Cafe Chatter

Welcome to Cafe Chatter - Grab a cup of coffee or a nice glass of tea and pull up a comfy chair while we talk about our lives, our relationships, what it's like to return to school, how much we love (or hate) our jobs and how great (or miserable) our online stores are doing!! Cafepress brought us together as friends and now we are inviting you to join us!!

Thursday, October 23, 2008

Holiday Prep

[2008.10.23 18:33:01] Welcome to the CafePress Chat Room
[2008.10.23 18:33:01] shopaholic chick has entered the room "CafePress Chat Room"
[2008.10.23 18:33:01] All users in this room have been allowed to talk
[2008.10.23 18:44:57] electricgreen has entered the room "CafePress Chat Room"
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[2008.10.23 18:58:58] BrittaCP: Greetings and Salutations everyone
[2008.10.23 18:59:16] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 18:59:18] Kate@LittleLizzyLou has entered the room "CafePress Chat Room"
[2008.10.23 19:00:08] DafnaCP has entered the room "CafePress Chat Room"
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[2008.10.23 19:00:33] matisse: bah humbug!
[2008.10.23 19:00:36] MaxMuhlin: Hi, Everyone!
[2008.10.23 19:00:38] shopaholic chick: hi all!
[2008.10.23 19:00:49] Dooni Designs: boo!
[2008.10.23 19:00:50] twopurringcats has entered the room "CafePress Chat Room"
[2008.10.23 19:01:02] BrittaCP: @ dooni: that's more like it
[2008.10.23 19:01:02] Heni has entered the room "CafePress Chat Room"
[2008.10.23 19:01:23] BrittaCP: but there's a reason why we start talking about the holidays in october
[2008.10.23 19:01:37] BrittaCP: because in the retail world... that's when it begins
[2008.10.23 19:02:15] LittleLizzyLou Josh has entered the room "CafePress Chat Room"
[2008.10.23 19:02:42] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:02:43] BrittaCP: So as you can guess (if you didn't know already, that's is) today we're doing our second installment of Holiday Prep talk
[2008.10.23 19:03:32] BrittaCP: A few weeks ago we went over site navigation
[2008.10.23 19:04:18] BrittaCP: http://community.cafepress.com/?p=475
[2008.10.23 19:04:50] BrittaCP: The tips that we gave in it (as well as tonight) are really things that you can implemnt all year... but if you're not already... you really want to start now
[2008.10.23 19:05:03] BrittaCP: so you have everything ready at go time when the season kicks in
[2008.10.23 19:05:19] BrittaCP: Tonight we'll be talking about Shop Promotion
[2008.10.23 19:05:50] BrittaCP: and we've got Dafna, our Top Shop Rep to talk to us about some best practices
[2008.10.23 19:06:02] DafnaCP: Hi everyone!
[2008.10.23 19:06:08] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:06:17] shopaholic chick: hi dafna
[2008.10.23 19:06:34] Pandion has entered the room "CafePress Chat Room"
[2008.10.23 19:06:34] BrittaCP: So before we go any further let me go over the rules...
[2008.10.23 19:06:49] QueenBee has entered the room "CafePress Chat Room"
[2008.10.23 19:06:54] BrittaCP: This chat is moderated which means all your questions and comments go into a queue
[2008.10.23 19:07:05] BrittaCP: so you will not see them right away
[2008.10.23 19:07:34] BrittaCP: A moderator will review it and push it out
[2008.10.23 19:07:56] BrittaCP: aat the end of the chat we'll open up the loibby again, so you guys can continue the conversation and fun
[2008.10.23 19:08:08] BrittaCP: and we'll have the transcript up in a day or so
[2008.10.23 19:08:27] BrittaCP: ok... enough of that babble... let's get on with the show
[2008.10.23 19:08:30] twopurringcats: hi
[2008.10.23 19:08:32] matisse: Hi Dafna!
[2008.10.23 19:08:35] Kate@LittleLizzyLou: Hi Dafna!
[2008.10.23 19:08:35] Bacon has entered the room "CafePress Chat Room"
[2008.10.23 19:08:37] shopaholic chick: all the discount stores around us put the xmas stuff out same day as the halloween stuff!
[2008.10.23 19:08:51] DafnaCP: So, I see a lot of familiar shopkeepers in the chat room this evening (hi y’all!). But is there anybody here who is preparing for their very first Holiday Season at Cafepress?
