How To Set Up a Basic Zazzle Store

On the Zazzle.com home page you will see a "sell" link right at the top.  When you click that link you can either choose "create a store" or "become an associate".

To create a store you will need to know what to name your store. This will be permanent.

To become an associate, you will find all the info you need to create referrals by promoting products outside of the Zazzle site.

When choosing your store name you can use only letters and the underscore symbol.  Thousands of people have Zazzle stores so your first choice for a store name may be taken. 

Some people use their own name or their website name, if they already have one.

The store name could relate to the products you will sell.  As an example, in my BlueHyd store I sell mostly stationery containing the hydrangea flower.

This first store will be your main store and if you open any others they will be linked to this one for referral bonus money, payment, etc.  Don't worry about that at this point, we are talking about getting one store set up, and then you can look into the affiliate information.

Once you have a name for your store, find the account area by hovering over your icon at the top of the page. You will see a list of options as well as your store name or names.

In the "My Account" area there will be a top bar with more options, and in the "account" area you will be able to finish filling in your contact e-mail, store settings, etc., and manage profile information.

Checking off the private store option means that no one but you will see the store front.  If you'd like to add your own banner and colors and wait until you have at least a few products up to show, then choose the private look.  You can change it to public at any time, by simply un-checking the box.

Note that any products you create can still be seen and purchased - unless you keep them private when you post them for sale.

In the "My Account" area choose "Store" to get to your store management area.  

Customize the look of your Zazzle store under settings where you will add the store icon, meta tags and description.  Also add an e-mail link for customers to contact you.  (This is optional).  Enable, and set up Google Analytics as well.

Under "Store Content" section you will add your banner and choose how to show products and store categories.

This area is pretty self explanatory.  It will take some time to get all things as you want them, but the end result will be an organized store.

Adding images of photos or artwork you will use to make products is an important step in creating and setting up your Zazzle store.

Before you upload image to the images folders, have an idea of how you'd like to organize them so they will be easy to find as your store images area grows.  I learned this the hard way!

Also, make sure they adhere to the Zazzle image guidelines by reading the Designer Tutorials page.  If your images are too small, they will not print well on the products and your customers will not be happy. (Customers can leave ratings and feedback now, so you want good reviews!)

On the images page (the link is in the "my account" section), click the "add folder" area and name your folder.  TIP:  If you plan to have more than one store eventually, I suggest you name this folder by your store name and then add sub-folders inside.

If all your images will be for one store, name the folder according to what you intend to upload - be exact so you can find what you are looking for later.

For instance add your Rose photography to the "Rose" folder.

You can use the Zazzle Bulk Image Uploader, or add images a few at a time.

** Good to know:  Deleting images from your "Images" folders (where you store the images you use to create) will not delete them from your products.

(Drum image credit:  Pixabay)

In the beginning you won't have all that many images to deal with, but as time goes on your Zazzle images area will fill up.  It's best to find a way, in the beginning, to organize those images in ways that they will be easy to find down the road.

In the same way you will organize your store front for customers, organize the images area for yourself.  Put photography in one area and artwork in another.  If you plan to eventually have more than one Zazzle store, keep images in the store they relate to.  

Organize by theme, colors, designs, or whatever you plan to use to create products.  Only you can know just how to organize for your own benefit, but I suggest you give it some thought before you get overloaded with images you can't find.

After you've read Zazzle's basic design tips, click on the "Products" button and begin making a product that you will add to a virtual "folder" in your store.  Add an image either from your images that were previously uploaded, or grab them from your computer.  Zazzle has tutorials for help with designing, but if you want to begin with something easy, I suggest a greeting card or postcard with just a nice image on the front.

All products can be added to the "New Products" folder which will be included in your store, or you can add a category and create a folder for what you make. You will make your folders in the "Products" area of your store.  I call it, the back room.  You can also make sub-categories in each major category (folder).

Either way, eventually you should have categories set up to hold each design or product you want to sell so customers will be able to find them easily. 

** Please note that when you move products into new folders it can take some time for them to show up where you want them - so don't be alarmed if they didn't seem to "move".

The Zazzle.com website has grown tremendously in just the seven years I've been working there and they are constantly improving and changing things to grow their business which is good for my individual stores within the site as well.

It can be a bit overwhelming and there is a lot more to know than what I've covered here, but read the help pages and visit the forums and while you are filling your store with quality products to sell, keep in mind that it can take a while to begin making sales, but if you are using quality images and tagging correctly, eventually sales will happen!   If you are proud of your products, (and you should be!) promote them online and elsewhere and you will most definitely begin to see sales.

Best of luck to you!