October's Merchandising Plans & Treasury Tips

Halloween Pumpkins Print - Magnesina

Happy ‘October” Curation Nation teammies and faithful followers! Here are the targeted merchandising points for the month of October - they are straight from Etsy’s Merchandising Desk. These specifics are what Etsy will be looking to showcase on the front page. It’s a great guideline to use to create items for your shop or for the vintage shops to be on the hunt for. When you curate Treasuries using these merchandising tips, remember to tag them with these words and themes as well.

                 

ETSY’S central merchandising will focus on autumn, Halloween, and preparing for the holidays ahead.

NOTE:  TREASURY TIP: Create and label treasuries fitting seasonal themes for a chance to have your collection featured on Etsy’s homepage, linked from promotional emails, and new shopping pages. We’ll be looking to highlight specifically themed gift guides throughout the holiday season. If you’d like to create a gift guide encompassing a full theme throughout your treasury, be sure to use the term “gift guide” as one of your treasury tags. along with the overarching theme of your guide (using the “gift guide” term with several smaller themes is not the ideal use here).

HOLIDAY TIP: Etsy’s seasonal Gifts Email has relaunched for the holiday season. Now is the time to list your full holiday line with clear seasonal tags. Don’t forget, Etsy’s “holiday” season encompasses all aspects of Halloween, Thanksgiving, and the classic December gifting holidays: Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa.

SHOPPING PAGES: We are delighted to introduce three new ways to shop and explore Etsy: Fashion, Home and Garden, and Kids. 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.

SEPTEMBER’S  BIRTHSTONE: Opal

ASTROLOGICAL SIGNS: Libra (August 24 – September 23) and Scorpio (October 24 – November 22)

While emphasis will be placed upon the seasonality of the Northern Hemisphere, it’s important to remember that the Southern Hemisphere is preparing for summer. Maintaining seasonally appropriate options year-round is good practice for boosting international and overall sales.

COLORS: Pantone’s color trend report for fall 2o11 includes quarry, cedar, and teal greens, nougat and coffee browns, orchid and phlox purples, bamboo mustard yellow, honeysuckle pink, and ember-glow coral. We’re also noticing interest in scarlet, golds, pale hues of gray, pink, and lilac, classic neutrals and nudes, rustic fall colors, jade greens and mustards.

BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH: An annual international health campaign to help raise awareness. The color pink and ribbon symbol embody the universal themes surrounding this cause.

HALLOWEEN: Halloween searches are in their prime right now. Make sure to take advantage of the next three weeks of seasonal shopping by tagging your Halloween products appropriately and offering extended shipping options — think last minute Halloween costumes and treat ideas.

AUTUMN: Home decor, entertaining, woodland motifs and nature’s symbols. Harvest themes encompass fall planting, preserving the summer garden’s bounty, rustic farm references and fall foods. Tagging tip: “Autumn” is a more global seasonal association than the American-based “fall” term; try including both as descriptive words.

THANKSGIVING: October is Thanksgiving in Canada and when Americans begin planning for November festivities. Classic Thanksgiving symbols include the turkey, cornucopia, Pilgrims and Native Americans, seasonal food, and fall foliage. Hostess gifts, table settings, and hearty treats are all items shoppers will be looking for.

FALL FASHION: Shift in materials, colors, and layers in the categories of clothing, accessories, and jewelry. More specifically, key basics, layering elements, the introduction of winter accessories and outerwear components, thick fabrics and rich leathers, autumnal tones, vintage boots and heavy-weight all-weather bags. Tagging tip: Try adding the term “fashion” to your appropriate items to reach a broader shopping audience.

WEDDINGS: Woodland and autumn 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. Coinciding with our Halloween promotions, unconventional approaches to pulling off a creative event will have their time to shine. Don’t forget to stay a step ahead for brides currently planning and shopping for 2012 winter and spring weddings.

THE HOLIDAYS: If we haven’t hammered it home enough yet — or if you’re not participating in this year’s Holiday Boot Camp — now is the time to list your full, holiday-focused line. Emphasis should be placed upon gift ideas, decor, and options for entertaining. Shoppers are already planning and searching for holiday-themed gifts: Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa. Now is also the time to get ahead of the game by listing your 2012 calendars.

BOSS’S DAY: From the sophisticated to funny, there is a wide range of products that would make ideal gifts for the boss (and also work as gift ideas for coworkers throughout the holiday season).

Trending Topics:

Halloween: Celebrity references, film and pop culture reinventions, clever costuming plays on words, pet costumes, baby costumes, group options, last-minute ideas, vampire themes, folk and vintage decor, photobooth props, and the classic color combinations (orange, black, yellow, white, red, green, purple).

Wizardry, magic, owls, and mysticism with the release of the final chapter of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

Vampires: They’re back on the radar with shows like HBO’s True Blood and November’s premiere of Twilight: Breaking Dawn.

Personalization: Gift ideas with monograms, initials, text, numbers, zodiac, constellations, portraits, custom labels, stamps, fingerprints and family trees.

Sports: Football, baseball, and horse racing (in Australia) are in focus this month.

Weddings: Handmade and vintage variations on the wedding dress, engagement rings, creative invitations, save the dates, and signage are on the rise.

Fashion: Fall and winter accessories, vintage boots, 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.

Garden Preservation: Canning, jams, preserves, and stocks.

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.

• Creative gadget cases, docking stations and accessories.

• Bike caddies, baskets, and creative accessories.

• Shabby chic decor and accessories

• Video game-inspired references

• Writable chalkboard surfaces

• Feather hair extensions

• Wall and laptop decals

• All things steampunk

• Vintage cameras

• Braided hair

• Mermaids

• Peacocks

EVENTS IN AUGUST:

• October is Breast Cancer Awareness, international drum, and vegetarian awareness month.
• October 1-3: National Day, China
• October 2: Daylight Savings (Australia)
• October 12 – November 5: Spring Racing Carnival (Australia)
• October 3: German National Reunification Day
• October 3: Oktoberfest winds down
• October 7-8 Yom Kippur
• October 10: Columbus Day
• October 10: Thanksgiving Day, Canada
• October 14: Winnie The Pooh published, 1926 (UK)
• October 12-19: Sukkot, sundown
• October 17: Boss’s Day
• October 24: United Nations Day
• October 26: Deepavali
• October 30: Switch to wintertime (France)
• October 31: Halloween
• October 31: German reformation day

*** Special tip: Tagging your Treasuries with a single word, or multiple word that is meant to be a multiple word, will help us find your lists. Tagging with multiple words that do not relate to one another might be detracting your list from being found.