From Etsy’s Merchandising Desk: July 2012

Etsy.com handmade and vintage goods
marymary

Story by marymary

Published on June 28, 2012 in Seller Handbook

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 upcoming merchandising themes, use your own artistic voice to translate them into shop listings, photos, shop announcements, descriptions, tags, titles, sales promotions and more.

Promotional Opportunities for Sellers:

  1. Christmas in July Community Sale 2012: Get involved in this year’s community-driven sale by tagging your sale items with the terms “christmasinjuly” and/or “CIJ” between the dates of 7/12/2012 through 7/22/2012. All shops are eligible to participate and sale items do not have to be holiday themed. Be sure to add promotional details to the item description of each item you tag. For additional questions about how to get involved, contact this year’s Christmas in July community sale leaders, DesignedByLucinda and EmbellishedLife2. Learn more via the CIJ Team.
  2. Australian Homepage: As part of Etsy’s commitment to its international community, we now have an Australian homepage. This will allow us to provide more exposure for sellers in this region by featuring local items to a targeted audience. This homepage will be viewed by people who have their region set to Australia. Now, we need help from the Etsy community in curating it! Learn how to get involved. Don’t forget, July marks the dead of winter in Australia.
  3. Listing in Quantities: Etsy has made some long-requested billing changes that enable you to maximize the ability to list in multiple quantities. Learn more.
  4. Press Tip: Media publications are currently working on their long lead stories for fall and holiday 2012 (yes, those holidays!). Increase your chances of landing a print feature by making your seasonal collections available now.
  5. Treasury Tip: Create and label treasuries matching seasonal themes for a chance to have your collection featured on Etsy’s homepage or linked to from promotional emails and shopping pages.

Themes to Plan for:
Our central merchandising themes this month focus on back to school, summer, fashion, weddings, and a look ahead to fall festivities. This emphasizes the seasonality of the Northern Hemisphere, but it’s important to remember that it’s wintertime in the Southern Hemisphere. Maintaining seasonally appropriate options year-round is good practice for boosting international and overall sales.

  • Patriotic Celebrations: Canada Day, The Fourth of July and Bastille Day are all celebrated this month. Patriotic colors, folk art, party decor, summer activities, festive outfits and firework displays are popular items coinciding with these holidays.
  • Back to School: Emphasis on college planning, dorm decor, small space solutions, gadget cases and accessories, clothing, school supplies, organization and the home office.
  • Summer Olympics: Summer sports, athletics, athletes and London will come into focus as the Olympic games kick off in late July.
  • Fashion: New collections come into play with Fashion Weeks in Paris and Berlin. In general, summer styles are still relevant with a nod to “back to school” fashions underway. Think in terms of lightweight fabrics, sleeveless and open toe designs. Take into account swim, beachwear and accessories.
  • Weddings: Wedding season is in full swing; determine how your line of goods could expand into wedding offerings and tag accordingly (if appropriate) to show up in Etsy’s Weddings experience.
  • Summer: Think in terms of bright summer colors, fashion, outdoor entertaining, grilling, camping, swimming, picnics, markets, festivals, outdoor activities and sports, seasonal holidays and long weekends.
  • Gardening: With summer’s bounty beginning to come into harvest, think in terms of canning, food preservation, recipes, and culinary kits. Indoor, vertical and container gardening supplies are on the rise.
  • Halloween: Shoppers begin planning and searching for Halloween gear as soon as July on Etsy. Get ahead of the game by listing your full line of Halloween decor, costumes and accessories this month.
  • Birthdays: July’s birthstone is ruby; star signs include Cancer and Leo (June 22 — July 22: Cancer, July 23 — August 23, Leo).

July’s Trends:

  • Patriotic References: Red, white and blue, Americana, primitives, folk art, flags and symbols.
  • The World in Sports: Biking and summer sports take the central spotlight as the Tour de France and Olympic Games take place in July.
  • Gardening: Planters, vertical solutions, tools, garden markers, heirloom seed varieties, compost bins, terrariums, bird and bee houses, chicken coops and egg baskets.
  • Hot Colors: peach, mint green, neon and nude combos.
  • Gadget Accessories: Innovative gadget cases, docking stations, speakers, amplifiers and accessories, especially geared around the iPhone 4S, iPad and Kindle Fire.
  • Nails: Lacquers, polishes, art and stickers.
  • Fashion: Summer dresses (especially maxi dresses), sheer and crochet panels, neon hues, open toe shoes, retro inspired swimwear.
  • References to Harry Potter, Brave, Alice in Wonderland — all trending in pop culture. Think in terms of symbols like arrows, birds, wizardry, magic, enchanted forests, rabbits, and whimsy.
  • Weddings: Engagement rings, both handcrafted and antique. Vintage, retro and rockabilly references, photobooths and props, fan programs, Mad Libs, personalized wine labels, fingerprint guest books, DIY decorations, and creative takes on the little details from save the dates all the way to favors.
  • Infinity Styles: Rings, scarves, bracelets and necklaces.
  • Organization and Storage: Back to school! Fresh solutions for getting organized.
  • Personalization: Gift ideas with monograms, initials, text, numbers, zodiac, constellations, portraits, custom labels, stamps, fingerprints and family trees.
  • Home: Outdoor living and furniture, fireplaces and pits, outdoor kitchens, string lights and lanterns, window curtains, drapes, shower curtains, bedding and hardware.
  • Culinary Trends: Food preservation and canning. DIY culinary kits are on the rise. Classic cocktails, homebrewing, 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, letterpress blocks, monogram housewares and typewriter keys.
  • Galaxy: Stars, space, and constellation motifs.
  • Native: Tribal and native inspirations. Bohemian, feathers, and tribal-inspired geometric patterns.
  • Tribal Geometry: Tribal meets bright, bold colors and graphic geometrics.
  • Natural History: Woodland forest themes and animals, 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.
  • Embellished, painted and customizable shoes.
  • Cottage Style: Chic decor and accessories.
  • Video game-inspired references.
  • Writable chalkboard surfaces.
  • Embellished faux eyelashes.
  • Designed fabric yardage.
  • Wall and laptop decals.
  • The little black dress.
  • Mermaids.
  • Ear cuffs.

If you make items that 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 match? That’s great! 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. Check out some great how-to’s on item photography to get started. For those who enjoy making treasury lists, we’ll be looking to highlight lists that interpret these themes in a creative and cohesive ways. Please tag your treasuries accordingly.

Upcoming Dates to Remember

  • July is known as national hot dog month and national ice cream month
  • June 27 – July 1 Men’s Fashion Week, Paris
  • June 30 – July 22: Tour de France
  • June 2 – July 5 Haute Couture Fashion Week, Paris
  • July 1 – Canada Day
  • July 4 Independence Day
  • July 4: Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island
  • July 12 – 22 Community Christmas in July Sale
  • July 13 – Embrace your Geekness Day
  • July 14 – Bastille Day 
  • July 16 – Marine Day (Japan)
  • July 20 – August 18 Ramadan
  • July 27 – August 12 2012 Summer Olympics (in London, UK)
  • June 27 – July 31 National summer sales (France)
  • July 29 – August 4 Shark Week

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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