How to Create a Website for Your Handmade Jewelry in 5 Steps

If you’re ready to start selling your handmade jewelry online, the first thing you need to know is how to make a jewelry website that converts browsers into buyers.

Here’s the cold hard truth about how to sell jewelry online…

You could make the most beautiful handmade jewelry in the world, but if your website is lousy, your sales will be lousy, too.

Slapping together any old website is not enough to turn curious shoppers into buyers into lifelong fans. You need to have a beautifully and thoughtfully designed website that seamlessly guides your customers through the shopping and checkout process. 

Don’t let this discourage you, though.

It’s never been so easy to create a website to sell your jewelry – you don’t even need to pay a professional to do it for you.

Follow these 5 simple steps to create a jewelry website that gets your customers coming back again and again. 

Step #1: Pick the Right Website Platform for Your Handmade Jewelry Business

The first step to create your high-converting website is picking the right platform for your brand. 

There are numerous e-commerce platforms out there, and selecting one can be daunting, especially when you’re just starting out and you don’t know what to look for.

It can be tempting to pick the cheapest/free option and call it a day. However, this can end up hurting your business in the long run.

Here’s how to know which website platform to pick for your handmade jewelry business:

• Mobile optimization. More people are shopping on mobile devices than ever before. Your website needs to look good on a giant desktop monitor, a tiny cell phone screen, and everything in between.

• It’s user-friendly and customizable. You’ll always be updating your website with new products, deals, and content. Look for a platform that offers customizable templates  so you can easily change your website as needed.

• It will grow with you. The greatest drawback to free website platforms is that they have limitations and can often cheapen the brand and crush conversions. Investing upfront in a platform that has great functionality and can grow with your business will be worth it later on down the road.

I overwhelmingly recommend Shopify to entrepreneurs trying to create a website for selling jewelry. It’s the most robust e-commerce platform available. 

Even though it may be a bit more of an investment than other solutions, you can be sure that the website you build on Shopify will grow as your company does.

Also, lucky you, Flourish & Thrive has negotiated a free trial for new Shopify customers. Click here to sign up for your free trial!

Step #2: Create the Essential Website Assets for A Strong Jewelry Brand Identity

When customers make a purchase from you, they’re not just buying your jewelry. They’re buying the story you tell.

Having a strong brand identity is the key to creating loyal customers. It’s crucial to have your brand identity nailed down before you begin creating your website.

There are 5 key visual assets that will be present on every page of your website and tell your jewelry brand’s story.

• Logo. As the simplest representation of your brand, your logo should be easy to read, incorporate your brand colors and fonts, and show off your winning personality. 

• Color Palette. Every successful jewelry business has a simple color palette that makes the brand recognizable and memorable. 

• Brand Fonts. You’ll use distinct fonts for all the headings, subheadings, and body text on your website.

• Graphics. Custom brand graphics go a long way in adding a little flare to plain parts of your website.

• Photographs. Websites are a tool for visual communication, so the way you present your photos is very important. Your product shots, model shots, and lifestyle shots should all be in alignment with your jewelry brand’s overall vibe.

Your website should be a cohesive visual experience that your customers can connect with. If you haven’t created all of these brand elements for your jewelry business yet, I’d recommend you start gathering inspiration and making a mood board.

Step #3: Build the 5 Pages Every Jewelry Website Needs

When it comes to creating pages on your website, the possibilities are endless. However, there are 5 pages every jewelry website must have. You should perfect these before you worry about focusing on less important things like a blog or a press page.

Homepage: The very first page of your website is where you tease your customer with gorgeous images (with accompanying “calls to action”) and a beautifully presented brand. Try to keep it simple and guide the viewer effortlessly through the shopping experience.

About Page: Customers who seek out handmade jewelry do so because they like to have a deeper sense of the origins of the product. Your about page is an opportunity to create this connection with your Dream Client and help them understand what differentiates your brand from others.

Contact Page: A straightforward contact page reinforces to customers that you offer excellent customer service and they can feel confident purchasing on your website. Don’t be afraid to add a photo or two along with your necessary contact information.

Product Gallery: Your product gallery (also known as your main shopping page) is what your customers are really coming to your site for. Every other page is just there to lead them to your products. Don’t overthink it; keep it simple with consistent product images and minimal information. 

Individual Product Listings: Your individual product listing page for each piece of jewelry should be fairly simple, as well. Make sure to use clear photos of the product and don’t overwhelm the buyer with information.

This is only an overview of these 5 pages; each one warrants a blog post of its own.

If you want to take the guesswork out of designing your jewelry website, Flourish & Thrive Academy has you covered. Our Websites that Sell Bundle will guide you through each page of your website step-by-step.

Step #4: Set Up an Email List Opt-In (or Several)

You might not think of email marketing as a foundational step to creating a jewelry brand website, but it’s actually one of the most crucial elements.

In fact, your email list is potentially the single most important tool in your marketing toolbox. It’s not sexy like the latest social media app, but behind the scenes, your email list is doing the heavy lifting by living in your customers' email inboxes and keeping your brand front of mind. 

So, how do you get this magical tool to start working for you? First you need to create an “email list opt-in,” which will pop up on your Homepage. Better yet, create several opt-ins, and scatter them throughout your website. 

Here are some examples of email list opt-ins that would be perfect on a jewelry website… 

• On your Homepage, you offer an opt-in that promises the customer a free digital style guide when she joins your VIP Circle.

• On your About page, your opt-in is a quiz where a customer is paired with her “Perfect Piece” at the end of the quiz.

• In a blog post about a new collection, you offer an opt-in with a 10% off discount which can be used on a piece from the new collection. 

A strong opt-in will be on-brand and incentivize browsers to sign up for your email list. Usually you do this by providing something of value to them.

Offering customers a discount for signing up is a tried-and-true option, but think about offering some other types of incentives as well, such as a style guide, or a jewelry cleaning guide.

Step #5: Test Your Jewelry Website’s User Experience on Multiple Devices

Once your website is all set up, there are still a few things you need to do before you can unveil it to the world.

First things first, pat yourself on the back. Creating a website from scratch is no small feat, and the finish line is in sight!

But before you can start promoting your snazzy new website, you need to do some user experience testing.

You don’t want to assume that your website is “easy to use” without testing it thoroughly.

You can start the process on your own by proofreading all your copy and making sure all the links, buttons, and photos are clickable.

Then it’s time for the real moment of truth. Invite friends, family, and maybe colleagues to test out your website and give you unvarnished feedback. Your “test audience” should give you feedback on everything from designs, to functionality, to navigation, to the shopping experience. 

Give your test audience specific tasks to complete as they navigate your website, but don’t show them how to do anything or lead them on. In this way, you’ll get honest feedback about what’s working and what’s not.

Once you’ve completed these 5 steps, it’s time to start showing off your brand new jewelry website.

Remember, it’s not enough to just have a website, it needs to be constructed in a way that encourages customers to actually buy from you. 

That’s why we created our Websites that Sell Bundle.

Written by jewelry designers for jewelry designers, it includes everything you need to know about SEO, web design, email marketing, and more that will help you boost your online conversions and turn your website into a jewelry-selling machine.

So what are you waiting for, m’dear? Get out there and make a killer website!