What’s going to set you apart from all the other Etsy sellers out there? That’s a question that should inform a lot of your business decisions. One excellent way is by creating a super fun unboxing experience for your customers. Pretty packaging, a thoughtful note and a great little add-on gift. Here are the best 32 bonus gift ideas for Etsy orders that I could find!
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Making a little extra effort is what will help you stand out in the minds of the customer. It’s what turns ho-hum reviews into rave reviews. It’s what makes your work instagrammable. (Sure, that’s a word!)
Make recieving one of your orders a youtube-worthy unboxing experience!
Plan to include a relevant bonus gift in your Etsy orders that will add huge value to the customer, without costing you all your profit.
The idea is to find small items in bulk so that it doesn’t cost you much per order but makes the customer really impressed with your thoughtfulness!
We’ve covered a lot of topics in this epic Etsy series, including:
Pricing Your Handmade Items
How to Find Etsy Tags
How to Promote Your Etsy Shop on Social Media
How to Decide What New Products to Sell on Etsy
and
How to Use Your Etsy Stats to Grow Your Business
It’s a lot of info. A lot of helpful info I hope. 🙂
This will be the last post in this series. I’ve shared literally everything I know about running an Etsy shop. Minus the bs.
And when I learn more, I will share more. Because real fulfillment in creative business comes from helping others succeed too. There’s room for everyone at the top!
For now, here are the best 32 bonus gift ideas for Etsy orders that I could come up with!
1. Plantable Seed Paper
I’ve bought sheets of plantable seed paper from Botanical Paperworks, and cut them out into little hearts. (It’s cheaper than buying the pre-cut shapes.) I include a couple hearts with each order! You can get wildflower, veggie or herb seeds. It’s thoughtful and eco-friendly!
2. Custom Magnet
I’ve also done custom magnets from Vistaprint. (If you use this link you can get $25 off a purchase of $50 or more!) I put my logo and info on it as well as a little quote so they’ll actually want to keep the magnet. 🙂
(I know the pic looks a little weird because the design is on a white background! The magnet is the size of a business card.)
3. Sample
Samples work best if you sell consumables like food or cosmetics. Include a small sample of a different product for the customer to try out.
4. Postcard
Something branded and pretty that the customer can send out to a friend. Again you could get these done on Vistaprint relatively cheaply.
5. Stickers
Even grown ups like stickers! Etsy has endless bulk sticker options. (If you order stuff from Etsy I sincerely hope you’re getting your cashback with Rakuten! Use my link to get a $5 bonus!) I’m crushing on these lovely Eucalyptus stickers and these strawberries are so cute!
6. Buttons
I used to include a couple of buttons in my felt orders for my other business. I get them through Pandahall, they have loads of super cute options and they come out to pennies a piece.
7. Small Notebook
These are really cute and are under $1 a piece!
8. Jewellery Charm/Zipper Pull
There are loads of different styles of bulk charms out there. This shop has a big selection of cute charms. But if you included something personalized with the customer’s first initial? Well that’s just extra special! You can even attach it to a simple clip to turn it into a zipper pull. (Don’t forget your cashback!)
9. Bonus Supply
If you are a craft or art supply shop, you can send out a little sample of another supply. I bought some nylon headbands from a supply shop and they also sent me a bonus alligator clip to try out. I thought it was a genius idea!
10. Affirmation/Quote
Some positive little message that the customer can pin up on their fridge or mirror. Maybe something handwritten if you have some calligraphy skills. Or you can get a pack of affirmation cards like these ones, I think they are sweet! Simple words of encouragement might really brighten someone’s day!
11. Pressed Flower
Collect some pretty wildflowers in summertime and glue them to notecards or hang tags!
There is a small collection of great DIY pressed flower craft ideas on this site.
12. Gemstone/Seaglass/Seashell
If it fits with the style and themes of your shop, you could include an element like sea glass or gemstones.
This Etsy shop has quite a selection of sea glass.
This Etsy shop has an unending supply of gems and things.
And this Etsy shop is full of nautical goodies, including pretty shells!
13. Chocolate
Much like Paris, chocolate is always a good idea. Check your local grocery stores (or Lindt!) for bulk, individually wrapped treats. Think Hershey kisses, Lindt balls or chocolate loonies. Bulk stores like Bulk Barn usually have a good selection!