[2008.10.23 19:09:19] electricgreen: I just bought some Christmas stuff today for a promo at work at the dollar store near me-people almost expect to see it now
[2008.10.23 19:09:43] BrittaCP: dpn't be shy
[2008.10.23 19:10:02] BrittaCP: we'll make you speak up eventually
[2008.10.23 19:10:07] QueenBee: Yup, first timer here
[2008.10.23 19:10:11] twopurringcats: this is the first year I'm actually working on Christmas promotion
[2008.10.23 19:10:37] DafnaCP: Great! I’m glad there are a few new “faces” and I hope that you old timers can help me prepare the newer shopkeepers for the months to come.
[2008.10.23 19:10:44] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:10:57] Max: This will be my first CP holiday season
[2008.10.23 19:11:00] shopaholic chick: this year iupgraded from just a section to making a whole holidays shop
[2008.10.23 19:11:11] DafnaCP: With the economic slowdown it can sometimes be hard to get motivated but don’t let that stop you from prepping your shop for the holiday season.
[2008.10.23 19:11:20] DafnaCP: I’m here to offer some tips for maximizing your sales this time of year.
[2008.10.23 19:11:31] DafnaCP: We just had a Shop Navigation chat so I don’t want to get too much into that but if you couldn’t make it, please be sure to read the transcript.
[2008.10.23 19:12:23] DafnaCP: Navigation is important because shoppers have a short attention span. In the rush of trying to find the perfect gift in no time, shoppers have no patience for cluttered shops. They want to find the gift fast and move on to the next one!
[2008.10.23 19:12:50] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:13:02] shopaholic chick: other then the regular googlebase, blogs, squidoo - are there any new ways this year?
[2008.10.23 19:13:36] DafnaCP: We’ve also recently had a chat about Promoting offline.
Don’t neglect the basics! If you didn’t get a chance to check out the chat on promoting offline, please go take a look at that one:
http://community.cafepress.com/?p=441
[2008.10.23 19:14:06] BrittaCP: there are tons of way... and a lot of this may be repeat for some of you... so please share your exepreninces.
[2008.10.23 19:14:18] DafnaCP: Remember, this is the season of holiday parties and craft fairs.
[2008.10.23 19:14:21] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:14:25] John has entered the room "CafePress Chat Room"
[2008.10.23 19:14:25] DafnaCP: My Mother-in-law even throws craft parties where she and her friends get together to showcase their art. These are great opportunities to network to your immediate social sphere so don’t let these chances pass you by!
[2008.10.23 19:14:34] DafnaCP: Does anyone currently do any offline promoting?
[2008.10.23 19:14:50] shopaholic chick: ohhhhh this time of year the best thing is something you do already - holiday cards!!! when you send them to friends and family include a business card and note about your shop....and mail them the week thanksgiving!!
[2008.10.23 19:15:05] Scarebaby has entered the room "CafePress Chat Room"
[2008.10.23 19:15:07] MaxMuhlin: I have Magazine Ads running
[2008.10.23 19:15:10] twopurringcats: I hand out business cards but that's it at present
[2008.10.23 19:15:38] BrittaCP: what magazines max?
[2008.10.23 19:15:41] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:15:52] BrittaCP: and do you care to share how you go about doing that?
[2008.10.23 19:15:58] AureySorrow has entered the room "CafePress Chat Room"
[2008.10.23 19:16:02] BrittaCP: for those that may be curious?
[2008.10.23 19:16:06] MaxMuhlin: Modern Dog and Top Notch Toys
[2008.10.23 19:16:21] shopaholic chick: i am listed on a full page ad for my friends surf shop/grill in the local paper - i added his menu to my website....
[2008.10.23 19:16:44] MaxMuhlin: I contacted the advertising dept at each Mag. . .made up the ads and submitted them. . .Top Notch Toys was a full page at about $450.00 but they distribute the mag free at the big dog shows. . .
[2008.10.23 19:17:04] DafnaCP: That's awesome Max!
[2008.10.23 19:17:06] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:17:21] DafnaCP: So lets launch right in to Holiday SEO
[2008.10.23 19:17:25] MaxMuhlin: and Modern Dog is costing me an arm and a leg for 1/4 page but I've been getting hits. . .
[2008.10.23 19:17:27] shopaholic chick: max thats not bad!
