From Etsy’s Merchandising Desk: January 2012

marymary

Story by marymary

Published on Jan 04, 2012 in Seller Handbook

Photo by milesoflight

January not only brings a new calendar year, but a fresh perspective. Our aim with Etsy merchandising is to create a healthy balance between promotions for traditional holidays, seasonal changes, cultural events, and lifestyle trends. If you’d like to stay engaged with the impending merchandising themes, use them in your own artistic voice as you add to your shop. They can be translated in your listings, photos, shop announcements, descriptions, tags, titles, sales promotions and more.

Promotional Opportunities for Sellers:

  1. Shopping Pages: We are delighted to introduce four new ways to shop and explore Etsy: Fashion, Home and Garden, Kids, and Valentine’s Day. These new pages are a blend of curated content and category-based searches, changing frequently to represent trends in the Etsy marketplace and beyond. Following appropriate guidelines for tagging, use matching keywords on your relevant item listings to appear within search results linking from these new pages.
  2. Treasury tip: Create and label treasuries fitting seasonal themes for a chance to have your collection featured on Etsy’s homepage or linked from promotional emails and new shopping pages.

 

Stay Engaged in January
Our central merchandising themes will focus on fresh starts, the new year, Valentine’s Day, and winter solutions. While emphasis will be placed upon the seasonality of the Northern Hemisphere, it’s important to remember that the Southern Hemisphere is in summer months. Maintaining seasonally appropriate options year-round is good practice for boosting international and overall sales.

  • New Year: Fresh starts, resolutions, inspirational quotes, new projects, goal setting, getting organized, fitness gear and fashion, year of the dragon (Lunar New Year), 2012 calendars and planners.
  • Valentine’s Day: Think love, hearts, Cupid and his arrow, red, pink, and white. Primary areas of focus for this holiday will include gifts for her, gifts for him, gifts for kids, jewelry, lingerie, love notes and cards, personalization, fashion, sweets & recipes, parties & decor, gag gifts, anti-Valentine, engagements & weddings, flowers & vases, and DIY ideas.
  • Winter Fashion: Heavy materials, colors, and layers in the categories of clothing, accessories, and jewelry. More specifically: key basics, layering elements, winter accessories and outerwear components, thick fabrics and rich leathers, jewel tones, vintage boots and heavyweight all-weather bags. Tagging Tip: Try adding the term “fashion” to appropriate items to reach a broader shopping audience.
  • Winter: Home decor, nesting, entertaining, food and recipes, seasonal indoor and outdoor activities, fashion, woodland motifs and nature’s symbols.
  • Weddings: Winter weddings are currently underway; take advantage of seasonally-themed gift ideas, guest attire, as well as any final details that last-minute buyers may still need to purchase. Don’t forget to stay a step ahead for brides currently planning and shopping for 2012 spring and summer weddings.
  • Australia Day: The official national day of Australia, which has become the country’s biggest annual day of celebration. Think summer holidays, relaxation, events, and parties.
  • Seasonal Escapes: Think seasonal destinations including beaches, cruises, and ski resorts along with appropriate luggage, travel gear, fashion, and gadgets.
  • Birthdays: January’s birthstone is garnet and astrological signs are Capricorn and Aquarius (Dec 22 – Jan 20: Capricorn, Jan 21 – Feb 19: Aquarius).

 

January’s Trends:

  • 2012 Calendars: Wall, desk, pocket, multifunctional and creative new styles.
  • New Year: Fitness gear, storage and organizational solutions, year of the dragon.
  • Valentine’s Day: Red, pink, white, hearts, lockets, Cupids, arrows, love, anti-Valentines.
  • Personalization: Gift ideas with monograms, initials, text, numbers, zodiac, constellations, portraits, custom labels, stamps, fingerprints and family trees.
  • Gadget Accessories: Creative gadget cases, docking stations and accessories, especially geared around the iPhone 4S, iPad and Kindle Fire.
  • Wizardry, magic, owls, and mysticism with the DVD release of the final chapter of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.
  • Moustaches & Beards: They’re still here and going strong.
  • Weddings: Handmade and vintage variations on the wedding dress, engagement rings, creative invitations, save the dates, signage and favors are on the rise.
  • Fashion: Winter accessories, vintage boots and patterned leggings. Sheer layers, lace sleeves, brocade, trenches, tailored jackets and blazers. Bright solids paired with black, platform pumps, cocktail rings, tribal and native references.
  • Culinary Trends: DIY culinary kits are on the rise. Classic cocktails, home brewing, beer and wine accessories, herb infusions and kits, garden to table.
  • Designer Vintage: Authentic fashion, collectibles, bikes, and auto accessories.
  • Letters, Numbers, and Symbols: Large vintage signage letters, letterpress blocks, monogram housewares, and typewriter keys.
  • Natural History: Woodland forest themes and animals, namely birds, owls, squirrels, hedgehogs, chipmunks, bunnies, butterflies, feathers, nests, eggs, acorns, leaves, trees, branches, woodgrain, and natural colors.
  • Lockets, secret hiding places, skeleton keys, arrows, diamonds, paper cuts, silhouettes, fortune cookies, wishbones, constellations, fortune telling.
  • Large scale vintage and handmade paper maps, botanical and anatomy charts.
  • Upcycled lights, lamps, exposed bulbs, and chandeliers.
  • Vintage cameras, especially Polaroids with film.
  • Bike caddies, baskets, and creative accessories.
  • Cottage chic decor and accessories
  • Video game-inspired references
  • Writable chalkboard surfaces
  • Wall and laptop decals
  • All things steampunk
  • QR codes
  • Mermaids
  • Peacocks

If you make items that would fit well with the themes outlined, try stocking up and listing them in advance to take advantage of potential shipping deadlines and site features. Do you already have items in your shop that meld well? That’s great! Now it’s time to revisit those items to make sure your tags, titles and descriptions reflect keywords that shoppers might be looking for during this time of year. This is also a great opportunity to revamp your item photography with a new look. Check out some great how-to’s for item photography to get started. For those of your who enjoy making Treasury lists, we’ll be looking to highlight lists that interpret these themes in a creative and cohesive way throughout the site. Please tag your treasuries accordingly.

Upcoming Dates to Remember

  • January is known as: National Blood Donor Month, National Hobby Month, & Hot Tea Month.
  • January 1: New Year’s Day
  • January 2: Berchtoldstag (Switzerland)
  • January 6: Epiphany, Three Kings Day
  • January 6: Sherlock Homes born (UK)
  • January 15: Golden Globe Awards
  • January 16: Martin Luther King Day
  • January 16 – 29: Australian Open, the Grand Slam of Asia Pacific
  • January 18 – 22 Men’s fashion week (FW), Paris (2012)
  • January 19:  Edgar Allan Poe’s birthday
  • January 21: National Hugging Day (UK)
  • January 18 – 22 Haute Couture FW, Paris (2012)
  • January 23: Chinese New Year (Dragon)
  • January 23: National Pie Day (UK)
  • January 25: Foundation Day (Brazil)
  • January 25: Robbie Burns Day (Scotland)
  • January 26: Australia Day
  • January 26: Republic Day (India)

Have a date to remember that you don’t see on the list? Let us know in the comments section below.

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