I’ve been falling into this trap lately; thanks for the friendly reminder. I’m going to focus on retaking photos and presenting what I have in new and interesting ways this weekend.

It is hard to get away from.. I know I have been there!

This is really great advice. It is difficult to stop staring at your hearts and how many views you have! I’ve been working on my photos lately, and stocking up whenever I have the chance.

Descriptions are something I need to work on too.

I do this a lot and I don’t want too!! What great advice!!

Thanks for sharing!!
Challene
http://www.bluemoosecreations.etsy.com

How true this is.

Thanks for the reminder. I was just looking at my hearts when I got your tweet! LOL!

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My O’ my!! It is hard…but you are so right!
http://1of1JewelryDesign.etsy.com

This is excellent advice! The numbers can be so addictive sometimes, though.

i was doing this so well that i missed a couple sales! then i started watching it non-stop…now, i’m getting a bit more balanced and am concentrating on getting my craft to a system: cut glass bottles for 2 days, grind pieces 2 afternoons, then foil and solder the rest of the week. I can make a couple dozen pendants a week this way-but then the bottleneck of listing and it all stops.

Anyone come up with a way to streamline that?

enough said. thank you, for the reminder
peace n abundance
CheyAnne
http://newmexicomtngirl.com
http://www.cheyannesexton.etsy.com
http://www.redbubble.com/people/nmexicomtngirl
http://twitter.com/numexicomtngirl

What a wonderful reminder… I constantly do this and constantly tell myslef not to. I’m in the situation where when I do local art shows I am very successful but my website doesn’t get enough exposure on etsy… I feel it is buried on the site. But it is slowly getting better! Thanks so much for these thoughts!

I just need to keep putting up new stuff. My site gets old really fast.

I think that is sound advice. It’s hard not to get discouraged, especially for a newbie. I was kind of forced to walk away this past week because my twin boys were on Feb. break, but I have been feeling guilty about it all week. Now I see that it was good for me to spend some time playing in the snow with the boys, baking cookies and just hanging out. It nourished my soul and my creativity. Now I can dive back in guilt free:) Thank you, Tim!

LOL that’s something that we all do from time to time and really should stop. Thanks for the reminder!

Do you mean like… actually… switch off the computer!!! Aaah why not. Very sound advice!

Thank you so much for this great reminder!

If I had continued to waste all my time trying to “get my views up” or add to my Hearts on Etsy I’d be so freakin’ unhappy today. Instead I did put some effort into making like-minded friends on Facebook. The NUMBER of Fans is far less important than who those people are and how much they’re really INTO what you’re about as a human being, not just a marketer. In other words, LESS me, me, me and way more sharing. Thanks for steering people away from demoralizing activities! It helps to know you’re not alone in the universe, by the way. That’s what the social networking thing is all about. Your biggest Fans will be the REAL friends you make. That takes truly being interested and if you’re not, don’t try to make a living online. Bring your work to your local craft store and outdoor craft fairs and do it the old-fashioned way. (it’s a lot more fun.)

I couldn’t agree more!

However, (un)fortunately for me, I make most of the images for my buttons on Photoshop, so I can’t close the computer to create more buttons! :( lol

Great tip! It’s so hard not to look at those numbers & get discouraged. The numbers don’t always tell the whole story, though. It’s best to do what you love & try to make actual connections. You’ll enjoy yourself more & be more likely to get the sales you’re looking for
Thanks for the reminder, I’ve been doing this again. It’s hard to stop!

Love this…definitely a good reminder of why we all set up shop in the first place: because we love to make stuff!

Excellent advice!!! But can I at least have Pandora streaming from my computer? It helps my creativity! ;-)

This is timely & sage advice – I am in the midst of the numbers game! Constantly checking/double checking views, hearts, percentages, etc etc. This leads to insanity & self-doubt.
As you say, instead, turn off the computer & get back to the root of why I even opened an Etsy shop: creativity, love of vintage, & building community.
Thanks!

There is perceptibly a lot to identify about this. I feel you made some nice points in features also.