Etsy Shop Help: Dressing Up Your Shop For The Holidays

This contributor post was written by Genevieve of LightBox SF

It may only be October, but many of you are already in a tizzy over prepping for the holidays. While I dont really want to add more to your to-do list I would like to share some easy ways to give your shop a little makeover for the holiday season. Whether you sell through Etsy or directly through your own website you can easily implement these simple tweaks over the next few weeks.

About Page

Your about page should help you connect with your customers not be a resume. I challenge you to read your own from your customers point of view. Do you get a sense of why you love your work or what inspires you? Buyers dont purchase an item they purchase an experience. When selling online the best experience you can give your customers is a story to retell or connect with.

Quick Fix: Add a sentence or two that tells the customer what difference your product will make in their life. Will they be more stylish, will they feel more confident, will their hands now be extra toasty?

Major Overhaul: Rewrite your about statement to appeal to your customers point of view. Share personal anecdotes and explain your inspirations. Tell them what need or want your product fulfills. They dont care about degrees or areas of special study, your customers want to get a sense of who you are and feel confident youre the right one to buy from.

Item Titles and Tags

Whether you sell through Esty or your own website your titles and tags are how a buyer finds your item. Titles need to be descriptive and enticing, while tags should be as relative and specific as possible.

Quick Fix: Update your titles to make sure youre using words that a buyer would use. You may name your items after flowers or characters, but add in Sterling Silver Necklace so that you can be found. Try to use three words that hit the important features of the item.

Major Overhaul: Answer as many of these questions as you can in both your title and tags: What is it (as specific as possible)? Who will want it? What materials are used? What relevant techniques are used? What color(s)? What style or trend does it fit into?

Item Descriptions

Its ok to be a salesman, people want to details and they want to be convinced. The description is no place for subtlety.

Quick Fix: Your first sentence needs to grab your buyers attention. Start all your descriptions with the most important detail, the problem you solve, the material you use, the style trend it fits into, etc.

Major Overhaul: After youve sucked them in you need to get to the details quick. Lay out everything the customer would want to know, size, shape, color, materials, uses, etc. Use “I” statements as often as possible and be specific when describing details. Paint a picture the buyer can imagine, how exactly would they use the item, who is the type of person who would like this item. Remember they may be buying for someone else.

Put a few of these quick tweaks into action and your shop will be even more enticing this holiday season.

image credit: Yarn Wreaths by Christopher and Tia

Genevieve Robertson is a photographer, writer, thinker and co-founder of Lightbox SF. She helps makers, artists, and crafters brand their businesses by telling their stories and embracing what makes them unique.