Common mistakes I see from students

Before we jump into the development and refinement process, let’s start with some common mistakes I often see from my students:

• Their product is for everyone - If it’s for everyone, then it's for no one. Your product should cater to a specific group of people or solve a specific problem.
• Not having a Unique Selling Proposition (USP) - Your USP is what differentiates your product from the rest of the market. Without a USP, your product is likely to blend in with other products on Etsy. Developing a USP is the focus on this course, and we will discuss that in details a bit later.
• Seller-oriented approach instead of customer-oriented - It's essential to showcase your skills and experience, but make sure you translate that into why it matters to your target customers. e.g. “I have 10 years of experience with sewing tote bags” into something like “My unique method and material choice will make sure your bag last through all your heavy-duty shopping trips”

Why You Need A USP On Etsy

In my experience coaching Etsy sellers, many of them would benefit greatly from a strong USP.

Etsy is a competitive marketplace. Not having a USP means that you don’t stand out, you become a needle in a haystack. In a busy marketplace like Etsy, it’s easy to get drowned out by thousands of other sellers.

Good news is, there are effective ways to create USP that allow your products to stand out. Either create a product offering from the ground up, or refine the products you already have.

Dangers Of Replicating Existing Bestselling Products

Although a viable option, mimicking what’s already on the market is a safe route. If you make somethings that’s too similar to other products on Etsy, you risk shoppers thinking:

• “I can buy that cheaper.”
• “I can buy from that shop with more reviews and more experience.”
• “It looks so similar to that other shop. How do I even know it’s even handmade and genuine?”

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Instead, you should aim to have shoppers go ‘that’s exactly what I’ve been searching for.”

How do you do that? With a unique selling preposition (USP).

Creating a Unique Selling Proposition (USP)

Everyone keeps saying to ‘put your own spin’ on your product, but...

What does it actually mean? And how do you actually do that?

You can do that by developing a unique selling preposition (USP) for your products.

With the amount of products competing for shoppers’ attention on Etsy, it may not be enough to make something beautiful.

Your creation needs to be beautiful and unique - serving a specific purpose or target audience that few other sellers cater to.

Your USP is the special quality, feature, story, etc. that sets your products apart from the rest. The ability to create a compelling USP will allow your products to differentiate and stand out among the competitors on Etsy.

USP is probably a concept that you’ve heard of already, but not many know how to do it properly.

In the next chapters, I’ll show you my way of developing USP so you can be inspired to create one for your products.

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