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[#1]

As soon as August rolls into September, and the summer here in New York comes to a close, I can’t help but think about the upcoming Holiday Season. Instead of searching for items for myself, I start prioritizing other people’s wish-lists. Since I usually don’t have a big spending budget to purchase items, naturally, this shift sparks a fire in me to DIY my holiday gifts, which in turn, inspires me to work on my Etsy shop.

This year, I’m going to approach things a little differently. Instead of prioritizing handmade gifts, I’m going to set goals around my shop. My goal for this year is to stock more items and create holiday themed branding, such as gift wrap and an updated banner, that I can highlight in my shop and in social media.

To help us achieve our goals throughout the Holiday Season, the Seller Education team has been hard at work compiling a great series of educational content. Lets start this Holiday Season off right by signing up for this years Holiday Bootcamp: https://blog.etsy.com/en/2014/register-now-for-holiday-boot-camp-2014/

Next, think about what your goals are for this Holiday Season and share them with us below!* A goal can be anything from listing a new item to reaching your 100th sale. By writing them down and sharing with others, you'll reinforce your commitment to them. Who knows, your goal could inspire others or even be featured in an upcoming Online Labs event with the Seller Education Team!


*When sharing your goal for this season, please introduce yourself and share how long you've been selling on Etsy.

[andralynn]

Hello! I'm Andrea and I've been selling art on Etsy for about three years.

This holiday season I am making it a goal to get started early on the Christmastime commissions. Usually they start rolling in sometime in December and it's always hectic getting everything finished and shipped on time. So, I'm letting my customers know via social media that I am taking commissions now, and hopefully I will get a headstart!

[Former_Member]

This is my first real holiday season with Etsy and I'm looking forward to it! After a pretty busy summer going to my local Farmers' Market and excited about the upcoming holiday season!!

My goals are:

Create "Black Friday" sale listings
Add Christmas ornaments to the store
Add Kids Holiday craft kits
Increase my usage of social media
"Stock pile" product now for Etsy and Christmas craft shows

[theBirdandtheBeard]

My goal is to double my holiday sales from November and December 2013!

[Former_Member]

Hey all! I'm Kathy from Ollie's Place Antiques and I've been open just over one year. My store features treasures from the past, vintage, collectibles, etc. Although I was open last year during the holidays, I was still trying to get my bearings!

So this year, I'm really gearing up!

A few of my goals are:

Stay focused on the task at hand
List, list, list
Organize work space
Stock up on shipping supplies

and most of all, Have a Great Holiday!

[Former_Member]

I this will be my 2nd holiday holiday launch. I sell metal jewelry, home goods & art that EMPOWER! My goals are
1) Improve photography
2) Have 5 new items available this year
3) Double my sales from last year

[ilPiccoloGiardino]

The goals for September are to be all stocked by end of September - 2nd week of October at the very latest for all. Anything that comes after will be a bonus. I had a great July and August, so hopefully will be running in the same trend.

[MandrakeVintage]

Hi! I'm Hollis, and I've had my Etsy shop since 2012. I have been scheming about this holiday season ever since last year. I got quite ill during the lead up to the holidays last year, and I wasn't able to execute many of my wonderful ideas. This year, it's on!

My goals thus far are:

By September 30:
Finally launch my handmade shop. Wheeee!
Stock at least 100 items in my vintage shop.
Asses my shipping supply needs and stock up.
Commit to a gift wrap style and be prepared to start offering it.
Make a sales/coupon calendar for the remainder of the year.

By October 31:
Stock 160 items in my vintage shop, with a focus on holiday party dresses, accessories and gifts.
Keep on making for my handmade shop! Not making too many goals there.
Reassess tags and adjust as needed to draw in holiday shoppers.

November 1st:
Switch over to holiday banner. Probably re-use last year's.
Mulled wine on a regular basis. Good for productivity? Probably not.

November and December I will add new stock as much as I can, but try to focus on filling orders, doing holiday markets and making handmade goods... and as many have said before me, spending time with friends and family and actually enjoying the holiday season! I am planning to buy all my holiday gifts from my fellow Etsians... there's no reason to go elsewhere!

Now, all I need is for BC schools to reopen so that my kid can go back to school and I can focus on working without feeling like a terrible mother. That would be an early Christmas gift for all of us here!

