Have you been wondering about the new, paid Google Shopping ads for Etsy? I have been asked a lot about this, so I’m here to provide you with my $00.02!

Now, my personal theory is that it’s ALWAYS silly to pay to send traffic to an Etsy shop. There is no reasonable expectation that this traffic will stay in your shop because there are so many ways this traffic can click out of your shop and be gone! But more on this later…

Personal preference aside, here is a quick summary of the facts.

They aren’t helping your relevancy.

These search ads do NOT contribute to your Etsy relevancy – not all impressions are created equal. Views and sales and hearts from these paid ads are not counted in your relevancy score. Views, hearts, sales etc that come from an Etsy feature or search are huge contributors to your relevancy BECAUSE the search needs to work in order for people to continue to use Etsy. Here’s the deal: if someone comes to Etsy, searches, doesn’t find what they want repeatedly, they will no longer use Etsy. That’s bad. Etsy NEEDS to deliver good search results for shoppers, that’s why THEY COUNT IT MORE when someone finds you through search. It’s good for you and it’s good for them. Just because you are sending traffic to Etsy, it doesn’t matter – it’s great for you if your organic referrals to Etsy from say, your IG account, bring you views and sales, great for you, but if you aren’t established to get found in search in the first place, then there’s nothing for you to be relevant FOR, and that’s no good for Etsy at large. They WANT you to be relevant so that they can deliver solid results to shoppers and keep them coming back.

Related reading: What is Etsy Relevancy and Why you Should Care a Whole Lot about it

You aren’t paying to advertise yourself.

Paid traffic to an Etsy shop = advertising Etsy. There is no reasonable likelihood that traffic will stay in your shop. You are paying to advertise everyone.

It’s not all that targeted.

A search within Etsy is already 100x more targeted than a search within Google. Meaning, you are better off optimizing for Etsy search than paying to show up in a Google search. Hell, you’re better off paying for an Etsy promoted listing, but I don’t suggest that either.

$$$$$

Paid traffic only continues to work if you continue to pay for it, if it works at all.

I’ll admit…

I looked 0 into the actual set up of these ads because I deemed them majorly useless from the start so I can’t speak on the dashboard area for ads. All I can say is I would not suggest spending money on these ads.

Related reading: Basic Etsy SEO

Your best bet for new exposure is actually free.

The best advertising for an Etsy shop is free: getting found in searches and appealing to Etsy’s site wide initiatives – along with optimizing your whole shop to convert that exposure into profitable customer action. I teach this to you in my Etsy Training Course – the exact steps to a more visible, profitable and enjoyable experience on Etsy.

So if you want to try it out, just be very aware that all that money you are paying is a community contribution. We thank you, of course, but it’s okay to be selfish with your marketing budget.