As you enter into the busy holiday season, expanding into new sales channels may be the last thing on your mind. But the holidays can be a great time to tap into increased demand from shoppers, both online and offline. The following tips will help you open up new avenues for your business that could give your sales a boost during the holidays — and beyond.
Go Global
Make the most of seasonal demand by opening your shop to gift buyers around the globe. Be sure to set your shipping cutoff dates with your most far-flung shoppers in mind. Then, clearly communicate those dates in your Shop Policies and shipping information. To make up for longer delivery times, start promoting your holiday offerings to international shoppers earlier. Another tip? Include synonyms for styles and trends in different regions into your shop’s titles, tags and descriptions to help shoppers around the world find your shop. Read 3 Keys to Enticing International Shoppers for more advice on going global.
Set Up Shop at Holiday Markets
Participating in holiday markets is a great way to grow local awareness of your brand. Search for a market in your city, team up with nearby sellers or check out Etsy Local to see where other artisans are selling products in your area. Make lasting impressions on local buyers with your handmade products, an eye-catching booth and a newsletter sign-up sheet, along with business cards and other marketing materials directing them to your online Etsy shop. Selling in person is also a great way to get feedback on your products. If you're a seller based in the US, find out how the new Sell on Etsy Card Reader can help make selling in-person easier by letting you process payments at events and sync the sales with your online Etsy shop. Also, check out 5 Ways to Translate In-Person Events Into Online Sales and How to Balance Your Etsy Shop With In-Person Sales for more tips.
Research Wholesale Options
Retail buyers typically purchase seasonal items at least six months in advance, so it may be too late to pitch your holiday line. But you can use this time to research retailers who might be a good fit for future partnerships. Visit local retail stores and research their price points, products and clientele. The more you know about potential partners, the easier it will be to pitch your products to them successfully next holidays season. Get more advice on working with retailers in the Wholesale Guide for Etsy Sellers.
Get a Handle on Inventory
When you're managing multiple sales channels, keeping track of your inventory can be tough. With that in mind, we created a Multichannel Inventory Tracking Worksheet that will help you get a handle on your shop’s overall sales trends and manage your stock more easily. If you sell only through one channel, check out our Simple Inventory Worksheet. Please note that these files will download automatically. You may see a message from Microsoft Excel about automatic links. If you do, hit the "Ignore Links" button to open the worksheet. You can also view the worksheets as Google Sheets: Multichannel Inventory Tracking Worksheet and Simple Inventory Worksheet. To start editing your own copy, go to File > Make a copy.
Have you successfully expanded into new channels? Share your story and tips in the comments below!