Opening an Etsy shop – How difficult can it be?

I have been thinking about starting a blog for some time but have been worried about what to write for my first blog. First impressions count and I want to make a good one, make people think I know what I am talking about, know what I’m doing.

Opening an Etsy shop – How difficult can it be?

A friend very kindly invited me to use her link to open my first Etsy shop – what could be easier, a million people have already done it….

I have been sitting here in front of my laptop all day (such a good job I have nothing else to do!) 

 I have Googled and Googled, and now I have about 12 different tabs open all giving me the inside information I need to know, the hints and tips, the dummies guide etc.

I am ready.

I open up Etsy and fall at the first hurdle.

What is the difference between my username and my shop name??

Several tabs later I choose my username and try again.

No, that doesn’t work as my chosen username is not available, about 6 attempts later and I have a username!

Onwards and upwards as they say, and I click to enter my shop name, no problems here I mean I know what my shop name is I trade under it at all the craft fairs, I have my own website etc. etc.  However it is too long for Etsy!!

 After another 20 minutes of frustration I have come up with a shortened alternative and this time it is accepted. By now it is dark and I need to put the lights on so I can actually see the keys on my laptop as the glow from the screen is no longer sufficient. I decide to log out of Etsy, put the lights on, close the curtains, feed the dog and have a cup of coffee.

Returning with a little more enthusiasm I search out my friend’s e mail and click on her link. Oh dear. The link takes me to the ‘opening a shop’ screen and there it tells me something along the lines of – You can’t use this link because you already have a shop!

I need to use the link because it gives me some free listings but more importantly it gives my friend some free listings and I can’t lose those for her, so I decide to contact Etsy and ask for their help to reinstate the link. After scrolling through all sorts of Frequently Asked Questions – funnily enough there was not a single one that was relevant to my problem! - I eventually get to the send an email option. I explain my stupidity and ask for their help, press the send button and whoops there is a problem.

 Please wait a while and then refresh this page.

I wait and then refresh and nothing.

So I wait and then refresh and still nothing.

Again I wait and then refresh and again still nothing.

Finally the page reopens and the option to send an email is presented to me, so I retype my email and send it again. But still there is a problem and I have to refresh the page another two times.

Now some of you may already be ahead of me….but in the end I checked my emails and yes you’ve guessed correctly there I have  7 emails from Etsy saying thank you for your enquiry, we will be in touch.

So now I am waiting…and in the meantime I thought I would start my blog!