The holiday season is a crucial time for online retailers. If you want your holiday shop (and business) to thrive during this festive season, follow these five tips!
Hey, y’all! If you have been following this site for a while, you probably know that the holiday season is when we sell the most wreaths of the year. The same holds true for many Craftpreneurs because this is the time of year when people are wanting to decorate their homes and buy gifts for friends and family.
And that’s why many Craftpreneurs hardly put any effort or planning into their holiday shops. But it’s a mistake that will leave money on the table and cost you profit.
I have a little tough love for you. Even though you are a Craftpreneur with a holiday shop filled with items ready to buy, that doesn’t mean that sales will necessarily just start rolling right in. There are certain things you need to do to maximize sales potential from your holiday shop this holiday season.
And I’m going to share with you my top tips for maximizing those holiday sales!
Tip: If you’re looking for more online shop guidance, check out Guide To Starting An Etsy Shop, How To Promote An Etsy Shop Like A Pro, and 5 Top Etsy Seller Mistakes (And How To Avoid Them!)!
5 Holiday Shop Tips For A Successful Holiday Season
Like many Craftpreneurs, we’ve had to do some experimenting and walk through some failures in order to learn some important lessons for building and running a successful online business.
One of my goals is to share with you some of those lessons we’ve learned the hard way to help make your journey to living a Maker’s life a little easier.
Here are some of the biggest, most valuable lessons we’ve learned about successfully selling in our online holiday shop during the holiday season.
1. Stock Up Your Holiday Shop With Holiday-Themed Items
Ok, here’s where you need to think like a customer. Starting around Labor Day, what do you think your customers are searching for? Do they want cute everyday designs? No!
Beginning in early September, customers are looking for seasonal items. At first, it’ll be fall-related, then it’ll quickly shift into Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.
This time of year is fast and furious when it comes to having items available for each holiday. But the reality is that if you don’t have them available in your holiday shop, you won’t get any sales.
That’s why we start building up our holiday season inventory in MAY, y’all! We aren’t willing to risk losing out on those great holiday shop sales. If May sounds super early to start working on holiday-themed items, check out our tried and true Craft Calendar to plan your craft production schedule.
2. Promote Your Holiday Shop
Who is going to visit your holiday shop if they don’t know about it? No one.
If you have a hard time promoting yourself, I get it. I did, too, at first. Then I learned to just remind myself that I was simply working to get the word out to potential customers that my holiday shop existed. From there, it’s up to them to check it out and find all the great items I have to offer.
But, if I don’t promote my holiday shop, no one knows about it to check it out for the holiday season.
Take advantage of social media and other online platforms (ex: Etsy, marketplaces, etc.) to get the word out and increase website traffic to increase sales.
3. Get Creative With Product Descriptions And Packaging
Remember how I mentioned that holiday sales won’t just roll in by themselves? Well, that’s because there’s such a huge demand for holiday items that there are LOTS of online holiday shops to provide competition.
If that sounds like a deterrent to you, push those thoughts away because these tips will help you stand out from the crowd, so you drive more sales.
Speaking of standing out from the crowd, your product descriptions and packaging are the way to do that. Take the time to get creative with how you describe your product. Always keep your ideal customer in mind as you do this so that you appeal to what they want/need.
Also, it’s in your best interest to spend a little time learning how to optimize your Etsy listing with SEO basics. SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization, and it’s basically the process of describing your product in a way that lets Etsy customers find you in their searches.
4. Ship Orders Promptly And Pack Them Securely
In today’s crazy busy world, one of the things that often gets sacrificed is customer service. By consistently providing amazing high-quality customer service, you’ll stand out from the rest of the crowd.
That means that once you make a sale, you are more likely to have repeat customers who come back to you for your excellent delivery and service! And something that seasoned Craftpreneurs know is that it’s easier (and faster) to sell to repeat customers than it is to sell to new customers.
Ship your orders out quickly and do everything in your power to make sure they arrive in perfect condition. Before you know it, you’ll reap the rewards by building customers for life.
5. Thank Your Customers For Their Business
In addition to poor customer service, another unfortunate trend I’ve noticed in the online business world is that customers are just treated like a number or a sale. Sellers often don’t take the time to really thank and show their appreciation for their customers.
Well, here in the South, that’s still part of our culture. And because we extend that culture (and sincere gratitude) to our customers, we stand out from the rest of the crowd. That leads to repeat customers who stay loyal to our products and our brand. And that helps us sell more during the holiday season.
Maximize Your Holiday Shop Sales!
By following these five essential holiday shop tips, you’ll be well on your way to a successful holiday season for your online shop!
Remember to keep your inventory updated with festive items, promote yourself on social media, get creative with your product descriptions and packaging, ship orders promptly and securely, and don’t forget to thank your customers! They’ll be sure to remember your thoughtfulness and great customer service when they’re making their holiday shopping list next year.
If you want more inspiration and guidance on running your own wreath business, check out these other posts:
- Tips For Building Your Business
- How To Be Authentic In Business
- How To Price Handmade Items And Actually Make Money
- Small Business Budget Template 101: How To Create Your Budget
If you have any questions about this process, please leave a comment below or post your comment in our How To Make Wreaths Facebook Group.
We’d love to hear your ideas or feedback! If you need more help pricing your wreaths, we have a full detailed lesson all about pricing in our Business Coaching Group.
If you are interested in more info on learning how to sell wreaths, how to make wreaths, where to buy supplies, and being in a community of like-minded crafters, check out our Creative Coaching Subscription Group.
Just pin these holiday shop tips to save this helpful information for the upcoming holiday season.
If you love to craft, check out our Eat. Sleep. Craft. Repeat. t-shirts and click on the picture below!
