I have a question about how Etsy is planning to provide incentives that would motivate web developers to build great apps around its api.
Since its first release I was expecting an explosion of etsy related applications/widgets but given the rather quietness of the forums it seems that developers have a problem to find a real business model around services/apps that would bring real added value to etsy users.
So unless the subscription based approach is taken (mainly for tools dedicated to etsy artists) the only way for etsy to have developers start building something innovative would be to provide some kind of affiliate programs. Many devs like me are making a living by implementing feature rich apps that mainly mash up data from third party sites (ebay , amazon , art.com ...) and (hopefully) get money back trough these affiliate programs.
also some talk of this in the comments here http://www.avc.com/a_vc/2009/03/etsys-developer-community-and-api.html but it would seem a long way down the road - if it's even on the road map.
Hum... to me the actual value proposition of this API is really unclear. The dev community involved into building tools/apps around this kind of services generally does it because it expects some kind of ROI.
Hi, I can comment on affiliate programs. There are a number of successful examples of marketplaces, such as eBay and Amazon who has a marketplace and an affiliate model that works well. The challenge is that those marketplaces have a much higher margin (they charge sellers more) so they have more to play with for an affiliate program.
In the end I understand your point - developers build stuff because of love or for money, and love only takes you so far.
Hi Tom - Fred Wilson, in the comments to the above link, suggested that the sellers could offer the affiliate payment rather than Etsy. Etsy would always get the 3.5% + .20, but sellers could join an affiliate scheme for another 3.5% in order to attract more buyers to their store... almost like adwords auctions I guess. We already know that Etsy sellers will pay to advertise their shops, $40 for a 2 week ad, at least with the affiliate equivalent it's based on actual sales. It could be an extra revenue stream for Etsy too as they could charge a commission on the affiliate payment, a bit like commission junction for Etsians.
I think the 3.5% is an important factor in the potential for Etsy, it depends on the growth of the site, and growth costs money (tv, radio, print ads etc). Etsy needs to find a way to get new revenue from its existing market. An affiliate programme would be a winner for everyone.
I think another reason for the quietness of the developer site is that most useful tools that can be thought up (and marketed to Etsy users) require either access to private data (sales info, for example) or write access to a shop (listing tools, etc.). Given the read-public-data-only nature of the API as-is, there's a limit to what you can do.
Current revenue streams seem to be ads, donations, and sales/subscriptions. Ads require eyeballs, and donations require gratitude. Sales and subscriptions probably need a richer API.
I commented on the "A VC" post, and pointed out that an opt-in affiliate program is a slightly difficult proposition. No tools using it means there's no driver to get people to opt-in. No-one opting in makes creating tools difficult. (Not impossible, of course.)
Would need "filter by affiliate program membership" arguments to API calls, etc., too.
All the above concerns, I feel at least, are all valid... It's been quite some time since the last addition to the API, not modification or correction, to the API was made...
There is also the issue of the daily API limit. Any site that is successful and fully adheres to the operating guidelines will hit the daily API limit.
Just wanted to comment on the API limit - that should not be a barrier to your success, and if you think your application needs an increase, always email us at developer@etsy.com.
May be Etsy can provide an advanced paid API service which the developers can utilize and charge sellers by providing as a service. This way
1) Etsy can still charge only 3.5% for a sale and get additional revenue from the Paid API service
2) Developers will pay for accessing exclusive Etsy APIs, the cost of which can be recovered from the Sellers who need additional services for increasing their sales
3) And the Sellers can still sell for only 3.5% charge & will pay extra only to get advanced tools for their Shop.
Hello,
I have a question about how Etsy is planning to provide incentives that would motivate web developers to build great apps around its api.
Since its first release I was expecting an explosion of etsy related applications/widgets but given the rather quietness of the forums it seems that developers have a problem to find a real business model around services/apps that would bring real added value to etsy users.
So unless the subscription based approach is taken (mainly for tools dedicated to etsy artists) the only way for etsy to have developers start building something innovative would be to provide some kind of affiliate programs. Many devs like me are making a living by implementing feature rich apps that mainly mash up data from third party sites (ebay , amazon , art.com ...) and (hopefully) get money back trough these affiliate programs.
Any feedback welcome.
Tags
edlea – 5 months ago
also some talk of this in the comments here http://www.avc.com/a_vc/2009/03/etsys-developer-community-and-api.html but it would seem a long way down the road - if it's even on the road map.
menorki – 4 months ago
Hum... to me the actual value proposition of this API is really unclear. The dev community involved into building tools/apps around this kind of services generally does it because it expects some kind of ROI.
or maybe I am missing something here.
Kutty – 4 months ago
Hi, I can comment on affiliate programs. There are a number of successful examples of marketplaces, such as eBay and Amazon who has a marketplace and an affiliate model that works well. The challenge is that those marketplaces have a much higher margin (they charge sellers more) so they have more to play with for an affiliate program.
In the end I understand your point - developers build stuff because of love or for money, and love only takes you so far.
Happy to talk in more details if you have ideas,
Tom
edlea – 4 months ago
Hi Tom - Fred Wilson, in the comments to the above link, suggested that the sellers could offer the affiliate payment rather than Etsy. Etsy would always get the 3.5% + .20, but sellers could join an affiliate scheme for another 3.5% in order to attract more buyers to their store... almost like adwords auctions I guess. We already know that Etsy sellers will pay to advertise their shops, $40 for a 2 week ad, at least with the affiliate equivalent it's based on actual sales. It could be an extra revenue stream for Etsy too as they could charge a commission on the affiliate payment, a bit like commission junction for Etsians.
I think the 3.5% is an important factor in the potential for Etsy, it depends on the growth of the site, and growth costs money (tv, radio, print ads etc). Etsy needs to find a way to get new revenue from its existing market. An affiliate programme would be a winner for everyone.
p.s. pass this on to Maria Thomas ;)
ehax – 4 months ago
I think another reason for the quietness of the developer site is that most useful tools that can be thought up (and marketed to Etsy users) require either access to private data (sales info, for example) or write access to a shop (listing tools, etc.). Given the read-public-data-only nature of the API as-is, there's a limit to what you can do.
Current revenue streams seem to be ads, donations, and sales/subscriptions. Ads require eyeballs, and donations require gratitude. Sales and subscriptions probably need a richer API.
I commented on the "A VC" post, and pointed out that an opt-in affiliate program is a slightly difficult proposition. No tools using it means there's no driver to get people to opt-in. No-one opting in makes creating tools difficult. (Not impossible, of course.)
Would need "filter by affiliate program membership" arguments to API calls, etc., too.
GraGra33 – 4 months ago
All the above concerns, I feel at least, are all valid... It's been quite some time since the last addition to the API, not modification or correction, to the API was made...
There is also the issue of the daily API limit. Any site that is successful and fully adheres to the operating guidelines will hit the daily API limit.
Kutty – 4 months ago
Just wanted to comment on the API limit - that should not be a barrier to your success, and if you think your application needs an increase, always email us at developer@etsy.com.
Bala – 1 week ago
I have got one another idea.
May be Etsy can provide an advanced paid API service which the developers can utilize and charge sellers by providing as a service. This way
1) Etsy can still charge only 3.5% for a sale and get additional revenue from the Paid API service
2) Developers will pay for accessing exclusive Etsy APIs, the cost of which can be recovered from the Sellers who need additional services for increasing their sales
3) And the Sellers can still sell for only 3.5% charge & will pay extra only to get advanced tools for their Shop.