Experimenting with printables to earn passive income on Etsy

Adding printables to your Etsy ecommerce business
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A while back, I read an article about earning passive income on Etsy, which mentioned selling a variety of printables.

I thought this could be a great idea! So I put my designers to the task and had them help me make the following types of printable products:

  • A quarantine Bingo game
  • 6 types of greeting cards
  • 9 types of clipart

Below, I talk more about each type of printable, including how I got it made and the description and price point I used on Etsy. I also share a series of free, downloadable mockups so you can easily create printable greeting cards yourself. Plus, I show you how my printable listings have performed so far in terms of their views, sales, and revenue.

That said, let’s dive in…

Types of printables

Quarantine Bingo

Since a lot of the country is living under stay-at-home orders, I had one of my designers create a Quarantine Bingo game, which customers can download and print out to play with their loved ones while they’re quarantining.

I had my designer create 6 cards with the title “Quarantine Bingo” at the top. Underneath the title, she created a 5X5 grid (5 rows across, 5 rows down) for a total of 24 unique playing spaces + 1 “Free Space” in the middle.

I gave her a list of phrases to include in the spaces. Plus, I asked her to include a corresponding icon to go beneath the text. You can check out the phrases I gave her below.

(NOTE: Fifty phrases are listed. Since each of the 6 Bingo cards has to be unique, the same text and icons weren’t used on every card. Different text and icons were chosen for each card and they were displayed in varying orders.)

List of phrases and icons to appear in the Bingo spaces

stock up on toilet paper

use hand sanitizer

wear a face mask

thank an essential worker

stay 6-feet apart

binge-watch TV

wear PJs all day

video chat with friends

do a home workout

take your temperature

don’t touch your face

grocery shop online

learn a new language

take a nap

work from home

create a home garden

homeschool a kid

take an online course

wash your hands

order takeout

read a book

cancel a trip

skip a shower

share a funny meme

day drink

cry a lot

sleep in late

forget what day it is

forget what month it is

bake something

do a puzzle

knit something

meditate

journal

try a new recipe

practice gratitude

dye your hair a funky color

make a post-Corona bucket list

rearrange your furniture

take your pet for a walk

learn origami

donate to charity

text everyone you know

visit museums virtually

paint a picture

clean your home

make a quarantini

play a video game

learn a new dance move

play an instrument

free space

After creating the 6 unique playing cards, I had my designer make one additional card that included all 50 of the phrases and icons on it. The purpose of this card is for customers to print it out and cut up the 50 squares displayed on the card to use as the game’s “call out” pieces.

…In case any of this sounds confusing, I’m including the video Michaela made for my designer instructing her on how the process should work. You can check it out below:

Hopefully, the video clears up any confusion about how I created my Quarantine Bingo game! I’m selling the game for $3.95. And if you decide to create a version yourself, this is the description I used in my listing, which you can feel free to borrow:

Quarantine Bingo Etsy description

This listing is for an instant download of Quarantine Bingo. Play with friends or family in person (6-feet apart) or virtually over Zoom or Skype!

Your download includes 6 unique playing cards and 1 call-out list sheet. Additional playing cards available upon request for no additional charge!.

All you have to do is complete your payment and then your printable Quarantine Bingo game cards will be ready to be downloaded (no physical item will be shipped to you). This printable comes with 1 ZIP file.

How the process works:

1. Purchase the listing.
2. Once payment has been confirmed, you will be directed to the download page.
3. Click “Download” and save the files to your computer.
4. When you’re ready, print the images, and enjoy!

NOTE: This is a digital download ONLY. Also, the final print quality will depend on the type of printer and paper used.

Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns about your download. Your satisfaction is 100% guaranteed.

Thank you!

Greeting cards

For this type of printable, I had two of my designers create four types of greeting cards:

  1. birthday
  2. anniversary
  3. thank you
  4. get well

They created 6 versions of each card type for a total of 24 unique greeting cards. Some of the cards were sweet and poignant. Others were funny and had a Coronavirus spin (e.g. featuring a roll of toilet paper or mentioning the need to stay 6-feet apart).

