It’s really easy to apply to sell on Makers Market. Just scroll all the way down to the bottom of any Makers Market page, and follow the links under ‘Sell on Makers Market’
Makers Market is a curated marketplace, meaning we try to pick sellers and products we think our audience will enjoy (and buy!) – so not every seller will be approved. If this happens to you, it’s nothing personal – we might like your work a lot, but just not think it’s a good fit for the marketplace.
We made the video below to walk you through the store application process.
Since Makers Market is a curated marketplace, the editors and staff of MAKE will review makers and creations with an eye to what will appeal to our audience.
While our criteria are admittedly subjective, we’re looking for products that inspire hands-on experimentation and learning; primarily those involving an element of science or technology. We also would like to see tools (even used tools), toys, materials, books, and art that inspire an appreciation for resourcefulness and sustainability.
One of the most important criterion is your capacity for and commitment to community development. We’re looking for makers who will help to recruit community to the market and who will use the Makers Market blogging and social engagement tools to share ideas, engage customers, and entertain guests.
For example, sellers who have an interesting story and are willing to share it with the World in their profile get extra points with us. Sellers who embed a video to tell the marketplace about a new product they’ve added or project they’re working on will get several gold stars and a smiley face from the Makers Market crew!
When the MAKE crew began developing the Makers Market concept, we shared what we were up to with our good friends at Boing Boing. They totally grocked the concept, and so we decided to collaborate around the curation of the marketplace.
And so…at great hazard to life and limb, the editors of Boing Boing have scoured the most exotic corners of our vast and wondrous planet, from her inky ocean floors to her highest peaks, bringing back to you this most extraordinary collection of astounding oddities, curious novelties, and sensational artifacts, available at prices that confound our competitors and incite jealousy amongst the most intrepid collectors of natural and manmade marvels. You’ll find these products showcased in the Boing Boing Bazaar.
If you are invited to participate in Makers Market, the Boing Boing crew will review your product when it goes live to determine if it’s a good fit for the Boing Boing Bazaar. Want to nominate your product or someone else’s for inclusion in the Bazaar? Email bazaar@boingboing.net
Congratulations! From this point forward, everything you do on Makers Market will be managed through your dashboard.
To get to your dashboard, simply go to Makers Market and click ‘sign in’ at the top right. If you are already signed in, click ‘dashboard.’
Before any of your products are listed, you need to complete 3 steps:
1) Complete your store setup. See this FAQ for more information.
2) Make sure your PayPal account is linked and set up correctly. See this FAQ for more information.
3) List at least 1 product. See this FAQ for more information.
4) Enter your billing information. In the dashboard, go to Account > Billing. Or, if you’re logged in, this link should work, too.
Also, we suggest you think about the following:
*Avatar – Please do not activate a new store without uploading an Avatar. Picture/ Logo/meaningful symbol. Something distinctive. Do this in your dashboard, under ‘Profile.’
*About – Tell your story. Please don’t simply write 2 or 3 lines and refer people to another website “for more information.”
*Blog – Do a welcome blog posting when you first open your store. Announce new products. Embed photos and video in your posts
*Product Descriptions – Please include complete, helpful and thoughtful product descriptions. Don’t simply refer people to your other website for more complete information, or say ’here’s another ___’ While you have read all of your product listings, a customer has not. Always assume this is the only product they’ve seen, and give them the information they need.
*Product Photographs – Include at least two photographs and one video for products.
*FAQ – There are probably things about every product that shoppers want to know. Particularly matters like shipping, features, compatibility, etc. Do an FAQ!!
There are two costs associated with operating a Makers Market store: commissions, and monthly fees. There are no item listing fees, and listings do not expire.
Every sale is assessed an 8.5% commission. Shipping charges are not counted toward calculating these commissions.
Every seller starts out with a one month, no-fees grace period during which only sales commissions are charged. This way, it’s a chance for sellers to test Makers Market with no risk. We only make money when you do.
Beginning in the second month of service, all sellers are assessed a monthly fee of $15, which goes to support our hosting, marketing, and curating costs. A minimum monthly commission of $17 also begins to apply at this time. If you’re generating at least $200 of sales a month, the minimum commission will not affect you at all, because 8.5% x $200 = $17.
If you generate less than $200 of sales in a month, you’ll be charged the difference between your commissions and $17. So, for example, if you have $120 of sales (8.5% x $120 = $10.20 commission) one month, you’ll be charged an additional $17 – $10.20 = $6.80 to bring your commissions for that month up to $17.
All billing dates are calculated based on your store approval date, which is the date we send the e-mail acknowledging approval of your seller application. Both commissions and fees are billed at the end of the month in which they accrue. On your credit card statement, the charge will appear as “Makers Market” or our parent company, “O’Reilly Media, Inc.”
If your store application has been approved, you can see details on your commissions and fees in your dashboard under Account > Billing.
At checkout, Makers Market customers pay you the full amount of their order directly, via PayPal.
Yes, But…
We’re looking for sellers who will actively engage shoppers within Makers Market as opposed to simply sending them to other sites to “learn more” about the seller or their products.
We’ve built some really nice tools and features into Makers Market to enable sellers to blog, embed videos, upload photographs, publicize events they’re involved with, etc. One of the curatorial criteria we apply when screening prospective sellers is whether or not we think the seller will avail themselves of these tools. We think this will make for a more interesting marketplace.
So we ask our sellers to please use non Makers Market URLs sparingly, and if you do, don’t use it as a means of publishing content on Makers Market.
Fair Enough?
Good! We like that you’re thinking about Makers Market. If you’re an authorized seller, log in and check out our sellers only FAQ
You can also get in touch with Heather by sending a message here
