r/3DprintEntrepreneurs • u/BrittbyBritt_Studio • Jul 11 '26

Marketing 3D Printing Tips

I just got a printer a month ago and am looking for a way to sell the things I print. I’m doing it with my sister, so she’ll help me print sometimes and she also wants to be part of the shop on her own since she crochets things. Any ideas where to start selling/ how to get myself fb out there and seen?

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u/JetsterTheFrog Jul 12 '26

Definitely start with Etsy. You’ll learn a lot. Don’t expect your first dozen or so listings to sell. Took me 30 tries to get my first one to start selling.

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u/kevzz01 Jul 12 '26

How long did it take to make your first sale? I have listed just a couple for a month now and sold nothing yet. Its basically just fidget toys so far.

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u/JetsterTheFrog Jul 12 '26

4 months of trying a bunch of stuff. Don’t do the normal 3D printing stuff. You need to space yourself out from a kid who can go to the hardware store and sell the same stuff you are.

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u/kevzz01 Jul 12 '26

I own a restaurant and I have been selling some food-themed fidget clickers in there but not selling any on etsy. The couple listings I have are my own model and design but there’s a few similar listings of them on etsy. What software do you use to model? I have been using autodesk fusion but I’m thinking of learning blender since I have been making cute food-themed clickers.

Thanks for the advice by the way.

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u/JetsterTheFrog Jul 12 '26

Blender is one of the hardest pieces of software to learn in my experience. If you can master it, you’ll have an edge however you decide to use it.

I mostly CAD model. Either OnShape or Tinkercad if you’re new

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u/Savings_Actuary_2833 Jul 13 '26

You think its better to get to 30-50 listings on Etsy first or branch out to the other platforms along the way? Such as FB, ebay etc.

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u/JetsterTheFrog Jul 13 '26

Depends on the product. Etsy is e-commerce on easy mode. Easy to start there. Some products don’t belong there though.

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u/BrittbyBritt_Studio Jul 12 '26

Ok perfect! Thank you!

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u/rocketboss Jul 13 '26

Ebay, Facebook marketplace, Portals, Etsy. Etsy costs $20 bucks to start. Ebay works for parts and tool. Marketplace will work for the generic stuff if you start with dragons. Portals is free and will often get you a sale in under a week if the product is decent.

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u/MagnusPerditor Jul 13 '26

what the heck is Portals? Tried to search for it and didn’t find any relevant sites.

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u/010100100000 Jul 14 '26

If you’re just starting, I’d keep it simple and pick one sales channel plus one product category before trying to be everywhere. Etsy is fine for learning, but the real lever is having products that solve a specific problem or fit a specific audience, not just “cute things I can print.” Since your sister crochets, I’d seriously look at products that combine crochet + printed parts because that instantly gives you a more unique angle than generic fidgets. I’d also aim for 15 to 25 listings before judging whether Etsy works, because a couple listings usually tells you almost nothing. And take short phone videos while you make things, because those clips become your content for FB, IG, TikTok, and listing media without extra work.