Yep, It is that time of year! For you crafty folks, it is time to get your Christmas listings up in your Etsy shop! (i know....groan)
Believe it or not, people are beginning to window shop and planning their holiday buying. And, there are even people shopping, I have had sales of holiday items already. The sooner you get your listings up and available- the better your holiday sales will be! By listing at this time of year - you begin to collect views, favorites and SEO.
The other advantage of listing early is that you have time to take good pictures, correctly tag your items to optimize the potential of being seen. By tackling this task now, you will not be caught with your pants down during the holiday rush!
You may also want to consider dedicating one of your Etsy sections to Christmas themed items (if you have them) . If you do not have holiday/christmas items- you may want to take a little time to think about adding a few. For example, if you knit, maybe incorporate some snowflakes, whites, silver, royal blues and reds into some of your items. Get those creative juices flowing and see how you can make a few items that fit with the holiday theme- use Santa's, Reindeer, Stars, Snowmen, Snow Flakes, Elves, Trees, Poinsettia, Holly or any other traditional holiday motifs. You want to be able to take advantage of the popular holiday tags, even if it is one or two items.
I have also noticed that Pinterest is really hopping with Christmas items- so, list your items and create a holiday board and pin some of your items to the boards.
You could also create a coupon to encourage early Holiday purchases- for example you could run it for the month of October.
And don't forget- get stocked up on your supplies- just as we get busy during the holidays- so do many of your suppliers and the post office! Get your stuff now, so you are scrambling at the last minute and waiting for your much needed items to arrive! And you also alleviate the possibility of needed items being out of stock! (happened to me before) Also, check your supply of packaging supplies such as envelopes, labels, packing materials etc. Ordering early can also help you spread your cash out over a couple of months- so, you are not having to put out large amounts of cash at one time. Also be sure that you have plenty of business cards!!
I make 60% of my Etsy sales in the months of November and December- so it is super important for me to be organized and ready to go! It is a very busy and stressful time and I have learned from experience- the earlier I get ready- the smoother things seem to go. (well, as smooth as they can!)
If you happen to be a very busy shop- this would also be a good time of year to pre-make some items that you know are big sellers. You also might want to look into lining up some temporary help for the holidays- I not only have my regular assistant lined up- I also have some backup help ready just "in case".
I just finished re-designing my Christmas ornaments and will work on photos and getting them listed this week! I will also start making quantities of them, a little at a time- so, by the time the holidays come around- I will have some stock made and ready to ship!!
One last note- the holidays are also a good time to clean house- if you have some items that are NOT selling so well- discount them- take advantage of the massive amounts of shoppers that will be online- and you could possibly move some inventory while giving someone a great deal! Try to have a nice mix of price points in your shop- to appeal to a wider audience.
I hope you have fun getting ready and take the opportunity to really amp up your game!
Paula
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