Zazzle: Shop for Unique Products and Make Money Online With a Little Creativity!
Written: Sep 29 '09
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I first saw references to Zazzle.com on The Knot's message boards. A number of brides had mentioned purchasing custom postage on Zazzle, and though we decided against spending extra on stamps, it turned out to be a very helpful recommendation. I have made numerous purchases and maintained a gallery on the site for the last two years.
Website
Zazzle.com is an online marketplace which relies entirely on user contribution, similar to CafePress.com. Users can create free accounts, upload pictures and graphics, and use the editor to create a wide array of products. The site allows you to design postage stamps, t-shirts, shoes, skateboards, mugs, magnets, note cards, mouse pads, and more. Users submit the designs, and Zazzle creates and ships them. In addition to creating their own custom products, shoppers can shop amongst other users' galleries.
Since the site's selection relies on the creativity of thousands of users, the selection is incredibly unique and diverse. They offer products to fit every interest and style, which is why I usually head to Zazzle first for Christmas shopping. I always find the perfect gift for my tech-geek friends.
The site is very easy to navigate, yet it can be difficult to find exactly what you want among the selection of over twenty-two billion products. Browsing is helpful if you don't have a particular item in mind. Products can be narrowed down by type (mouse pad, mug, etc.) or topic (animals, humor, etc.), then further narrowed by subcategories. The products are sorted into logical categories, but it can take you a very long time browsing through so many products. The search feature is often the better option, but the results are sometimes too loosely related to your search since users input their own tags. You may end up with 50-60 pages of products, only 20 of which contain the product you intended to browse. This is, unfortunately, a necessary evil of having user-maintained products. It would greatly improve the search feature if you were able to view more products per page. At this time, the site does not offer the option of increasing the number of items you view per page, so browsing the search results is incredibly tedious.
The product pages are extremely thorough. There is a picture of each product, which can be enlarged by running your mouse over it. This ensures you can check the quality of an image the seller used or read even the smallest text. Zazzle includes two product descriptions. The first is written by the site, detailing the qualities of the product including information about the material the product is made from and care instructions. The second description is written by the product's creator, explaining its design. Many products can be customized using various color and other options.
The price is clearly marked on the product page, with bulk pricing available. The seller sets his or her own prices, so sometimes the prices can be a bit high, but most keep it at a reasonable 10% profit. When applicable, t-shirt listings contain a link to "value options," which is the same shirt in a more budget-friendly material. The page shows other items that are recommended based on the product you're viewing, along with a link to the seller's gallery. I found the recommendations to be helpful and have purchased items from these suggestions several times.
I encountered no errors or broken links while shopping on Zazzle. The site ran well in both Internet Explorer and Firefox.
Order Experience
I have made numerous purchases from other users on Zazzle, and all have been good quality and delivered within a reasonable amount of time. The latest was a mug with a rose design. The mug arrived six days after placing the order and was exactly as described. The seller allowed customization, but I chose to leave it as is. The colors were as vibrant as they had been in the site's photo. The item was priced at $14.95, which is on the lower end of mug prices on the site. Though it was a tad expensive, I considered it to be an acceptable price for such a unique item.
I have also ordered several custom products from Zazzle. After my wedding shower, I made note cards featuring a really beautiful picture of a rose in my grandfather's garden with my digital SLR. The note cards were expensive ($2.95 each normally, with my order totaling $90.35 for 65 note cards after my contributor's discount and bulk pricing), but extremely high quality. I had the option of adding a pre-printed message on the inside or text on the outside, but opted to leave them blank to hand-write the thank-you messages. The order arrived within two days and I had the thank-you notes out less than a week after the party. The finished product can be viewed here: http://tinyurl.com/yhm7tvl
I was similarly satisfied with other custom product purchases. I made a coffee mug and a travel mug for my father using pictures of his homing pigeons. Both turned out exactly as I had envisioned when designing them. The images were very high quality; very crisp and vibrant. Again, the price was a bit steep; $32.95 with free shipping. It was well worth it, however, as my father loved them!
Selling Experience
Zazzle's business model is ingenious. The site provides a means for creative people to create products, without the hassle of starting their own company, finding suppliers, and implementing a process for manufacturing and shipping products. Users design whatever types of products they would like, which are then approved and displayed in their gallery. Zazzle does all of the hard work; marketing, manufacturing, shipping, and processing returns. Users design the item, set the price (the profit margin is adjustable) and post it for sale. I have also noticed many companies/smaller websites using Zazzle to create their own official store and merchandise.
The design process is very easy. Users upload their pictures or graphics, which are saved for future use on additional products. You can zoom in/out on the image and position it as desired. In many cases, you have several color options. If you choose to allow your customers to customize your products, they may select the color in some cases. The whole process is very simple, requiring you to add only a short description of the item, set the price, and choose appropriate product categories and keywords. Approval usually takes 12 hours to 2 days. In my experience, postage stamps take the longest to get approved, probably due to strict requirements from the United States Postal Service about what is appropriate for mailing.
Finished products remain in your gallery indefinitely, available for purchase just like any other online product. As I mentioned before, there are a lot of products on Zazzle, which makes it hard to have your products hold a visible position in the search results. This is especially problematic if you create products with overused keywords like "rose" or "hearts." It's more lucrative to create more unique products, though promoting your gallery and creating large numbers of products helps too.
When an item is purchased, the creator receives an email notification. The profit shows up in your account as "pending" for thirty days, in case any returns or exchanges need to be processed. After this time, the money in deposited into your Zazzle earnings account. Once you have earned a minimum of $25, you may withdraw the funds via paypal or by check. The earnings may be applied to Zazzle purchases at any time, even earnings under $25.
I have casually maintained a Zazzle gallery for two years. I primarily use pictures I've taken to create various products, most often postage stamps and mouse pads. I don't actively promote my products and only design new items a few times per year. Thus far, I have earned only about $15. I know more dedicated users who make a much larger amount and use it as a part-time income. My items center around common topics such as flowers and dogs, which is probably why I don't earn much. I consider my Zazzle earnings to be a little added bonus money earned on pictures that would otherwise just sit in my digital picture file. In the future, I may choose to pursue this income more seriously. For now, I'm very happy with my selling experience on the site.
Final Recommendation
If you're looking for a unique gift or to earn a little extra money, Zazzle.com is an excellent site. Just be prepared to devote a lot of time to browsing!
Recommended:
Yes
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noangels
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Member: Jamilynn
Location: Staten Island, NY USA
Reviews written: 226
Trusted by: 41 members
About Me:
So glad to almost be done with Christmas shopping!
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