This post covers selling digital products on Etsy. Let’s look at printables and templates, what they are and which is easier to create.
What are Printables?
Printables are the easiest to make. They are not editable and the customer downloads the printable as it is and prints at home or takes the file to have it printed at a print shop.
Once you’ve made your printable, it can sell over and over. You don’t need to process the orders as this is done automatically. You might get the odd query from a customer; however, selling this way is pretty passive, allowing you more free time to create.
Common printables are:
- Calendars
- Habit trackers
- To-do lists
The great thing about creating printables is that you don’t need expensive software. Printables can easily be created on Canva and downloaded as a PDF, PNG or JPG.
The downside to selling printables is that they need to be priced lower because they are easy to make, and more people are making them, bringing the prices down. The market can be quite competitive. Offering bundles can help get around this problem and increase your income.
How to Sell Editable Templates on Etsy
Templates that are editable are created with tools like Canva, Corjl or Templett, allowing you to deliver an editable file to your customers. Templates are fun to create and can be priced higher than printables.
Wedding invitations and event stationery are very popular on Etsy and easy to make.
Once the customer purchases a template, they log onto one of these tools, edit the file and then download it in a file format of their choice to print at home, online or at a print shop.
Common editable templates are:
- Birthday invites
- Save the date
- Wedding invitations
- Business Cards
- Product labels
- Digital invites
- Pinterest pin templates
- Price lists
- Media kits
I love creating printables, and this Etsy printables course taught me how to do it.
I use Canva design software to create all my images and pins for blogging as well. Canva is a very popular app, especially in the business and blogging niche.
Contrary to some Canva advice online, you don’t need a Canva Pro account to offer editable templates to your customers because a free account allows you to create a template link. This is fantastic for anyone who has a small budget and wants to get creative and start selling on Etsy or Gumroad and start a business working from home. You can make beautiful templates just by using Canva’s free fonts and graphics.
Creative Fabrica
As you become more experienced, you may wish to purchase graphics with a commercial license for your printables. I have the All-Access Plan with Creative Fabrica where I can download anything from the site. This works out so much cheaper than buying everything individually.
Selling digital products on Etsy or other platforms is a great side hustle to get into. Work on your store in your spare time and build it up gradually into a profitable business!