14. Pencil/Pen
Keep it branded, and keep it pretty or funny so that it actually gets used. You can design your own writing implement on Vistaprint’s sister site, Promotique.
15. Makeup Remover Wipes
These are great if you sell beauty products!
16. Teabag
Something special, individually wrapped in a pretty way.
(See how I wrapped up tea bags as baby shower favours in this post. Just to get an idea.)
But don’t pick anything that smells too strongly. You don’t want anyone to be turned off by an overpowering tea scent when they open their package!
I like Tazo‘s branding and simple flavours. 🙂
17. Candy Cane/Hard Candy
Mini candy canes would be cute for the holidays, maybe some Halloween inspired in October. Conversation hearts in February. You get the idea. 🙂
Ok I found these GORGEOUS lollipops on Etsy and I had to share, because WOW! (Have you ever seen such a drop-dead-gorgeous lollipop before? Yeah, me neither.) The shop, LeccareLollipops, has tons of beautiful lollipop options to choose from, and you can even add branded stickers!
18. Dog Tag
Makes sense if you sell pet related items. A pet ID tube or collar light is a really thoughtful addition to an order!
19. Small Ornament
You could make some simple clay ornaments, cut out with cookie cutters and threaded with twine to give away! I found a lovely tutorial on this site which you could easily apply to non-Christmas themed ornaments as well.
20. Keychain
There are loads of cute DIY keychain ideas on Pinterest, I like this simple beaded one from Practical and Pretty.
These little tassels are cute too, you could easily add a small jump ring to turn them into keychains.
21. Bookmark
Turns out it’s reallly easy to make your own magnetic bookmarks. Here’s a tutorial I liked the most.
22. Call to Action
Encourage customers to follow you on social media or to leave a review. Create a pretty, branded notecard or other marketing item that tells customers exactly where to find you online.
23. Wood Shape
Same idea as the buttons I guess, but without holes in the centre. Michael’s usually has a good selection of little wood shapes, you could try to find something that matches the theme of your shop. These steampunk cogs are from Etsy, where you can also find all kinds of other shapes.
24. Small Art Print
If you’re a graphic designer, you could create a small print to include with orders.
25. Free Download
Add a printable of some kind to each order, a checklist or cheatsheet is usually pretty popular!
26. Coaster
A coaster would be a good add-on if you sell consumables or party-related items. I found this pretty boxed set of 50 paper coasters, or you could buy blanks and design your own!
27. Recipe Card
Buy a box of recipe cards and hand-write your favourite cookie recipe on them. So sweet and personal!
28. Lip Balm
This shop sells personalized lip balms, mainly for parties and showers. But you could totally get your own shop branding put on them!
Or you could DIY some mini tins of lip balm, this is a lovely tutorial.
29. Hair Tie
This works if you sell accessories or beauty supplies. These are really simple to make too. You just need some pretty fold over elastic (foe), which you can find in a multitude of pretty patterns. This shop has a lovely selection.
Find the tutorial for these here.
30. Colouring Page
If you’re a graphic designer you could include a fun colouring page, either as a download or pre-printed. If you’re not a graphic designer, you could hire one to design you a custom colouring page!
31. Tealight
You could DIY some tealights or I found these cute beeswax tealights ready to go!
32. Mini Tub of Play-Doh
Here’s the last of my 32 bonus gift ideas to include in Etsy orders. These little play-doh tubs really only makes sense if you sell items for children. There was a house in our old neighbourhood that gave these instead of candy at Halloween and I thought it was wonderful!
I would love LOVE it if you would share any other order add-on ideas you’ve got! I’m always on the look out for ways to learn and improve my Etsy game!
Thanks for reading and participating in this series and don’t forget to check out the other 5 posts! And the workbook for the rest of series is here. 🙂
xo
So many great ideas! You mentioned bookmarks and candy, and I include both in my packages. I specifically make the bookmarks from leftover beads in my stash, so nothing goes to waste! I have a little tutorial on making them as they’re SO EASY! http://www.craftyhope.com/2019/05/diy-easy-beaded-bookmarks.html
Thanks for this beautiful roundup – those lollipops! WOW!