Good luck to everyone! I wish you all a healthy, happy, successful holiday season. The better organized we are, the less stressful it will be. Repeat that often... it really helps. Hee hee!

xoxo

[KeishasCollections]

HI, I'm Keisha Happy and I have been selling on Etsy since the summer of 2013. I have learned so much the past year about how to improve my shops views and sales. The forums and promotional teams have been a great way to get questions answered, connections made and my items seen by others. I have a variety of handmade items that I make. I make and sell crochet hats, slippers, baby booties, boho headbands, watercolor astrology cards, personalized coffee mugs and more. My goal for this holiday season is to reach 250 sales by New Years Eve 2014. That's 100 sales between now and then. I would also like to continue to expand my shop, social media marketing skills and possibly get involved in local craft show(s). I love what I do. I love getting to use my creative skills to work from home.

Many Blessings to all!
Keisha

[DivineAngelShop]

Hi everyone! I have a bunch of holiday designs to photograph and list been really busy preparing and praying I'll do better than last year,

1. I do custom Jan. thru August 31st. This year I am sticking to my guns about no custom orders. Last year I kept breaking that rule and it put me In such a bind. Some people are so nice it is hard to say no but this year I am sticking with it.

2. Enjoy the holiday with my family more.

3. Order enough shipping supplies so I don't have to make that trip but once.
.
4. Take an occasional nap during the day. With personal commitments, holiday parties, family gatherings and running this shop sometimes I need a NAP!

I hope we all do really well!

[Former_Member]

Hello, I'm Cristal. My first anniversary of selling on Etsy is this month. I'm really excited to have made it this far. Heading into this Christmas season i have about a hundred times more Etsy know-how than last year so I have set a goal to double my sales. Secretly, I'm hoping for a little more, but that's the official goal.

Other priorities include:
- Stocking up. I'd like to have at least 50 listings up by the end of September. I'm on track for that.
- Doing it all on a ready-made basis. With a little one at home there's no other way.

[AGierDesign]

I've been selling for nearly exactly one year. I would love to get 450 sales in November. I aim high. :)

[Former_Member]

Hello! I am Denise and my shop is "Butterfly Dreams By Denise". My Etsy shop has been open since October 9, 2013 but I didn't start getting serious till this past spring. Since then I have been doing a lot of research in how to better my shop and get sales. As of today I have 59 items in my shop. Sadly however I have only had 2 sales so far, but I am driven to make this work and to turn it into what I have always dreamed of! My holiday Goal is to reach 100 items and get 50+ sales. I hope for hire numbers in items and sales so my fingers are crossed! I am looking forward to learning a lot and making my store better!

[BackAtTheOffice]

I have been with Etsy since 2009 and this year I have actually already started getting ready for the holiday season. I have rather lofty plans that I knew would take quite awhile so I got started early.

My photography needed upgrading, all of it. I want my shop to look cohesive so the most important thing was that the photos look a like. So I have been re-shooting everything in my shop. I am almost finished with that. As I have loaded the new #1 photos I have re-written the titles and re-worked the tags. The descriptions also need to be re-done, but I have been leaving those to be re-written after I have had time to give them more thought. So I will be re-writing most of my descriptions after I’m finished with the photography and title and tags.

Besides doing all the new photography and new descriptions I need new inventory. I have started on this too. I hope to increase it by at least 50% if not more. If I can do more I will.

My goal is to be able to have my shop in tip-top shape and 50% larger before the holiday season begins. I hope to go through the season needing only to advertise and take care of sales. Hopefully when the season is over, I will have a depleted shop in need of new inventory.

[Former_Member]

This will be my first "holiday season" on Etsy...I really don't know what to expect. I've ordered lots of envelopes, mailers, and now all I need is time to get my product done and listed...and fingers crossed that the customers like the product and order. I guess my goal would be to sell out of Christmas stock! That would be awesome!

[KathysCreations25]

I just opened my Etsy shop in the spring, so I am excited about the upcoming holiday season.
My goals are to feature new handbags I have have designed. So far I have one online and hope to develop more. I would really like to start offering patterns for my designs and could use help knowing how to do put them online in my Etsy shop. Right now they are all on freezer paper. I know it doesn't sounds great, but it works for me.
I just love the ease at which Etsy allows us to put our products online. This has been a true blessing for me.
Thanks, Kathy
Thanks Etsy.

