How to Run a Sale on Etsy (Step-by-Step)
This guide explains how to run a sale on Etsy using the built‑in Sales & Discounts wizard. We will walk through every step and then show a faster workflow for sellers who run recurring promotions. If you searched for “etsy run a sale”, “etsy sales and discounts”, or “etsy sale automation”, you are in the right place.
Step-by-step: Etsy “Run a Sale” workflow
- Open Etsy Shop Manager and go to Marketing → Sales & Discounts. Click “Run a sale”. This is Etsy’s official wizard for creating a promotion and it applies to your shop or selected sections.
- Choose the sale type and duration. Many shops choose short promotions so listings show “ending soon”, which can boost urgency and conversions. Etsy lets you set start and end dates right inside the wizard.
- Name the sale and set the discount percentage. Use a simple, repeatable name so you can track results across different sale windows.
- Pick where the sale applies: whole shop or by section. If you sell in multiple categories, section-based sales let you promote specific collections without discounting everything.
- Review the summary and launch. Etsy will show the final settings and expected visibility across listings. Confirm and publish the sale.
Why sellers struggle with Etsy Sales & Discounts
The wizard is clear, but it is repetitive. Each time you want to run a short sale you must re-enter the same fields: discount, dates, and section selection. For shops that run weekly or daily promotions, this becomes an admin task rather than a growth task.
Another issue is timing. Long sales lose urgency, yet short sales require more manual work. Etsy sellers often forget to renew the sale when it ends, so the store goes back to full price with no visibility boost.
A practical middle ground is a series of short “ending soon” sales. That keeps urgency high, but it demands a system to schedule and repeat the setup.
Walkthrough notes that save time
When you are in the Sales & Discounts wizard, Etsy sometimes resets your listing filters. If you are running a section sale, type the section name and double‑check the selection list before moving to the next step.
If you test different discounts, keep a simple log with date, discount percent, and section. That lets you compare results after each short run and decide which discount delivers the best conversion rate.
Most Etsy shops see better results when the sale has a clear end. A series of short sales creates repeated “ending soon” signals without keeping your entire catalog discounted for weeks.
Quick checklist before you launch
- Confirm which listings or sections should be included.
- Pick a discount that matches your margins.
- Choose a short duration if you want the “ending soon” badge.
- Make sure your sale name is easy to reuse.
- Decide how often you plan to repeat the sale.
Tips for better Etsy sale performance
Keep your discount consistent for at least a few cycles so you can measure results. If you change the discount every time, it is hard to know what worked.
Run a whole shop sale when you need broad visibility and a section sale when you want to push a specific collection. This balance protects your margins while keeping promotions fresh.
Time your sale to match customer behavior. Many sellers see stronger results on weekends or right after new listings go live.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Launching a long sale and expecting urgency to remain high.
- Forgetting to renew the sale once it ends.
- Discounting every section when only one category needs momentum.
- Changing prices too often so it is hard to compare results.
Example schedule: 7-day short sale series
A simple strategy is to run a 7‑day series of daily sales. You set the discount once, then let the system create a new sale each day. This keeps the “ending soon” badge active while avoiding a single long promotion.
Do it in seconds with DailySale
DailySale is a Chrome extension that automates Etsy “Run a Sale”. Configure the sale once, choose whole shop or by section, and let the extension create a series of short daily sales for 1–30 days. It is the fastest way to run Etsy sales on autopilot without repeating the 4‑step wizard.
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