Guides for online sellers
- Social
TikTok for small product businesses: what to post when you don't want to dance
You don't need to dance, point at text or follow every trend. Here are 12 TikTok video ideas for small product businesses, a simple phone setup, TikTok's rule on music in business posts and a routine you can keep.
6 min read - Social
Hashtags for small business: how many to use and where to find them
Thirty hashtags copied from a list won't help. Instagram now allows up to 5 per post. Here's how to pick hashtags that fit your product, where to find them and a simple way to build a set you can reuse.
5 min read - Social
Instagram carousels for products: a 5-slide formula
A carousel lets people swipe through your product instead of seeing one photo. Here's a 5-slide formula that works for most products, Instagram's carousel rules and sizes, and a full example slide by slide.
6 min read - Pricing
How to price handmade items so you actually make money
Most handmade sellers price by guessing, then wonder why busy months still feel broke. Here's a simple formula that covers materials, your time, overhead, profit and Etsy's fees, with a worked example you can copy.
6 min read - Images
Etsy photos: main image size, first photo rules and what buyers click
Your first Etsy photo is your thumbnail, your search result and your first impression. Here's the size Etsy recommends, the shape that crops well, the photo rules that can push you down in search, and what to put in the rest.
6 min read - Images
AI product photography: when it works and when it gets you in trouble
AI can put your product on a marble counter in seconds. It can also change your label, invent a texture and get a listing questioned. Here's an honest look at where AI images help, where they hurt, and what Amazon and Etsy actually allow.
7 min read - Social
Instagram post ideas for product businesses (with real examples)
Stuck on what to post for your shop? Here are 15 Instagram post ideas that work for physical products, with an example for each, the sizes Instagram supports and a weekly plan that doesn't eat your whole weekend.
6 min read - Social
Instagram captions for products that don't sound like an ad
Most product captions read like a price tag with emojis. Here's a simple formula for captions that sound like a person, 12 examples you can adapt and the hashtag rules Instagram actually sets.
5 min read - Social
Pinterest for Etsy sellers: pins that bring traffic
Pinterest works more like a search engine than a feed, which makes it a good fit for Etsy listings. Here's how to set it up, the pin sizes Pinterest recommends, what to write and a routine you can keep.
6 min read - Etsy
Etsy description template: what to put in each paragraph
Most Etsy descriptions are either one line or a wall of text. Here's a five-part template that follows Etsy's own tips, with a filled-in example you can adapt for your shop.
6 min read - Images
Amazon main image requirements (and the photos that come after it)
Your main image is the one shoppers see in search, and it has the strictest rules. Here's what Amazon's product image guide requires, the mistakes that get images removed, and a plan for the rest of your photos.
6 min read - Images
White background product photos at home: phone setup and fixes
You don't need a studio or a light box. Here's a window-light setup that costs less than a takeaway, the phone settings that matter, and how to fix the grey, shadowy photos everyone gets at first.
7 min read - Images
Lifestyle product photos: what they are and when you need them
A white background shows what a product is. A lifestyle photo shows what it's like to own it. Here's when you need lifestyle shots, the five types worth taking, and the marketplace rules that still apply.
6 min read - Images
Amazon infographics: what to show and how to design them
Infographics are the additional images with text and callouts that answer buyers' questions before they reach the bullets. Here's what to put on them, what Amazon doesn't allow, and how to design them for a phone screen.
6 min read - Tools
ChatGPT prompts for Amazon and Etsy listings (and where they go wrong)
A chatbot can draft a listing in seconds, but it guesses facts, miscounts characters and writes like an ad. Here are prompts that work for Amazon and Etsy, and a checklist for catching what goes wrong.
6 min read - Tools
AI listing generators: what to check before you pay for one
There are dozens of AI listing tools, and most demos look great. Here are the eight things that decide whether one will actually save you time, and the free options to try first.
6 min read - Tools
Free AI tools for Amazon listings: what you can do without paying
You don't need a subscription to get AI help with Amazon listings. Amazon has its own built-in tools, and several seller tools have free tiers. Here's what each one does, and where it stops.
5 min read - Tools
Helium 10 alternatives for small Amazon sellers
Helium 10 is a big toolkit, and small sellers often use only a few parts of it. Here's what Helium 10 offers, what the main alternatives do, and the free options to try first.
6 min read - Tools
eRank alternatives: Etsy SEO tools compared
eRank is the tool most Etsy sellers start with. Here's how Marmalead, EverBee, Alura and Sale Samurai compare, what each one's free plan includes, and the free Etsy tool you might not be using yet.
