Etsy versus Storenvy

My wife, having used Etsy to purchase a few things over the years, recieved an email the other day offering 20 free listings on the site.

 I figured that since it was basically a 'Free Trial' type offer, I would give it a go and see if it was worthwhile running an Etsy store on a permanent basis. So I set up my brand new Etsy store a couple of days ago

I looked at Etsy when I first set up Jaka Gems, but what concerned me the most about the system was the fees involved. Basic costs involved with Etsy are 20 cents per listing, then they take a 3.5% cut of each sale. Add to this the charges that Paypal adds, and you are getting hit with quite a few fees from your sales.

My thoughts so far (compared with Storenvy):

1. I appreciate that I have only just set up the shop, but considering that this is a paid platform, I honestly would have expected more traffic to my items when they first went up. On my Storenvy store when an item is first listed, it tends to have quite a bit of visibility, I see a spike in store visits which correlates directly with the time the item is listed.

Etsy stats screen shot

Storenvy Stats screen shot

2. The dashboard information on Etsy is far more comprehensive than the Storenvy dashboard. The shop stats and visitor information are far more detailed and show me exactly where people are visiting from and how they found my store. You are also able to break down the information easily to get a comprehensive idea of what people are looking at.





3. Etsy allows me to list my items in Australian Dollars which, as it stands at the moment, is a clear advantage over Storenvy as this platform currently only allows listings in American dollars. I am based in Australia so would much prefer to be listing my items in $AUD. I should point out, however,  that there are whispers floating around that Storenvy is looking to add a feature that allows international currencies.

4. Storenvy is still completely free. I know the old adage 'you need to spend money to make money' is probably ringing in your ears (as it is with me!) but Storenvy is FREE, and you get similar features as those that are offered to you on Etsy. Paypal are still taking their small cut of my sales, but on its own, this is very little. The thing I dislike the most about the payment system that Etsy use is that it seems to be a double up. They take a listing fee, then take a cut of the sale as well. Why not pick one and stick to it? This is something that has bugged me with Ebay as well for some time.

5. Both platforms have a very 'Community' based ethos, with store owner forums and the ability to follow users or shops. This is a fairly important feature of both platforms with each having similar ideas behind how they run it, although I think Storenvy does it slightly better with a more impressive 'news feed' of those that you are following. I think this feature has a lot to do with the spike in visitors when a new item is listed.

6. Both platforms can easily be linked to my Facebook page within a couple of minutes.

It is very early days, so I am not going to give you a final opinion on which one is better just yet. At first glance I would say that Etsy is a superior platform compared with Storenvy in some respects, but this is to be expected for something that you are paying for as opposed to something that is free. In saying this, however, the fees associated with Etsy (when added to that of Paypal) is somewhat of a turn off. I will certainly be giving Etsy more of a run than that of the couple of days that I have had it so far. I will wait and see how it pans out over the next few months before I decide on my final opinion.

What platform do you use? Have you used Storenvy or Etsy to sell your wares? What are your thoughts on the two platforms? Do you prefer a completely different platform? I would love to hear from you!