Field guide № 01 · for Etsy poster sellers

Turn the prints you already sell into digital downloads.

The same artwork, re-formatted into the ratios a download buyer needs, listed as an instant download beside your physical poster. A second, near-100%-margin income stream off work you've already designed and validated.

Who this is for: you sell physical posters or wall art on Etsy and want the digital version too, without the file-prep headache. (It runs the other way round as well.)

Inside this guide
  1. 01Why add a digital twinSell the art twice
  2. 02The six ratiosGive every frame
  3. 03The ZIP & info slideSave your reviews
  4. 04The listing & priceTitle, tags, $4–6
  5. 05The worries, answeredCannibalisation & more
01

Why add a digital twin

You already made the art. Sell it twice.

A digital-download version of a print you already sell is a second income stream off work you've already designed, photographed, and validated with real sales. The riskiest question, will anyone want this, is answered before you start.

Near-100% margin

No cost to make

No printing, no shipping, no print-on-demand cut, no stock. The file delivers itself the moment someone buys.

Sells while you sleep

Instant delivery

No fulfilment window, no "where's my order?" messages. It ships itself, 3am on a Sunday included.

Different buyer

Rarely cannibalises

The download buyer and the framed-print buyer are usually two different people. You capture the want-it-now one you were losing anyway.

The one rule before you start

Don't twin your whole catalogue. Start with 5–10 designs that already sell as prints. Proven physical demand is your best predictor of digital demand. Add more once the first few earn.

02

The ratios

Give every frame. You can't know theirs.

A download buyer prints at home, at a local shop, or through a service, in whatever frame they already own. So you include every common ratio: the same artwork, reflowed. These six cover almost every US and EU / UK frame. Export each at 300 DPI.

2:3
4×6 → 24×36″
3:4
6×8 → 18×24″
4:5
8×10 · 16×20″
5:7
5×7 · 10×14″
11:14
11×14″
ISO A
A5 → A1
2:3The most common poster ratio (US).
3:4Standard mid-size prints.
4:5Very common ready-made frame.
5:7Small / gift size.
11:14Popular US off-the-shelf frame.
ISO AUK / EU standard. Don't skip it.

Do this, and only this

Deliver JPG (opens everywhere; add PDF only if you like), one file per ratio. Design your master big enough to stay sharp at the largest print: render the 2:3 at about 7200×10800 px so it holds up at 24×36″ / A1.

Name files so the buyer can't get it wrong: 2x3_ratio_prints-4x6-to-24x36.jpg

03

What the buyer downloads

The ZIP, and the one image that saves your reviews.

Inside the ZIP

  • One high-res 300 DPI file per ratio (the six), clearly named.
  • A short "How to print" note: sizes each file supports, that it's 300 DPI, best paper (matte / satin photo), and that colours vary by screen and printer.
  • A line that the purchase is personal use, no reselling.

The info slide, non-negotiable

Add one image to your listing photos (slot 2 or 3) saying, in plain words, that this is a download. Cheapest thing you'll make; does the most work.

1 / 600+ confused buyers, for a seller who labels every listing this way. Skip the slide and it becomes your top source of one-star reviews.
LISTING PHOTO · 2 of 8Terracotta and magenta aura gradient print in a frame, marked as a digital download
This is a digital download
↓  No physical item is shipped
✓  6 high-res files · 2:3 3:4 4:5 5:7 11×14 A-sizes
⎙  Print at home, a shop, or online · 300 DPI
✎  Colours may vary between screens & printers

↑ your buyer sees this before they click buy

Rule of thumb

If a buyer could possibly mistake it for a physical print, the info slide isn't optional. Make it unmissable and you'll spend your time selling, not apologising.

04

The listing & the price

Title, tags, description, price.

Title formula

[Subject / style] Printable Wall Art, [descriptor] Digital Download, [room / aesthetic] Print

Description — copy, paste, fill the brackets

★ DIGITAL DOWNLOAD — nothing is shipped. You print it yourself. ★ WHAT YOU GET (instantly, after purchase): • 6 high-resolution files, 300 DPI, every common ratio: 2:3 · 3:4 · 4:5 · 5:7 · 11x14 · ISO A-sizes (A5–A1) • Crisp from 4x6 in up to 24x36 in / A1 HOW TO PRINT: • At home, a local print shop, or online • Matte or satin photo paper prints best • Colours may vary between screens & printers TERMS: • Personal use only — please don't resell the files • No physical product is sent

The listing at a glance

Pink and orange aura gradient printable wall art listing preview
Pink Orange Aura Gradient Printable Wall Art, Warm Abstract Sunset Poster, Maximalist Boho Digital Download
$5.00 · instant download
aura gradient printpink wall artprintable wall artdigital downloadsunset gradient artmaximalist decorA1 A2 A3 print

Fill all 13 tags · long-tail · ≤20 chars · mix style + room + ratio words.

$4–6Price it here. Too cheap reads as low quality; too dear kills the instant-and-affordable appeal. Keep your prints at their premium: different buyer, different price.

Watch this one

Etsy's volume discounts ("buy 3+, get X% off") apply shop-wide. Run one for physical prints and it quietly eats your digital margin too. Check your active promotions before you list downloads.

05

The worries, answered

The four things sellers always ask.

Won't it cannibalise my prints?

Rarely. The download buyer and the framed-print buyer are usually different people. You're capturing the want-it-now, price-sensitive buyer you were losing.

Won't I get confused-buyer reviews?

Not if you use the info slide (section 03). That's the entire job it does.

Won't support blow up?

Usually the opposite. Instant, clearly-labelled files with a print guide generate less support than physical orders, not more.

Won't people just resell it?

The licence text sets the terms, and per-unit value is low enough that the upside far outweighs the rare bad actor. Don't let it stop you.

The shortcut

Or point one tool at a print you already sell.

Everything in this guide, the six ratios, the ZIP, the info slide, the draft listing, is exactly what twinprint builds for you. It re-formats your existing design; you review and approve every word before anything publishes. It works in reverse too: a download becomes a print-on-demand twin.

Join the founding-seller waitlist
Early access · founding-seller pricing · no card required · not launched yet
Connects withEtsyPrintifyPrintful

You don't need twinprint to use this guide. Everything here works by hand; it just takes an afternoon per design instead of a click. Either way: start with your five best-sellers this week.

Join the waitlist →