The Reason I Opened An Etsy Shop for My Digital Illustrations As A Small Business Venture

It's going to be detailed, so grab a cup of coffee and sit comfortably.

Like all the other great (or bad) stories of 2020, my reason behind opening up my Etsy shop has a lot to do with the Pandemic. Just like the rest of the world.. I was initially very scared with the Covid Pandemic situation because it seemed like it would never end.

That is exactly what happened. I’m still stuck at home and even if I have a chance to go out, I’m too scared.

Technology, My Light In The Dark:

Unlike most people who have and are still suffering during this year because of their economic or medical concerns, I am comparatively privileged enough to own a laptop and an internet connection to be able to do this.

While I was always into reading and writing on my devices, I never realised that my laptop would become a boat for me to sail on during these mentally draining times. I am very inspired by the way technology has the potential to keep humans engaged with themselves, even if it has a bad side to it.

Also Read: "Does One Have To Be Good At Everything?" -The Lockdown Social Media Misery

It is also a matter of great relevance for me because I used to be a marketing professional. We all are aware about the perks of digital marketing in the current age, and I had chosen this as my career only a few months prior to when the pandemic hit.

But alas, when the pandemic hit, I lost my job as a marketer for a restaurant (since they thrive on social gatherings). I was scared for the loss of lives and economy more than I was about losing my job (yes, I belong to a well to do family).

Some time during the month of May, I started to get really bored of my schedule. It was getting extremely lethargic to do the same set of house chores.

Then on one fine day of May, I happened to pick up my laptop and started to draw a cartoon image of an animated series: “We Bare Bears” from Cartoon Network. It was very sudden and unplanned but the graphic turned out so cool!

It was just for the sake of doing something that my busy schedule could never allow me to do. Very soon, I began to think of ways to display it on my social media, since everyone was sharing something productive that they were doing.. (even if it was something as simple as making Dalgona Coffee!)

Meanwhile, I also decided to begin a music campaign to share my favourite indie music tracks from lesser known artists (something that I had wanted to do in last October but my job and inability to create good looking posts did not allow me to do).

Now when I say campaign, that is exactly what it was- a campaign implementing all over strategies that I had learnt as a digital marketing professional displayed to the virtual audience via a creative and unique execution (I was inspired by Travis Scott’s Fortnite concert that blessed us with an amazing track).

I posted on my Instagram regularly for 12 days. I named this campaign #12daysofindiemusic.

Here’s what the 12 posts comprised of-

• 12 digital illustrations (drawn by me, ofcourse), and

• 12 indie music tracks

Not only this, I also featured 2 of my singer friends within these 12 days as a part of the campaign.

See those 12 recreated images below-

(I started with recreating, now I make my own art. If you are recreating any pictures from other artists, always credit the original artist. In case they want you to take it down, respect their decision!)

I had learnt digital art as a beginner but it turned out to be so great that I couldn’t stop after those 12 days. So I continued creating illustrations for every single day even after that.

Very soon, I started receiving orders from people to draw custom artworks for them.

Months have passed by, I still draw and I absolutely love every minute of it. Today, I launched my Etsy shop as a small business venture and made 5 sales!

So essentially, I am writing my own product descriptions, doing the backend SEO and creating a mini brand for my creativity by generating revenue out of it!

Do you know why? Because I was bored? Nah! There’s more to it!

I used to do these same things for my clients as a marketer. But I was very undervalued, under-appreciated, not listened enough to AND underpaid!

(Check this link if you wish to read about one of my horrific experiences working for a company based in Indore)

I’m not sure if all of these efforts will pay me off in the future, but it’s worth a shot because I get to learn something new everyday. It’s definitely productive as well as related to my professional niche and there possibly is no harm to it.

I continue to focus on every aspect by myself. There's been so many learnings, so many fruitful failures.. I doubt if I could've learn all of this if I worked under someone else.

Check out my creative profile on Instagram to see how many experiments I continue to perform.

My bosses did not pay me good enough anyway. In case my venture succeeds, atleast these efforts & money would count as my own and not some rich ungrateful snob’s.

Check out my latest commissioned work-