answer:As someone who browses Etsy quite a lot and has made a few Etsy purchases, I can tell you that I nearly always pass over shops that are almost empty. To start, I would suggest having a number of items ready to go, say, 15 or so. If you want to do custom stuff, you can make custom listings or let people know in your store details that you will be happy to make custom stuff for them. When listing an item, fill out the details well. Include measurements, colors, materials and several photographs. It is also a good idea to include basic cleaning information. I have passed over a number of items because I didn’t know if they could be machine washed. Yes, customers can ask you directly, but many would prefer not to. What some Etsy sellers also do is to essentially only take custom orders. Instead of filling the shop with items they have already made, they make the items as customers order them. This way, if your hand-made mittens aren’t selling, you don’t have a bunch lying around that you can’t move, but if you’re baby blankets are super popular, you make exactly as many as you need to sell. Many Etsy sellers are also now including allergy information with their products. They will say if the home the items were made in has cats or dogs or if they are smokers. This seems like a smart business practice to me especially with crocheted items because they can pick up particulates. Good luck!