I made the cards available in 2 sizes: 5″ X 7″ and 5.5″ X 8,” after being printed and folded and/or cut (for the 5″ X 7″ version). Customers get both sizes in their downloads.

Their downloads also include folding and/or cutting instructions for the two card sizes (i.e. dotted lines showing customers where to fold and/or cut the cards to create the desired size).

I’m selling the cards for $.95. And this is the description I used in my Etsy listings:

Greeting card Etsy description

This listing is for a download of a [card type – e.g. birthday] card that comes in 2 sizes – 5″ X 7″ and 5.5″ X 8.5.”

How the process works:

1. Purchase the listing.
2. Once payment has been confirmed, you will be directed to the download page.
3. Click “Download” and save the files to your computer.
4. When you’re ready, print the images, fold and/or cut, and enjoy!

NOTE: This is a digital download ONLY. Your purchase does NOT include any extra materials, such as stamps or envelopes. Also, the final print quality will depend on the type of printer and paper used. For best results, have your printable printed at your local photo center.

Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns about your [card type – e.g. birthday] card download. Your satisfaction is 100% guaranteed.

Thank you!

If you want to create greeting cards of your own, I’ve also included a series of mockups that you can download. All you have to do is upload your greeting card design to the mockups and then bundle them all together in a zip file.

Opt-in below to download the complete set of printable card mockups

[optin-monster slug=”bjdn2tkspr14xdhzrrk0″]

Clipart

For my clipart listings, I had one of my designers create artwork based on the following themes:

  • back-to-school
  • autumn
  • Halloween
  • Thanksgiving
  • Hanukkah
  • Christmas
  • Floral arrangements
  • Face masks
  • Frames (here’s an example of what I mean by frames: https://etsy.me/3in6ntD)

For each clipart listing, she created 12-15 unique images relevant to each theme. For example, for the back-to-school theme, she created images of the following types of items:

  • backpacks
  • books
  • pens
  • pencils
  • notebooks
  • globes
  • rulers
  • apples
  • desks
  • staplers
  • glue sticks

Then, she created an additional image, to be used as the listing’s primary image, showing all of the various images together so customers can see, at a glance, what their download includes.

I’m selling each batch of clipart for $.95. And here is the description I used:

Clipart Etsy description

This listing is for an instant download of [clipart theme – e.g. Hanukkah] clipart.

All you have to do is complete your payment and then your printable [clipart theme – e.g. Hanukkah] clip art will be ready to be downloaded (no physical item will be shipped to you). This printable comes with 1 ZIP file (with [number – e.g. 15] unique PNG files).

How the process works:

1. Purchase the listing.
2. Once payment has been confirmed, you will be directed to the download page.
3. Click “Download” and save the ZIP file to your computer.
4. When you’re ready, print the images, and enjoy!

NOTE: This is a digital download ONLY. Your purchase does NOT include any framing materials. Also, the final print quality will depend on the type of printer and paper used. For best results, have your printable printed at your local photo center.

CLIPART TERMS OF USE:

We really hope you love this clipart! Please feel free to use these images in personal or small commercial projects (fewer than 500 sales) for yourself or a client. Attribution is welcomed and appreciated, but it is not necessary.

Please note that these images cannot be resold or redistributed on their own. They also cannot be used on products offered for sale where the clipart constitutes the main value of the products.

For example, these images cannot be featured as the main design on items such as coffee mugs, t-shirts, or canvases, and sold as such.

If you have any questions, please feel free to get in touch! We’re always available to help. Thanks so much!