[2008.10.23 19:17:40] DafnaCP: I just want to give a quick overview for the newbies here:
[2008.10.23 19:17:52] MaxMuhlin: Plus I get 20 free issues of Modern Dog and distribute them myself to Veterinary and Grooming offices here in town
[2008.10.23 19:18:11] DafnaCP: Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the process of using the text on your webpage to draw traffic from search engines like Google and Yahoo.
[2008.10.23 19:18:24] MaxMuhlin: For any newbies that are wondering. . .I paint dogs. . .Ha!
[2008.10.23 19:18:29] AureySorrow: that's brilliant MaxMuhlin
[2008.10.23 19:18:42] DafnaCP: By adding keywords to your webpage (and in this case, your shop) you have the potential to be indexed in search engines’ organic (read: free) results.
[2008.10.23 19:18:46] Bacon has left the room (logged out)
[2008.10.23 19:19:07] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:19:23] DafnaCP: For more information on the basics of SEO please take a look here:
http://www.cafepress.com/cp/learn/tutorial_seo
[2008.10.23 19:20:00] BrittaCP: you can also check out or previous chat transcrips with our SEO guru Laura
[2008.10.23 19:20:30] BrittaCP: http://community.cafepress.com/?cat=14
[2008.10.23 19:20:33] BrittaCP: they are all listed here
[2008.10.23 19:20:38] BrittaCP: good information
[2008.10.23 19:20:42] shopaholic chick: max LOL i am now picturing you trying to get a dog to stand still while you apply paint to them....
[2008.10.23 19:21:01] DafnaCP: LOL!
[2008.10.23 19:21:20] Scarebaby has left the room (logged out)
[2008.10.23 19:21:35] DafnaCP: So, we like the word “gifts” year-round and I encourage you to add the word gifts to your section names, teasers, descriptions etc…
[2008.10.23 19:21:43] Tropicando has entered the room "CafePress Chat Room"
[2008.10.23 19:21:47] TexasFiddler has entered the room "CafePress Chat Room"
[2008.10.23 19:21:50] DafnaCP: But for holidays you should also add “Christmas” and “Hanukkah” as well.
[2008.10.23 19:22:10] MaxMuhlin: I get that comment all the time. . .Shop,. guess I'll have to think of a better way to explain it
[2008.10.23 19:22:15] matisse: I wrote my url on my neighbor's dog but I haven't got any hits yet.
[2008.10.23 19:22:22] BrittaCP: i'm sure your neighbor loved that
[2008.10.23 19:22:25] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:22:27] BrittaCP: :P
[2008.10.23 19:22:31] MaxMuhlin: LOL
[2008.10.23 19:22:33] shopaholic chick: but do NOT ADD them to your TAGS!!!! unless it is a related design
[2008.10.23 19:23:00] AureySorrow has left the room (logged out)
[2008.10.23 19:23:03] electricgreen: Is it Hanukkah with an H or CH??
[2008.10.23 19:23:07] BrittaCP: either is fine
[2008.10.23 19:23:08] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:23:21] DafnaCP: That's right, don't add those words to your image tags. Those words should be added to the text on your storefront. Teasers, Descriptions etc...
[2008.10.23 19:23:28] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:23:37] shopaholic chick: there are 4-6 acceptable spellings for hanukkah depending where in the world you live
[2008.10.23 19:23:45] DafnaCP: Can anyone think of other words that would work?
[2008.10.23 19:23:56] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:24:31] shopaholic chick: yule kwanzaa happy holidays
[2008.10.23 19:24:35] matisse: Christmas presents
[2008.10.23 19:24:38] MaxMuhlin: Winter, Snow, Santa Claus, presents!!! Santa's Helper, Elf
[2008.10.23 19:24:47] TexasFiddler: Yule, Christmas, Xmas, Holidays, Navidad
[2008.10.23 19:25:00] DafnaCP: Those are all great.
[2008.10.23 19:25:07] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:25:08] Tropicando: Noel?
[2008.10.23 19:25:09] DafnaCP: It’s also important to remember that your SEO should be as focused as possible.
[2008.10.23 19:25:11] Dooni Designs: season's greetings stocking stuffers
[2008.10.23 19:25:13] shopaholic chick: mrs claus, saint nicholas, st nick,
[2008.10.23 19:25:14] Bacon has entered the room "CafePress Chat Room"
[2008.10.23 19:25:35] DafnaCP: So Dooni, you make my point about being focused. For example, don’t stop at “Christmas Ornament”. That’s a competitive search term. Try something more specific like “Sleeping Pug Christmas Ornament”.
