own online store apart.
Choose a Selling Channel.
Choose a platform to sell your products. Here are some options.
Amazon
Shopify
Wix
Facebook Marketplace
eBay
Choose platforms with massive customer bases. Weigh the pros and cons of each channel before deciding.
Import Etsy Products to Your Store.
After selecting a selling channel, import products from Etsy to your store. You can use a tool like AutoDS to import products automatically. Alternatively, you can do so manually if you don’t want to pay for tools.
Optimize your imported products by editing titles, descriptions, automation, and tags.
Save and import the optimized products to your chosen selling channel, making them available for customers.
Promote Your Store and Listings.
Boost your store’s traffic by employing effective marketing techniques by creating a presence on high-traffic social platforms, search engines, and forums.
Here are the best store promotion strategies.
Use social media marketing on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter, and LinkedIn to showcase your products and engage with potential customers.
Partner with influencers in your niche to promote your products and reach new audiences.
Create a blog with content focusing on your products and niche, incorporating keywords and backlinks to your Etsy store.
Build an Etsy email list and send newsletters, promotions, and updates.
Use Facebook or Google ads to drive traffic to your website or retarget people who visited your store.
Search-engine-optimize your ecommerce store and product listings with relevant keywords, descriptions, and tags to rank higher in search results.
Team up with other businesses and sellers to cross-promote each other’s products.
Entice customers with limited-time offers, discounts, or free shipping deals.
Process Etsy Dropshipping Orders.
Timely order fulfillment is crucial for customer satisfaction. When dropshipping on your store with an Etsy supplier, you take orders from your store and order them from your Etsy merchant partner.
You can use Litcommerce or Fulfilled By AutoDS (FBA) to automate the process. You can place orders manually, pay for Etsy products, and instruct the seller to deliver to your customer.
Whichever method you select, ensure prompt delivery of packages to maintain high customer satisfaction.
Provide Customer Service and Support
With Etsy drop-shipping, you must focus on excellent customer support to encourage repeat business and positive word-of-mouth. Offer assistance through these channels.
FAQ page
Customer management tools
Phone support
Email support
A customer ticket system
Consistently providing outstanding customer service leads to satisfied customers and fosters loyalty. These are essential to your Etsy dropshipping business’s long-term success.
Where Etsy Sellers Can Find Dropshipping Suppliers
You can find the best dropshipping suppliers on Etsy on the website. Clarify with your supplier that you’re dropshipping your products to set expectations.
Another option is to set up an Etsy print-on-demand business and use a print-on-demand company to print, pack, and ship your orders.
Here are products you can sell.
Wall art
Tshirts
Hoodies
Tank tops
Sweatshirts
Phone cases
Posters
Canvas prints
Tote bags
Mugs
Stickers
Notebooks
Face masks
Pillows
Socks
Towels
Shower curtains
Backpacks
Laptop sleeves
Water bottles
Focus on selling products you designed yourself. Buying from AliExpress and selling on Etsy is a no-no.
Don’t take other people’s designs and sell them on Etsy as yours. Doing so is against the platform’s legal standards.
If you work with production partners, specify it on your Etsy listing to set expectations.
Note: Production partners cannot be Etsy shop members, meaning you must register your Etsy store under your or your business name.
Etsy Dropshipping Costs: How Much Are They?
Be ready for expenses when dropshipping with Etsy.
Here are the common costs when starting an Etsy dropshipping business:
Etsy fees
Etsy charges various seller fees, including a $0.20 listing fee per item, a 5% transaction fee on each sale, and payment processing fees.
Shipping and fulfillment costs
Consider the costs of shipping your products to customers, including postage, packaging materials, and additional fees.
Product development costs
Depending on what you sell, you may need to purchase materials and supplies to create your products, including fabric, yarn, paint, wood, or other materials.
Marketing and advertising
Invest in marketing and advertising to promote your Etsy shop. Some costs include social media ads, influencer marketing, or Google Ads.
Professional services
You may need the professional services of graphic designers, copywriters, or web developers to help create and maintain your Etsy shop.
Website setup and maintenance costs
If you plan to resell products from Etsy, you must pay for a basic branded website. You can build your ecommerce website on platforms like Shopify or Squarespace, which charge monthly fees.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Can You Do Dropshipping With Etsy?
Can you dropship on Etsy? There are no hard fast Etsy dropshipping rules in place, but the Etsy dropshipping policy states that you cannot sell products from major dropshipping sites if you didn’t make them.
Etsy’s product policies permit resale, meaning dropshipping is legal if the products meet specific criteria, including handmade products, antique items, or craft supplies.
Can I Connect My Etsy Dropshipping Store to Shopify?
Yes. You can integrate Shopify with Etsy to enable dropshipping from Etsy to Shopify.
Migrate your store from one platform to another or maintain your store on both platforms.
Integrating these platforms offers sellers several benefits, including synchronizing inventory and simplifying managing both platforms.
You can also export and import items to update your listings on both platforms and manage your orders and billing, especially if you registered both shops under the same name.
Here are the three ways to manage stores on both platforms.
Use the Etsy Marketplace Integration.With this Shopify app, you can manage your inventory, orders, listings, and more on Etsy.
Use Etsy Integration: Sync & Sell.This Shopify app also helps sync your Etsy and Shopify listings and helps you sell Etsy products on your Shopify store seamlessly.
Use Etsy Connector.This app lets you sync products on both platforms.
Is Etsy Dropshipping Worth It?
Whether dropshipping is worthwhile depends on various factors, including your business goals, resources, and experience level.
Understand the pros and cons of Etsy dropshipping or dropshipping before deciding.
Pros
With dropshipping, you don’t need to invest in inventory upfront. It can be a low-risk and low-cost ecommerce business.
Dropshipping lets you offer various products without storing or managing inventory.
You can run a dropshipping business from anywhere with an internet connection.
Cons
When you rely on a third-party supplier to handle fulfillment and shipping, you have limited control over the quality of the products and the shipping times.
You’re not purchasing inventory in bulk, meaning you may have lower profit margins on each sale.
If there are issues with the products or shipping, you may need to handle customer service inquiries and refunds, which can be time-consuming and challenging.
Consider these pros and cons and weigh them against your business goals and resources to determine if dropshipping on Etsy is worthwhile.
Final Thoughts
Etsy is a unique and vibrant online marketplace that offers sellers an excellent opportunity to reach a global audience and showcase their handmade, vintage, or craft supply products.
With dedication and hard work, selling on Etsy can be a rewarding and profitable experience. Etsy is a platform worth exploring for reselling or dropshipping, offering a chance to turn your passion into a successful business.
If you plan to dropship on Etsy, you should tread carefully and ensure you’re legally clear. Understand the costs of selling on Etsy, such as fees and shipping expenses.
