Naming your Shop:
The trick is to come up with a name for your shop. You want it to be something fun and catchy! Something that your customers will remember and that anyone looking at your listing would be interested in checking out. Some of my favorites that I have come across are : No Whining Pleez, Melon Headz Doodlez, Happy Organized Life, and Elastic by the Yard. The first two are fun and creative names... the others give a real simple picture of what they are selling just by looking at the name.

Once you decide on a name do a quick search on Etsy for the name. It is always possible that name has already been taken and you will need to brainstorm a little more. Think about the products you will be selling,  and think about the kinds of customers you will be selling to. Bounce some ideas off of your friends and family... see what they think about your ideas. Odds are if they like it, others will too! ♥

Once you have decided on a name it's time to set up your shop!

Branding: 
This is one of the most important things about your shop/business. Branding. It is what sets you apart from everyone else. It is what your customers will remember your shop for. Once you have decided on your name it will be a little easier to figure out your branding. If you have a really cute shop name you will most likely want to create a set of cute logos and designs. However, if you choose to use your products as the basis for your shop name maybe you will want to include a picture or two in your logo designs. If you have a modern name, then maybe a mod design.... and so on.

The great thing about Etsy is getting to know other sellers. There are A LOT of graphic design Etsy sellers out there. Some sell easy template designs that you can customize yourself while others will create entirely custom graphics just for you! A few of my favorite are: Erin Bradley Designs, Simply Graphics, and Kelly Jane. They offer a mix of custom and pre-designed logos. If you are going to have a blog or facebook page -- which I absolutely recommend {more on that in a different post} -- I suggest you choose a custom design so that you can have your designer create graphics for your shop, your blog, and your facebook page. Part of good branding is being consistent!

If you dabble in graphic design as I do, you can create your own personal branding using your own images or purchased images. The benefit: it's cheaper and you have more options on how you want things to look. The downside: it's a lot of work!

Tax and Licensing: 
This one you will need to do some research on. Google your city and state government pages online and find out what types of businesses need licensing. Personally I had to pay a fee to my city to be able to have a home office. Not all cities work that way so be sure to look it up.

You WILL need to pay taxes to your state. This, again, will require some work on your part to find out where to apply for your business license and taxes. Be sure to keep on top of paying your taxes {as often as they are required} those late fees are hefty!!

Finances: 
This is another BIG one to get your shop started. You will need to invest some money to start up your business. The amount that you invest will be determined by the products you are selling so I can't give you much advice here. The general rule in business that I have been taught is that you should at least break even your first year and start to turn a profit in your second.

Be sure to set up a specific bank account JUST FOR YOUR BUSINESS. This is the easiest way to keep track of everything. You can monitor your spending, your profit, and reinvest in your products as the year goes on.