[artandvine]

One of my holiday goals is to reach 2000 store listings!

[Former_Member]

Hello all,

My name is Makenzie, my shop will have it's 2 yr anniversary in late November. I have been working on stocking up my inventory for the holidays and show for a few months now (my shop is more seasonal).

My goals for this holiday season is:
1) list between 150-200 items
2) hit 200 sales by the end of the year
3) offer gift wrapping and express shipping
4) enjoy our moments as a family.

Best Wishes & Happy Sales,
Makenzie

[crashandduchess]

Hello! This is my second Etsy jewellery shop that I have been actively selling on since Feb. 2012

My holiday goals this year are:
- double my Oct-Dec sales from last year
- have 200 items listed (so many already made that just need to be photographed!)
- expand my ready to ship section for those last minute/indecisive shoppers :)

[FalconandFinch]

Hi! My name is Lynelle, and I'm one of the owners of Falcon and Finch, a shop that specializes vintage and Airplant Crystal Gardens. We've been selling on Etsy since 2009, which makes this our 6th(!!) Etsy Christmas season.

The Holidays are, with out a doubt, our best time of year for sales, so I have two main goals:

First, I've always sort of stocked up on things at the beginning of the holidays, with out really thinking about mid season restocking. This is especially true of our Airplant Crystal Gardens, which flew off the shelf last year, causing me to have to do a "pre order" while I waited on suppliers, causing me HUGE amounts of stress and sleepless nights. So this year, I want to figure out a method for maintaining stock on all my most popular items all the way through the season, to the beginning of Spring.

My second goal is more of a challenge. The Holidays are an amazing time for us, which makes the summer months, which are incredibly slow, even more painful to bear. I'm trying to find ways to make the business that I do around Christmas time, pay off for me in the Summertime. I'm still researching ways to do this - possibly a coupon code good for return shoppers during the Summer? Or reinvesting in Summer appropriate vintage earlier in the year? I'm not sure yet, which is why it's still a goal!

[Former_Member]

My name is Nicole Scott. I launched by Etsy shop April 2014. I create quite a few items, but my shop is focused on my handcrafted wedding brooms. The Jumping the Broom ceremony is associated with the African American/Black American weddings and culture. The brooms are also great for housewarming gifts and home decor.

My goals for the holiday season are:
1. Add ready to purchase holiday themed brooms to my inventory
2. Add and additional custom made style to my inventory
3. Connect my Etsy shop to my website
4. Sell 5 brooms over the holiday
5. Get seller feedback

[AJewelOfACraft]

Hi I'm Jewel and my shop has been open since the end of June. I create florals, wreaths, holiday ornaments and lots more! I am so excited about the whole holiday season. starting with just fall in general which is a "Holiday" to me in and of itself.

* My main goal is to make and list as many fall items that I can before October. Then I would like to concentrate more on my Christmas items.

Wishing everyone a successful, profitable and Happy Holiday Season! :)

[Former_Member]

My name is Sofia, I opened my chocolate store on June 2014
I have a few goals for the holiday season but because I'm new I really don't know what to expect.
* First to add a new product I have been working on developing some of my family fudge recipes using my chocolates as an inspiration.
* Have at least 100 items listed in my store
* Organize my packing supplies
*And enjoy the ride ; )

[dorijewellery]

Hello, my name is Dori.

My goals for this holiday season are
1) Reach 300 items listed by end of October
2) Reach 1000 sales total by the end of December

I wish everyone here a busy and rewarding holiday season.

[Former_Member]

Hi, my name is Lydia and I've been selling on Etsy since July of this year. I make knit and crochet items.

I am really excited for this holiday season because it will be my first and will be a great opportunity to have my first sale.

1) My goals are to list at least 20 items by Halloween (I have 16, and really want 30, but I'm in college)

2) Have my shipping station well stocked

3) Pre-make some items so that I'm not super stressed around the holiday season, which equals finals time for me.

[BlueWorldTreasures]

Since this is my first year on Etsy or selling period - my goal for the holidays is to make at least 10 sales and get all of my items listed with proper photos and descriptions. I have learned a lot over the summer, and I know that I can improve.