[2008.10.23 19:26:12] mousecrafter has entered the room "CafePress Chat Room"
[2008.10.23 19:26:18] DafnaCP: Does that make sense to everybody?
[2008.10.23 19:26:21] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:26:33] flyingwolf has entered the room "CafePress Chat Room"
[2008.10.23 19:26:35] Tropicando: Since I have mixed couples as friends , I was going to do Christmikah designs this year :)
[2008.10.23 19:26:49] shopaholic chick: the phrase "hate holiday shopping lines" is usually well searched too lol
[2008.10.23 19:26:54] QueenBee: What about common misspellings? Where's the best place to cover this?
[2008.10.23 19:27:20] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:27:28] shopaholic chick: queen that is hard without making your shop look like it was written by a 3rd grader
[2008.10.23 19:27:40] DafnaCP: I'd limit it to one or two misspellings and you can certainly add them in to a discreet place
[2008.10.23 19:28:24] DafnaCP: While we’re on the topic of SEO, I want to talk about the idea of creating a Holiday Gift Ideas section.
[2008.10.23 19:28:35] Bacon: maybe put the misspelled terms in your store meta tags?
[2008.10.23 19:28:39] flyingwolf: I think holiday designs would depend on who gets elected
[2008.10.23 19:28:51] DafnaCP: That term gets searched often during this season.
[2008.10.23 19:29:12] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:29:56] PhotoGirl has entered the room "CafePress Chat Room"
[2008.10.23 19:31:03] TexasFiddler: Silly question that I've never had answered well. If I have the words sleeping, pug, christmas, and ornament all there, do I also need to tag or keyword "sleeping pug christmas ornament" or will the search engines and marketplace pick the whole combo up?
[2008.10.23 19:31:03] DafnaCP: If all of the words are included somewhere on the page, you may still come up in search engines for the full term. But, you're much more likely to come up for that phrase if you use the phrase somewhere on the page in its completion.
[2008.10.23 19:32:33] DafnaCP: So Holiday Gift Ideas does well.
[2008.10.23 19:32:36] DafnaCP: As do, “Gifts for Her” and “Gifts for Him”.
[2008.10.23 19:34:51] Tropicando: Sorry, is this an image tag or for the store?
[2008.10.23 19:34:52] BrittaCP: we're talking about your shop.
[2008.10.23 19:34:58] BrittaCP: in the storefrony
[2008.10.23 19:35:01] BrittaCP: not tags
[2008.10.23 19:35:14] Tropicando: ok
[2008.10.23 19:35:19] MaxMuhlin: You are talking here about Section Descriptions, right? Naturally one needs to beef up those with good descriptions of the individual desigsn, but a Holiday Mood could still be created in the general SHOP
[2008.10.23 19:35:19] DafnaCP: Yes, I'm talking about SEO only. Places for SEO: your meta tags, shop intro, section descriptions, section names, section teasers, product descriptions
[2008.10.23 19:35:42] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:35:42] MaxMuhlin: Did I break the Chat?
[2008.10.23 19:35:44] BrittaCP: oooh... so it was you, huh? j/k. seems to be working fine for us.
[2008.10.23 19:36:26] MaxMuhlin: :-o
[2008.10.23 19:37:14] matisse: Can we now change "shop info" without breaking our CP templates?
[2008.10.23 19:37:14] DafnaCP: Yes, that's fixed.
[2008.10.23 19:37:40] KiniArt has entered the room "CafePress Chat Room"
[2008.10.23 19:37:41] matisse: cool!
[2008.10.23 19:37:56] DafnaCP: The point is, you should consider adding sections that suggest gift ideas for those shoppers who aren’t quite sure what they want.
[2008.10.23 19:38:01] DafnaCP: Make sure you work those keywords into the text in those sections.
[2008.10.23 19:38:13] cyi has entered the room "CafePress Chat Room"
[2008.10.23 19:38:14] DafnaCP: This is also the time of year where people are attending parties and looking for gifts to give their Hosts and Hostesses.
[2008.10.23 19:38:21] DafnaCP: Call that out on your storefronts.
[2008.10.23 19:38:32] DafnaCP: Point out an item or two that would make a good gift for your boss or neighbor at that yearly party they host.
