Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Tag You're It!!!!!!

Tagging is perhaps the most important Key in getting people to find your shop. The hard part is being just specific enough to optimize search results. It is very easy to be too specific, as well as being too general. Then is definitely a proper way to tag.

I first make sure I describe what the item is. Is it a hat? Well good luck finding yours in 131,677 other items that come up with that tag; be a little more specific here, is it  a beanie,  slouchie, newsboy, top-hat, fez, etc?  Now, it is possible to be too specific. If you name your items great, but when tagging leave that out, people aren’t going to search for Giggles McFlannery (unless this happens to be a popular thing in certain cultures.)

My next step is listing color, use what I call the “Crayola Conscience”; can you find this color name in a 48 pack of crayons? No, use a different name for it (as long as it is still the same color). Be specific at times, is it blue or is it turquoise? Is it pink or is it magenta? Etc etc etc… Be aware of trending colors (look at my previous post for ideas or visit Pantone.com).

Now comes the fun part, or at least I think so, some people find this part to be the hardest and most frustrating part of the listing process. “I’ve only used 6 tags, what could I possibly do with the remaining 8?” I am glad you asked! Instead of just floundering around, think about what the item feels like, smells like (if applicable), etc. These are the physical attributes of the item. Something that not many people think about is the use emotive words; happy, comfy, whimsical, etc. What emotion or feeling should people have when viewing/buying your item? These are very important!

Another thing that people don’t always think about is if their item fits a theme. Etsy often creates front page lists by using seemingly random words. Just a few weeks ago “Woodland” was used. If it fits a theme, use it!
Does your item resemble something in pop culture? Fingerless mitts from twilight? Afghan from a tv show? Hat from a movie? Tag it! Think about your buyers, not yourself when tagging, this will give you an idea of how people think when looking for an item!


A numbers game:
There are 14 tags that you can use on your item, 1 of them is practically chosen for you (the preliminary tag) and 13 others to be filled as you wish. Think of these tags as targets in a shooting range, the more you have the better chance of a “marksmen” (buyer) of “hitting” (landing) on one of your “targets” (tags). They can then mosy around the targets they hit and perhaps shoot more at the targets and find your item!


Now for business: Please please please make sure you are using the proper Team tag:
  ‘CreateCrochet Team’
Since we are an official team on etsy, it is very important we tag it with team so if they are doing a team search, then our items have a high chance of being found. Also, this helps your resident treasury makers find you for their beautiful treasuries!


If you have any questions, shoot me a convo or an email! (BCKrudwig@gmail.com)

10 comments:

Steph said...

Thanks for the tips - using all of those tags can sometimes be a challenge!

Unknown said...

Thanks, Ben, this is great!

Benjamin Krudwig said...

anytime!

Marianne's Musings said...

Thanks Ben. I always struggle with the Tag part. This really helps. Last time I listed something a friend was here and I asked her for input and that helped too!

LazyTcrochet said...

Great tips! LOL @Giggles McFlannery!

gwengoods said...

Thanks for the tips, I recently checked some tagging info on the Storque.

Jess said...

Great Tips Ben! Thanks!

Unknown said...

Great post Ben, way to keep us on our marketing toes!

Also, periodically tag a few items with your name in case someone searches for you but forgets to specify 'seller' in the drop sown menu.

Mamta Motiyani said...

Yeah, Benji. You always surprise me. You definitely rock on this one1

Pamela Baker said...

Thanks - I was definitely one of those who used specific names that inspired me for that certain piece. All very nice, but like you said "who is going to be looking for that!"
So last week - I changed all the names of items in both shops, so people will definitely (hopefully) find me !