Etsy is a fantastic place to sell your art and handmade crafts. Start strong by preparing these five things before you open your shop.

1. Your Username

Pay special attention to the username you pick because you cannot change it! Pick something easy for your potential customers to remember. You may want to have your username mention what you sell, but be careful not to be too specific. In two years you don't want your user name to be Jillsbibs when you've expanded into all sorts of baby products and actually don't want to make bibs anymore. Some obvious names will be taken, but that's okay, it's better to be a little creative and pick something memorable.

2. Your Bio

Once you open your account you'll have the option to update your "Personal Profile", which includes a space for your bio, or biography. You don't need to tell the story of your life. Concentrate on what makes you unique or drives you to create arts and crafts. Many customers who buy handmade items instead of going to Walmart or Macy's like to have a bit of story to tell about their purchase. They want to know a little about the person behind the product. This is also a good place to mention your blog or other Website.

3. Your Avatar and Banner

These two graphics are going to represent your shop. If you chat in the forums your avatar will be the first thing that anyone sees. If a potential customer visits your shop their eyes will be drawn immediately to your banner.

If you don't have any expertise in graphics there are a number of sellers on Etsy who have listings for pre-made themed graphics or who will develop them custom for you from your artwork and ideas. If you do know a little about graphics then you can easily develop your own. Just check Etsy's Help section for the current image sizes.

4. Your Shipping Policies

How much are you planning on charging for shipping? Which countries will you ship to? Will you accept returns? Your experience will be much less stressful if you decide on the answers to these questions before your first customer makes her first purchase.

Read the policies at the post office Website. Go to the office and ask questions if you need to, especially if your pieces fit in odd shaped boxes. Weigh a sample item so you have an understanding of how much it will cost. Check on whether or not you will need customs forms. This information will have the most immediate effect on your income.

5. How Customer Will Find Your Items

New listings on Etsy are buried quickly under other new listings. There are many ways to promote your items, but the one you don't have to pay any attention to is simple search, which is primarily based on the name of the listing and the tags.

You have fourteen tags, which may be more than one word, that you can attach to each item you list. These are simply words that someone may search for, such as "red bowl" or "elephant bib". Spend some time thinking about how a potential customer might think when looking for an item like yours. It's a big pain to reach this stage on the listing and have to think about it without preparation, when all you want to do is put items in your shop.

Now that you have some building blocks ready, go open your Etsy store and put them in place so you can begin listing your wonderful art and handmade crafts for sale.