Are you thinking about making printables on Etsy, but you feel like the competition is too stiff? If so, you’re in the right place! Before I started selling party decorations on Etsy, and later, transitioned my party decorations business completely to printables, I used to worry about competition. After all, there were SO many people already doing it! So if you’re wondering, Is Selling Etsy Printables Too Competitive? – let’s talk about it.
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You might already know that I teach people to create and sell printables on Etsy with my signature program. One of my students recently asked me what I do about making sure my designs aren’t being stolen by other printable designers. So that got me thinking about competition and how so many of us live from lack.
The question, “Is Selling Etsy Printables Too Competitive” is Living From Lack
Our general thought in life is that there’s just not enough to go around. We must think that there’s one giant pot of money that has been dwindling down since the beginning of time and that when that pot of money is dry, there’s no more left!
And we seem to think this way about ideas and opportunities as well. We think oh, if someone already had a similar idea as me, that there’s no room to enter into that market because so many other people are already doing it.
I’ve also heard this from people who are interested in starting something like a printables business. However, they look on Etsy and see that there are already so many other people doing it! They think, there just isn’t room for them to get started.
And this is coming from a state of lack. When we’re living in lack, we notice everyone else’s triumphs and successes, money, and abundance, but we fail to see ALL the possibilities and opportunities of abundance in our own lives.
A New Thought For When Other People Are Wealthy
This is why I always think it’s so strange when people get mad at other people for being wealthy. Take the Kardashians for example. Everyone has a very strong opinion about these ladies. We can argue all day long about their role in society and what they’re even famous for in the first place, but the point is, it doesn’t actually matter.
If those ladies make more and more money, it literally has absolutely no impact on whether or not you or I are able to go out and make money and be abundant. So when we hear about the rich getting richer. We can choose to live in a state of lack, feeling jealous and offended, or we can use it as inspiration about what’s possible for us.
Live from Inspiration, Not Competition
One of my favorite books called The Science of Getting Rich by Wallace Wattles, he says’ “You must get rid of the thought of competition. You are to create, not to compete for what is already created. And it says “bear in mind that the only way in which you can assist the world in growing rich is by growing rich yourself through the creative method—not the competitive one.”
What he’s saying is that you cannot get caught up in this idea of competition. In order to actually do well for yourself and to succeed you must come from a place of inspiration and creation.
For example, it’s that feeling you get when you’re scrolling Etsy for a printable that you want and you don’t find the exact one that YOU would love. It’s that moment of “Oh, I could do this. Or I could make this so much cuter!” And it occurs RIGHT before the other thought that says “Ugh but so many other people are doing this. How could I ever make any money doing it. The Etsy market is saturated.”
Can feel that energy shift between those two thoughts? The first one is a thought of creation and inspiration, driven by opportunity and thoughts of abundance. The latter is driven by competition and lack. When we live in lack, we cannot ever shift to those feelings of abundance or creativity. Therefore, we stay in feelings of jealousy and hopelessness, keeping us broke and unsuccessful.
Shifting our Competition Mindset
The best way to live is the knowing that the world is abundant. That abundance is infinite and it is your birthright. Just because Elon Musk is making a ton of money, doesn’t mean you can’t make a ton of money. And just because other people are making thousands of dollars on printables already on Etsy, doesn’t mean it isn’t possible for you. In fact, it should be making you excited to see what’s possible for you!
Instead of asking yourself, WHY do they have that cool thing and not me? Or, why has that person been successful in doing that and not me? We need to be asking ourselves better questions. Instead, ask yourself, how can I turn my thoughts of jealousy and competition into excitement and motivation?
To do this, we need to focus on what we’re already good at. What comes naturally to you? How can you use your unique skills and talents to do something your passionate about to make money and be successful?
Using Competition as Inspiration When Asking Is Selling Etsy Printables Too Competitive?
We can use our competition as inspiration by asking ourselves how can I use this as inspiration to do my best work? That’s why I started making party decorations after all. I thought to myself, I can do that! And only I can do it with my unique twist!
That’s when you realize that competition actually forces us to do and to BE better. When you decide to use competition as a benefit and a driver, then you are the one that wins because you make yourself, your product, or your service amazing. Then, not only do YOU win, but everyone around you wins too. They get to be in the presence of your best self. And if you have a product or service, then your customers win too. They get your ultimate best work.
Getting Help to Start Your Printables Business
Thank you guys for hanging out with me today. I’m so grateful you’re here and I hope this was inspirational to you! If you’re interested in getting started with creating and selling printables, I have some great resources for you! You can take the quiz to find out what pritables are best for your personality OR find out the one mindset hack I used to get to $20K in one year in my Etsy party shop.
Related Articles
You might also be interested in the following articles:
Why Creatives Should Make Printables For Passive Income
Design & Sell Printables With No Design Background
Why I use Photoshop to Make and Sell Printables
Lastly, thank you so much for taking the time to read about Is Selling Etsy Printables Too Competitive? I hope this gives you some ideas about how to make your printables really stand out above your competition on Etsy. I love to help you celebrate life through party decorations and personal development! But above all, I’d love to connect with you. Reach out to me on Instagram and let’s chat.
xox
Lindsay