6 min read - More platforms
Walmart listing quality score: how it works and how to raise it
Walmart scores every listing on five things, and only one of them is the words. Here's what each part measures, Walmart's own rules for titles, descriptions, key features and images, and a listing fixed step by step.
7 min read - More platforms
TikTok Shop listings: product titles, descriptions and images
TikTok Shop search matches on your product title, and listings are graded Poor, Fair or Good. Here are TikTok's own rules for titles, descriptions and images, and a listing taken from Fair to Good.
6 min read - More platforms
Vinted titles and descriptions that sell faster
On Vinted, a vague title and a two-word description cost you sales and invite returns. Here's what Vinted itself says to include, a copy-and-paste description template and a before and after.
6 min read - More platforms
Depop descriptions and hashtags: what to write so buyers find you
Depop has no separate title field, so the first line of your description does that job. Here's what Depop says helps listings get found, how to use your five hashtags, and a description template.
6 min read - More platforms
How to sell the same product on Amazon, Etsy, eBay and Shopify without rewriting it 4 times
Every marketplace has different title limits and different rules, so one copy pasted everywhere breaks somewhere. Here's how to write one master listing and adapt it to each site in minutes, with a side-by-side example.
7 min read - Etsy
Why is my Etsy shop not getting views? 9 fixes to check
Weeks of listings and a handful of views is a common Etsy story. Here are 9 things to check, in order, using Etsy's own search rules and the free tools already in your Shop Manager.
9 min read - eBay
Why aren't my eBay items selling? A checklist
Listings sitting for weeks with no sales usually have one of two problems: buyers can't find them, or they find them and pass. Here's how to tell which, and what eBay says it looks at.
8 min read - Amazon
Why isn't my Amazon listing showing up in search?
A listing that never shows in Amazon search is usually inactive, suppressed or waiting on something, not badly ranked. Here's how to tell which, and how to fix each one using Seller Central.
8 min read - More platforms
How to write a Shopify product description (and SEO title) that ranks
On Shopify, nobody finds your product through a marketplace search bar. They find it through Google. Here's how to write the description, page title, meta description and URL so that works.
8 min read - More platforms
WooCommerce product pages: titles, descriptions and SEO basics
WooCommerce gives you two description boxes, a slug and no SEO title field at all until you add a plugin. Here's what each field does, what to write in it and which settings quietly stop Google finding you.
7 min read - Amazon
Amazon's 75-character title rule and Item Highlights, explained
Amazon now caps titles at 75 characters and gives you 125 more in Item Highlights. Here's exactly what the rule covers, what happens if you ignore it and how to split a long title without losing search words.
8 min read - Amazon
Amazon backend keywords: how to use the 250 bytes
Backend search terms are the one part of your Amazon listing nobody sees, so mistakes sit there for months. Here's how the 250-byte limit works, what Amazon bans and how to fill the field properly.
7 min read - Amazon
How to write Amazon bullet points (with examples)
Most Amazon bullet points break at least one rule nobody told the seller about: all-caps headers, abbreviations, end punctuation. Here are Amazon's current rules and a full before and after example.
7 min read - Amazon
How to find keywords for your Amazon listing for free
You don't need a paid tool to find keywords for an Amazon listing. Here are the free methods, from the search bar to Amazon's own reports, and how to sort what you find into title, bullets and backend terms.
7 min read - Etsy
How to find keywords and tags for your Etsy listing
Etsy now shows sellers real search numbers, for free, if you know where to look. Here's how to use Marketplace Insights, your shop Stats and the search bar to find keywords and turn them into 13 tags.
7 min read - Amazon
Amazon listing optimization in 2026: titles, bullets and search terms under the new rules
Amazon cut product titles to 75 characters and added Item Highlights. Here's how to rewrite your title, bullets and backend search terms without losing the words buyers search for.
8 min read - Etsy
How to write Etsy titles and tags that buyers actually find
Stuffed titles, guessed tags and the same 13 tags on every item. Here's what Etsy actually says about titles and tags, and a simple way to choose words buyers search for.
7 min read - eBay
How to write an eBay title that sells: using all 80 characters well
eBay gives you 80 characters and buyers search with very specific words. Here's a title structure that works, what to cut and why item specifics matter just as much.
6 min read - Descriptions
How to write product descriptions that sell (with a before and after example)
Most product descriptions are either one lazy line or three paragraphs of adjectives. Here's a step-by-step way to write one buyers actually read, and how to adapt it for each platform.
7 min read - Pricing
How to price your products using competitor research (without guessing)
Most sellers price by looking at three listings and picking a number in the middle. Here's how to check what similar items actually sell for, work out your fees and set a price that still leaves you a profit.
7 min read
