How to Integrate Your Etsy Shop into your WordPress Website and Why You Should

You've sold hundreds to thousands of dollars on Etsy, and now you know it's time to run your own website. Even if you already have your own WordPress website, it's essential to combine your Etsy shop with the WordPress interface.

What does this integration mean for you?

A WordPress/Etsy integration means that your Etsy products can finally display on your WordPress site. Post Etsy boxes, descriptions, photos, and buttons that lead to your Etsy page, and eventually process the transactions directly through your website. The idea behind the WordPress integration is to establish yourself as an expert without the sole reliance on Etsy.

Wouldn't it be nice to eventually have an email list that prompts people to come to your own site when you come out with a new product? What about having the ability to keep the majority, if not all, of your revenue, since you won't be relying completely on the Etsy system.

Sure, Etsy is a wonderful place to get your business started, but a personal presence is the only logical way to expand and make more money. With that, the Etsy/WordPress integration can seem intimidating for some, but it actually has a strong method for completing the process without any coding knowledge at all.

That said, keep reading to learn about how to integrate your Etsy shop into a WordPress site, and after that we'll discuss the primary benefits of this combination.

Video Tutorial of Integrating your Etsy Shop into your WordPress Website

How to Integrate Your Etsy Shop into Your WordPress Website

The basis of this Etsy to WordPress integration relies on a single plugin that helps move all of your items to the WordPress site. Not only can you insert Etsy shop sections into your posts and pages (with a shortcode) but this combines those posts and pages with your Etsy materials, so you can type up other content that prompts people to buy. Continue reading to get started with the integration.

Step 1: Download and Install the Etsy Shop Plugin

Do you need Help Setting up your Etsy WordPress Site? Let us know!Go to the Etsy Shop plugin page and download it to your computer. You also have the option to scroll over the plugins tab in your WordPress dashboard, click on Add New, and search for the plugin for an easy installation process.

Once you locate the Etsy Shop plugin, click on the Install Now button. Select the Activate Plugin link to complete the installation and activation process.

Step 2: Go to Your Etsy API Key

Towards the top of your WordPress dashboard you'll see a warning about the Etsy Shop plugin. It should read: "Etsy Shop is almost ready. You must enter your Etsy API key for it to work."

Click on the link to navigate to the proper page.

Now, what the heck is an API key? That's a good question, and it's basically a shortcode from your Etsy account that allows you to connect to WordPress and ensure that only you, the owner of that account, has access to it. Under the field that asks for your Etsy API, click on the link that says "You may get an Etsy API Key by Creating a new Etsy App."

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Step 3: Create an Etsy App and Grab Your API Key

This brings you to the Etsy App Creation page, which asks you to fill in information about your current store, along with your login credentials. Give your application a name, provide a description, paste in the destination website you want the Etsy plugin to show up on and fill in the rest of the check marks depending on your own preferences.

Click on the Read Terms and Create App button to accept the terms and conditions and generate the app for your WordPress website.

After that, you'll see a page that tells you the app was created successfully. Copy the code next to the word Keystring. This is your Etsy API code, so you should move back to your WordPress dashboard and paste the code into the field called Etsy API Key.

Step 4: Deciding What to Display on Your Posts and Pages

In the Etsy App page, click on Shop Settings and register your app to gain access to the tools needed for placing on your website. The approval can take anywhere from an hour to a few days.

Visit your Shop Quick links and select the Listings Manager, in there if you don't have any Section added already we suggest to add one now and arrange with of your product listings belong to that section.

Step 5: Place your Etsy Shop on a WordPress Post or Page

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qwvn3gUCto4
After creating your Etsy Shop Section you should go and copy it from your browser address bar, you will use this ID in the next Step where you will publish your Etsy shop inside your WordPress post or page.

Next, copy the following shortcode and paste it into whatever post or page you desire on your WordPress site.

Keep in mind that this is just a template for you to modify, so you'll have to change the part that says "your-etsy-shop-name" to the name you copied from the previous step. Also modify the "your-etsy-shop-section-id" to the ID you pulled from the URL in the previous step.

Leave everything else in the shortcode exactly the same, and click on the Publish or Preview button in WordPress.

After that, you can go to the frontend of your WordPress site to view images, descriptions and links from a certain section of your Etsy website. Feel free to complete the same steps with other sections that may work well on your WordPress site.

Step 6: Modify Your Etsy Shop Plugin Settings

This is an optional step, but it's worth going over since not everyone wants to display their Etsy Shop the same way on WordPress. If you're still in the Etsy Shop plugin area on your website, you don't have to go anywhere. If you left, go to Settings > Etsy Shop on the left hand side of your WordPress dashboard.

We already filled in your Etsy Shop API, but a few other settings are available. To start, you can select whether you want your website Etsy links to show up in new windows or not. I would recommend opening them in a new window so that your customers don't completely leave your website.

The other setting to keep an eye on is the Cache Status. If you find that your Etsy products aren't loading up properly, or people can't click through sometimes, go ahead and reset the cache to see if that solves the problem.

Why Should You Integrate Your Etsy Shop into WordPress?

The benefits of integrating your Etsy shop into WordPress are many, and it all starts with building your exposure online. Here's a list of some of the primary reasons you should go through with the integration.

• You can build up your SEO to bring in organic traffic instead of always relying on what Etsy has to offer.
• With a personal website you have the chance to acquire customer email addresses, send out specials and bring people to your site whenever you want.
• Recommend products to your blog followers and include mentions of your own products and product links.
• It's not always easy to be unique while selling on Etsy, since all the designs and functionalities are focused on the Etsy brand.
• You have full control over the way you sell and display items on your website, whereas control over your Etsy shop is limited.
• You can integrate a blog for helping customers and bringing in additional search engine traffic.
• You have an easier way to push people to your social media platforms, since your buttons are right on your site.
• You gain more control over your reports and analytics, since the use of something like Google Analytics is much more powerful than what's provided from Etsy.
• Many people eventually stray completely away from Etsy, starting their own websites and transforming their Etsy business into something they run completely on their own. The first step in this process is integrating between your current Etsy page and WordPress site to ease the transition.

Over to You...

Are you ready to start making more money online with an Etsy/WordPress integration? It's your turn to leave a line in the comments section below and tell us how this process worked out for you. If you have any questions or problems with the integration, feel free to share your thoughts as well.

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