Merchandising - Putting it in Practice (Part 2)

In the last part - Keeping your shop fresh through the year, we talked about when is a good time to freshen up your shop to keep views and sales up. In this part we will talk about how to put things in practice especially when it is a online shop.

Let's break down Etsy's main concerns in merchandising a little further and talk about what we could do to achieve it.

Shopping experiences -

This means that shoppers find your items easily and are greeted with items and services they are looking for during that time or season. Also they get all the information they need to make a decision from the pictures and the descriptions

What you can do to achieve this:

1) Make sure that your titles, tags and description are fleshed out. Titles and tags should use all available space, while descriptions should always include material, size and also is in the 'voice' of your brand.
More on writing descriptions - https://blog.etsy.com/en/2014/5-tips-for-writing-stellar-product-descriptions/

2) Offer relevant gift packages or link your items with other similar items within your shop, that could go together as a gift package.

3) Re-organize your shop by placing seasonal items on the first page or by featuring them on the top.

4) Ensure that your photos are clear, bright and provides information like size, colour, texture... etc.
More on Photography - https://blog.etsy.com/en/2010/etsys-guide-to-photography/

Brand Marketing

Although you might change up your shop for the season, your brand should remain consistent and strong. Keeping your brand identity consistent helps your customer recognize your brand, strengthens your identity and helps differentiate your shop from all the others out there.

What you can do to achieve this:

1) Make sure that your about page is filled out and that it represents what your brand is about.
More about crafting your about page - https://blog.etsy.com/en/2014/tips-for-crafting-a-killer-about-page/

2) Using images and visuals on your social media account also could help letting your shoppers know that you have in season items in your shop and draw them in. But make sure that the visuals you use is in line with your branding visually, so that it does not confuse your shoppers.
More about visual branding on social media - http://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/strong-brand-voice-social-media

Valentine's Hearts & Wedding Bells by couturenicole

Inventory expertise

This might be the hardest of all three in my opinion, as it deals with trends and forecasting what would sell. Preparing your inventory for the season is the essence of merchandising.

What you can do to achieve this:

1) Keep up with trends by subscribing to Etsy Finds, browse Trending Items regularly to get an idea of what shoppers are looking at and liking, and read up on Holiday merchandising desk published in the Seller Handbook in September/early October.
How trending items are chosen - https://www.etsy.com/uk/help/article/3793

2) Prepare multiples of your best selling item and offer a variety in terms of colours, sizes and application (eg: as a necklace, ring or earring). This will take preparations from the beginning of the year, planning your product offerings whilst keeping up with latest trend.


This article covers some of the few key points on merchandising for your Etsy shop. Merchandising is a large and important area when it comes to marketing your online shop, so there is a whole lot of information online. Here are some I've found which could give you further information -

• How to give your online store a merchandising makeover for the holidays
• Basics of online merchandising
• An introduction to online merchandising 

I hope you will find these links interesting and informative. Here's wishing you a wonderful year!

About the Author - Yini (OBSD Team Captain) Yini runs a small handmade home decor shop on Etsy, Kotona. In May 2014 she started the One Big Sale Day team, to harness the power of togetherness amongst team members and help each other promote their shops.