How my printable listings have been doing so far

Here, I wanted to go over the results I’ve seen thus far with my printable listings in terms of their views, sales, and revenue. Check it out:

Quarantine Bingo

Views: 4,828

Sales: 23

Revenue: $89.47

Greeting cards

Birthday card – version 1

Views: 11

Sales: 1

Revenue: $.95

Birthday card – version 2

Views: 3

Sales: 1

Revenue: $.95

Birthday card – version 3

Views: 3

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Birthday card – version 4

Views: 3

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Birthday card – version 5

Views: 4

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Birthday card – version 6

Views: 0

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Anniversary card – version 1

Views: 16

Sales: 1

Revenue: $.95

Anniversary card – version 2

Views: 5

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Anniversary card – version 3

Views: 4

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Anniversary card – version 4

Views: 19

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Anniversary card – version 5

Views: 2

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Anniversary card – version 6

Views: 3

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Thank you card – version 1

Views: 4

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Thank you card – version 2

Views: 0

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Thank you card – version 3

Views: 1

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Thank you card – version 4

Views: 2

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Thank you card – version 5

Views: 1

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Thank you card – version 6

Views: 0

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Get well card – version 1

Views: 26

Sales: 4

Revenue: $3.80

Get well card – version 2

Views: 4

Sales: 1

Revenue: $.95

Get well card – version 3

Views: 1

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Get well card – version 4

Views: 2

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Get well card – version 5

Views: 1

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Get well card – version 6

Views: 0

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Clipart

Back-to-school clipart – version 1

Views: 2

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Back-to-school clipart – version 2

Views: 6

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Autumn clipart

Views: 6

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Halloween clipart

Views: 1

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Thanksgiving clipart

Views: 2

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Hanukkah clipart

Views: 0

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Christmas clipart

Views: 0

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Floral clipart

Views: 2

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Face mask clipart

Views: 9

Sales: 1

Revenue: $.95

Frame clipart

Views: 1

Sales: 0

Revenue: $0

Total: $98.02

My printables have been on sale for around a month and I have earned close to $100 from their sales. So far, the Quarantine Bingo game has been my top seller followed by one of the versions of a get-well card.

Printables are easy listings because you don’t have to worry about shipping so there’s generally less customer service to tend to with these types of products.

I had a lot of fun creating and listing these items. And they could be a great addition to your Etsy shop as well!

What do you think of these printable ideas? Do you have any suggestions you can share? Please let me know by leaving a comment below. And if you enjoyed this post, please share it with your friends and followers!

Adding printables to your Etsy ecommerce business

BONUS! Find this helpful? To download this post as a PDF, click here!

14 thoughts on “Experimenting with printables to earn passive income on Etsy”

  1. As always rachel – lovely ideas and lists. You’re always coming up with new things.
    Do you have any afiliate links I can use on my website – I would realy love to recomend your courses – I’ve got so much out of them. Thank you

  2. great post. Thx for sharing. Can i do the same on amazon? How do i choose “digital” on amazon to let them know Its not a physical prodUct (sorry my phone is only showing caps for some reason)

  3. Elaine Calloway

    Hi,
    How do you do the enveLOPES FOR THE CARDS? i GET THE PRINTABLES IDEA BUT THOUGHT YOU HAD ENVELOPES TOO?
    eLAINE

  4. The bingo was a pretty good idea. Greeting
    Cards you can gEt on loTs of differ Sites
    People send most every on line with emojis any more. People dont Even send ChrIstmas cards anymore. I dont have any ideas off the top of my head.
    Thanks for the offer but i pass
    Jeanne harmon

  5. tHANKS FOR SHARING! i’D LOVE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE PROCESS OF CREATING THE DOWNLOADABLE ZIP FILE. i’VE BEEN CREATING DIGITAL ART AND THAT PART IS HOLDING ME BACK. wHEN i USE A ZIP PROGRAM IT REALLY DOESN’T SAVE ANY SPACE. sINCE IT’S ART, i’M INCLUDING MANY DIFFERENT SIZES. iS THERE A BETTER WAY TO GO ABOUT DOING THIS?

    1. Hey Jules! If just do a quick Google search for “how to zip a file,” you should find a lot of helpful tutorials. :) Thanks!

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