A few questions about Etsy

[Grizabella]

I've opened an Etsy store for real this time and I'm offering readings as well as other items related to Tarot and metaphysical things, but I need some help. Etsy does have quite a bit of information there, but I'd like to hear from others here who offer readings.

My question mainly is---Do you have to list each reading as though it were an actual item and when you give a reading, then you take that listing off and make another listing? Or do you just make one listing and sell readings continually from that one listing?

I haven't put any items in the store yet because at the moment, readings are what I have time for, with the baby here, and making anything else to put in will have to be put on the back burner for a little while.

I guess I could do a blog. I don't know enough about how to work the templates to make one, though. And I can't afford a website at the moment. Etsy gets more exposure.

Also, I read by donation. Is that allowed on Etsy or do you have to set a price? Does anyone know?

 

[Grizabella]

I guess nobody is going to offer any help here, but I think I answered my own questions. For one thing, the rules say that only "tangible" items can be sold. To me that says no Tarot readings, even though I see tons of them offered there. Maybe the loophole there is that sending the reading in written form is something "tangible". That's what I'm wondering about. It's not that I didn't or don't want to read the rules, it's that I don't understand them. And if people are doing things in violation of the rules when they sell Tarot readings, I don't want to go blundering into their forum asking about it and causing them trouble. What they do isn't my concern----I just don't want to violate the rules myself.

So hmmmmm----off to check out blogs but I doubt I can build a very decent one. I've tried before and I'm dumb as a brick about that. People have said to me, "Oh you just do yadda yadda" and it means nothing to me. I know how to work AT and make a document and surf the internet and simple stuff is all.

 

[AJ]

It might be the forum?
I've seen Etsy threads on the site before...so I know there are store owners.

 

[Debra]

Search "tarot reading" on etsy.

2,208 items come up.

 

[Est]

Hi Griz, if you use Blogger for your blog, I've just chucked together a step-by-step sheet with pics for getting started. If you want it, PM me your email addy and I'll send it to you

PS - Only recently signed up for Etsy and haven't even had a proper look at it yet, but I did see a lot of tarot readings on offer and I think if the person is getting an email with reading text in it, that is a tangible product to me. On ebay you can put a quantity of products available rather than re-list the same product over and over, so it would make sense for Etsy to be similar...

 

[Grizabella]

Search "tarot reading" on etsy.

2,208 items come up.

I did do that so I know lots of people do sell readings there. I just don't know the mechanics of it, I guess you might say, and I didn't want to go asking questions there and cause anyone any trouble if it wasn't really allowed but had just slipped by. I've got the store name and am going to set it up to include readings if I find out that it's okay to do. As Est said, an email could probably be considered tangible because someone could conceivably print it out. That does make sense.

Hi Griz, if you use Blogger for your blog, I've just chucked together a step-by-step sheet with pics for getting started. If you want it, PM me your email addy and I'll send it to you

PS - Only recently signed up for Etsy and haven't even had a proper look at it yet, but I did see a lot of tarot readings on offer and I think if the person is getting an email with reading text in it, that is a tangible product to me. On ebay you can put a quantity of products available rather than re-list the same product over and over, so it would make sense for Etsy to be similar...

I've just signed up for a Blogger blog, so I'd love to have your tutorial. I'll PM you my email address to send it to. Thank you.

 

[Grizabella]

Finally! After looking for awhile, I did find that readings are allowed as long as the customer receives something tangible and even a .pdf file or printout is acceptable. There are quite a lot of snide people who have shops there who make fun of Tarot readings and don't find it acceptable to them but it's acceptable to Admin at Etsy, so that's all that matters.

I found it by going to the discussion forum and typing in the word "tarot". That brought up several threads dating back to about 2008, in case that's a help to others who may have questions they need answers to on that topic or others.

Now to go fiddle around and figure out how to do some listings.

Thank you to Est and Debra! I appreciate the help a lot!

 

[Est]

You're welcome, and good luck!