How to Start a 3D Printing Business on Etsy – From Home

Many people often want to start a 3D printing business on Etsy but they do not know how to go about it. This often results in certain mistakes that can lead to failed businesses. This is why I decided to write an article on how to go about this.

To start a 3D printing business on Etsy, you need to first have an account on Etsy. Then, you need to research the market, decide on what niche you want to venture into, and analyze the strategies of other sellers in similar niches. Then, design the model and upload it for sale on Etsy.

Keep reading for more information on how to start a 3D printing business on Etsy.

How to Start a 3D Printing Business on Etsy

Here’s how to start a 3D printing business on Etsy:

• Create Your Etsy Account
• Research and Understand the Market
• Purchase Your 3D Printer and Other Printing Accessories
• Prepare Your Model
• Set up Your Etsy Shop
• Market and Promote Your Designs

Create Your Etsy Account

The first step in starting your business on Etsy is to create an account on Etsy. Simply go to Etsy, “Sign In” at the top right, and fill in your details to get started. This will grant you access to the Etsy platform to carry out the necessary research.

Research and Understand the Market

After you have created your Etsy account, the next step is to do proper research on the market. Here, you need to understand the market and analyze demands for popular 3D printed products on Etsy.

Also, you can look into popular categories, and trending items, to help identify your target audience.

While looking into popular categories or trending items, you would need to identify a particular niche. This is to help narrow down your research.

Your best bet is to identify and stick to a niche that is still in its early stage and has the potential to become big. This would help you build an early following for your products.

Also, you could jump on a trending niche and ride with the wave. To ensure maximum returns on your product, you can make them more unique to catch the eye of the already established target audience.

Examples of this niche include Architectural models, Jewelry and Ornaments, Drone parts, Figurines, Phone accessories, and so on.

While doing research, you can favorite some items to create a list of potential products and save it on your account. You can always come back to access your favorites by clicking the “heart” logo in the top-right corner of your homepage.

Purchase Your 3D Printer and Other Printing Accessories

After you have completed your market research and chosen your desired niche, the next step is to purchase a 3D printer and other essentials needed.

You need to invest in a reliable 3D printer that suits your business needs. If you’re printing miniatures or aesthetic models, you would need to get a resin printer. Some budget-friendly resin printers include the Elegoo Mars 3 4K or the Mars 3 Pro 4K.

However, if you’re printing functional prints or much larger models, you’ll need an FDM printer. Since you’re just starting, you can get budget-friendly FDM printers like the Ender 3, Ender 3 V2, or the Anycubic Kobra Go.

Before you decide to buy any 3D printer, you need to know the models, their capabilities, and pricing. This is to ensure optimal printing results at a budget-friendly price. Some key specs to look out for when buying a printer include build volume, material compatibility, and so on.

Here’s a video from 3D Printed Tabletop for more information on what type of printer you should get.

Other printing essentials include filament, cleaning tools, calipers, and packaging materials. Before you begin your printing business, ensure you have a sufficient stock of materials to fulfill orders.

Prepare Your Model

The next step is to design your model. You can design your model using popular 3D modeling software like TinkerCAD, Fusion 360, or Blender. If you are not familiar with designing 3D models, you can check out tutorials on the web.

Check out this video from JJ Shankles on how to create 3D models on Fusion 360.

You can differentiate your models by offering unique designs that are not readily available on Etsy. Your best bet is to make something that’s custom or not the usual product being sold at very competitive prices.

Also, you can design functional parts and sell them at much lesser prices than the replacement part from the manufacturer would cost. For example:

• Drone parts
• Keyboard caps
• Cosplay props

You can also customize these models to be more aesthetically pleasing, which would also increase their value.

Once you have created your desired model, you should print prototypes of your model. It would help verify the quality of your design, printability, and durability. This would serve as some sort of quality check for the model before it can be put up for sale.

One user stated that 3D printing cosplay props is a huge market. He said he had a friend who made his own Chainsaw Man cosplay props that had the arm saws and headpiece and used it for Halloween. He eventually sold it for $220.

