2020 has been a year like no other. We’ve spent the last nine months navigating the highs and lows and adjusting and adapting along the way. Nobody knows exactly what the next few months will bring, but we’re expecting a very different holiday season this year.

The big prediction is that customers will start their holiday shopping as early as October, with many more people shopping online this year. We’ve compiled some tips and insights to help you get your shop organized.

How Will 2020 Be Different?

Holiday shopping will start earlier
Retail and e-commerce experts are predicting that some of the focus will shift away from the Thanksgiving weekend this year, and many retailers will start holiday promotions much earlier. Back in June, Pinterest reported seeing a spike in searches for holiday ideas as early as April (this usually happens in September).

More people will be shopping online
The Coronavirus pandemic has seen a big shift in consumer behaviour with many more people shopping online. According to Google’s research, “Almost 75% of U.S. shoppers who plan to shop this season said they will shop online more than they did in previous seasons.”

People will be using social media to research
As people are spending more time at home and feeling cautious about visiting physical stores, they’re researching their purchases online. This presents a huge opportunity to connect with potential customers on social media as they search for gift ideas.

More than ever, people will be looking for thoughtful gifts
2020 has prompted us to focus on what’s important, and made us even more grateful for our closest connections. According to a study by Bazaarvoice, consumers will be prioritizing gifts for their closest friends and family members, and looking for ways to show their appreciation.

How to Start Planning for Holidays

This year has been super challenging for many of us. How you approach holiday prep this year is going to greatly depend on what else is going on in your life, and how much time and energy you have. We’ve broken things down into in more manageable, bite-sized chunks but if you only manage to tick a few tasks off the list, that’s totally ok. Last year’s plan is a good starting point. This divides holiday planning into three focus areas:

1. Getting your shop in shape
2. Creating new designs and adding new products
3. Marketing and promotion

Getting Your Shop in Shape

Having a ‘stocktake’ is a great way to check your shop is up to date and optimized to give your products the best chance of being discovered this holiday season.

Questions to Consider: 

• Have you created any new designs you haven’t uploaded yet?
• Do you have enough tags on your work?
• Are your designs available on popular products like masks, throw pillows, and posters?
• Have you enabled new products like jigsaws, aprons, pins, backpacks, and duffle bags?
• Are you happy with your bio?
• Are your social links up to date?
• Are you happy with your product selection?
• Have you set up a thank you to buyers?

Checklist: 

• If you haven’t got around to adding recent work to your shop, now’s a great time
• Increase your chances of being seen by enabling new and popular products
• Check your tags. Think about recent trends and update any relevant designs.
• A great bio helps customers connect with you. Give your bio a refresh for holidays.
• Check your social links! We often see broken links so make sure yours are working.
• Check your payment details are up to date
• Add or refresh your thank you message to buyers

Instagram posts by oshupatterns 

Creating and Uploading New Designs

There’s still plenty of time to add new designs to your shop. To give yourself the best chance of creating products that sell, it’s a good idea to start designing with products in mind and take the time to consider what your audience is looking for.

Trending themes can help you identify a direction, but always try and create something unique so your work stands out from the crowd. Our guide to getting started on Redbubble has some great tips on researching trends and using customer insights.

Questions to Consider: 

• Which designs were your top sellers this year?
• What were your top selling products?
• Which designs had the highest engagement on social?
• Which were your personal faves (and why)?
• Do you feel there’s anything missing from your shop?
• Is there anything you’d like to try for holidays?
• Anything you’d like to add before holidays?

Checklist: 

• Browse sites like Pinterest and Instagram to see what’s popular this holidays
• Use Google Trends to compare traffic volumes for different search terms
• Create different versions of your design. Optimize your art for different products.
• Choose descriptive titles to help people find your work in search
• Tags are incredibly important. Make sure you’re using them properly.

Instagram posts by scottnaismith and sarekaunique

Promoting Your Shop

This year we’re going to see more people researching gift ideas online. It’s worth spending some time planning how you’re going to engage with your followers on social media. Whether you have a small or large following, there are a number of things you can do to help drive traffic to your shop.

Questions to Consider: 

• What can you do now that will put you in the best position for holidays?
• Can potential customers easily find your shop from your social profiles?
• Do you need to work on building your audience?
• Do you have a clear idea of the kind of content you’ll be sharing?

Checklist:

• Add your Redbubble shop link to your social bio and website
• Explore different ideas for engaging social posts
• Shortlist some ideas for your own posts
• Create a calendar to help you plan
• Investigate tools to help you automate and schedule your posts
• Sign up for Redbubble emails so you’re the first to know about sales and offers
• If you’re not regularly posting, gradually start increasing your posts

The ‘Shop Talk’ section on the blog features lots of selling tips and advice including:

• Personalized Shop Links and Direct Sharing Product Images to Social
• Share Your Work Like a Pro With Our Promotional Tools
• Hashtags, Captions and Tracking Links: How to Share Your Work and Measure Results
• The Ultimate Guide to Promoting Your Art on Instagram
• 10 Ideas for More Engaging Social Media Posts
• A Guide to TikTok for Visual Artists

Have you started thinking about holidays? Is there anything you’re working on or any ideas you’d like to try this year? Let us know in the comments below. To keep up to date with the latest tips and advice follow @redbubbleartists on Instagram.