He mentioned he believes that cosplay has a huge potential because there would always be new things that people want to dress as. The user states that if you started making the mainstream ones, you should get sales. You could either sell them as is or sell them sanded and painted.

Here’s a video from 3D Printing with Richard for more information on profitable 3D printing niches that you can get into.

Set up Your Etsy Shop

Now that your model is ready, the next step is to set up your Etsy shop.

Here’s how to set up your Etsy shop.

• Sign in to your Etsy account.

• Click on the Avatar in the top-right corner.
• On the drop-down menu, click on “Sell on Etsy”.

• Now click on “Open your Etsy Shop.
• Fill in the details for your shop, like the Brand Name, Language, Shop Location, Pictures of the model for your shop, and so on.

At this point, you should be done with setting up your Etsy shop.

One thing to note is that when you’re uploading pictures of your model, ensure that the pictures are very clear. This will allow you to showcase your products from different angles and highlight their unique features.

Etsy recommends a 4:3 aspect ratio when uploading your pictures. They also recommend that your pictures have enough borders that can be cropped to a square without losing detail in the pictures.

To ensure your picture has enough borders, Etsy recommends that you capture images of your item further back than you think you’ll need.

You can use Etsy’s crop tool to ensure the accurate framing of your item. This would ensure there are no inaccuracies on the final thumbnail.  Also, you can use the placement tool when adding images to your listings to perform fine-tuning adjustments on the pictures uploaded.

Ensure that you write detailed and engaging descriptions for each product. Clearly state the materials used, dimensions, and any customization options available.

You’ll also need to determine the pricing of your products by considering the cost of materials, printing time, overheads, and desired profit margin.

Be competitive while ensuring your prices reflect the quality and uniqueness of your offerings. Your shipping rates, processing times, and return policies should be clearly stated. To expand your audience, you can offer international shipping.

Check out this video from Glenn Brian 3D on how to sell on Etsy.

Market and Promote Your Designs

After you have set up your Etsy shop, you need to raise awareness for your models.

You can research relevant keywords into your product titles, descriptions, and tags. This will help your products rank higher in Etsy’s search results.

Social media is another means to market your models. You can create social media accounts for your business on platforms like:

• Instagram
• Facebook
• Pinterest

Upload visually appealing content, behind-the-scenes peeks, and engage with your target audience.

Also, you can collaborate with other Etsy sellers or influencers in complementary niches to cross-promote each other’s products. Offer limited-time promotions or discounts to attract new customers.

Request for customer reviews and respond promptly to inquiries or feedback. Offer exceptional customer service to build trust and loyalty with your customers.

One user stated that he bought the Anet A8 3D printer. He said it was quite a learning experience putting it together but that ended up being a huge value later on.

So, after hours of learning how to dial in the printer, he finally printed a 3D case for his Raspberry Pi.

He started to think about all the products he could make with the 3D printer. For example, a phone case 3D printed would cost about $0.25 (in filament) but you could sell it for $25, so he instantly saw the dollar signs.

He wanted to know how to make designs, then he ran into a site called TinkerCAD. It is completely free, and it lets you design STL files. The next question he asked was, what do I print?

After looking at his snowboard, he asked why it wasn’t on the wall. He then decided to print a snowboard wall hanger. It only took him a few hours to design a simple wall hanger and probably much lesser time for an experienced person.

He placed it on eBay and Etsy for sale and he started making sales. Now he has 10 printers running 24/7 and over 150 different products he sells.

Another user stated that he has a shop that has an average workload and that all his profit goes into his outdoor hobbies. So far, he has made about €1500 in 2 and a half months, which is a decent return from a hobby.

He’s thinking of running it full time but he feels it’s just not profitable enough. But the fact that he can get an extra €500 per month with minimal work is already a success for him.

He also stated that he took the time to do some SEO and analyzed his shop and competitors. After about a week, he upgraded all his pictures by taking cleaner and more professional pictures.

Here is a video from Uncle Jessy on some tips when starting a 3D printing business on Etsy.

One user commented that this video from Uncle Jessy mirrored his experience selling 3D prints online. He stated that creating large items is fun but very impractical in the long run.

He said that selling small functional items and marketing them based on the value they provide rather than their size is key.