[2008.10.23 19:39:05] jerseygirl has entered the room "CafePress Chat Room"
[2008.10.23 19:39:07] BrittaCP: Wear your products... and engage in conversation that includes mention of your shop or business
[2008.10.23 19:39:15] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:39:27] BrittaCP: have a card handy for those who are curious
[2008.10.23 19:39:31] shopaholic chick: i have sold tote bags for office gifts - a law firm bought a whole set of them - my design on one side their firm on the reverse!
[2008.10.23 19:39:38] Kate@LittleLizzyLou: make sure to always ALWAYS carry your busines cards with you!
[2008.10.23 19:40:01] flyingwolf: how about suggestions for the people you only see once a year
[2008.10.23 19:40:14] DafnaCP: Yeah, that would work too!
[2008.10.23 19:40:17] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:40:21] Tropicando: I have seen text in sk's description/content that is like a page of text, but less than a paragraph on the actual webpage, is that neccesarily bad?
[2008.10.23 19:41:28] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:41:34] BrittaCP: Can you clarify? do you mean like huge chunks of text in the storefront?
[2008.10.23 19:41:44] matisse: I wrote my urls on my forehead for the Holiday season.
[2008.10.23 19:41:51] LittleLizzyLou Josh: My friends tell me I'm a walking billboard, because I wear littlelizzylou all the time. But I often get asked about my shirts/buttons, and I tell them how they can get one just as cool! :-)
[2008.10.23 19:41:55] TexasFiddler: Tropicando, I experimented with that just to see if it would do anything for me in search engines.
[2008.10.23 19:41:55] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:41:58] KiniArt: Teachers and babysitters are a neglected gift group too
[2008.10.23 19:42:02] Tropicando: like from wikipedia
[2008.10.23 19:42:08] shopaholic chick: matisse - can the url be mine?
[2008.10.23 19:42:22] TexasFiddler: It didn't seem to make a difference.
[2008.10.23 19:42:56] matisse: I am affiliating my forehead!
[2008.10.23 19:43:06] DafnaCP: So lets move on to products
[2008.10.23 19:43:16] DafnaCP: Cards are already taking off.
[2008.10.23 19:43:26] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:43:30] DafnaCP: We’re seeing sales start to ramp up for them so be sure that you’ve added Greeting cards to your storefront and that you’re featuring them.
[2008.10.23 19:43:38] BrittaCP: and don't forget about single cards
[2008.10.23 19:44:07] Dooni Designs: I'm selling alot of mugs all of a sudden
[2008.10.23 19:44:21] DafnaCP: Mugs are big during the holidays
[2008.10.23 19:44:30] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:44:30] DafnaCP: This is also a good time to add calendars and ornaments.
[2008.10.23 19:44:48] shopaholic chick: i always sell a lot of mugs for the holidays - people like to make thier own little gift packages in mugs at holidays
[2008.10.23 19:44:49] TexasFiddler: Sold two ornaments last week!
[2008.10.23 19:45:10] Kate@LittleLizzyLou: you can add that you can fit shirt, bib, buttons, magnets in the mug for a nice gift
[2008.10.23 19:45:17] matisse: I'm getting hits and a few sales of ornaments already.
[2008.10.23 19:45:33] DafnaCP: That's a great idea Lizzy!
[2008.10.23 19:45:59] DafnaCP: I have a list of products that sold well last December
[2008.10.23 19:46:16] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:46:17] DafnaCP: dark t-shirt
white t-shirt
hooded sweatshirt
sweatshirt
mugs
oval stickers
[2008.10.23 19:46:24] DafnaCP: in no particular order
[2008.10.23 19:47:15] TexasFiddler: I asked a long time ago and there were no statistics. Are the cards that are selling well including a sentiment, or are they blank inside? The answer at that time was, "We haven't tracked that."
[2008.10.23 19:47:16] BrittaCP: I don't know the solid information on that. But I would think that if you are doing a holiday specific gift card... it's better ot have a sentiment. That mostly what you see on the shelves.
[2008.10.23 19:47:25] shopaholic chick: the ornaments make a great personal gift tag to hang on a wine bottle
[2008.10.23 19:47:29] Tropicando: Oh wait, I can't complain, I don't think I have christmas designs at all.
[2008.10.23 19:47:37] matisse: oval stickers?
[2008.10.23 19:47:59] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:48:06] DafnaCP: yes, we have oval stickers and apparently they did well last year
[2008.10.23 19:48:12] MaxMuhlin: Put a gold string between two oval stickers and hang them on the Tree!!!!
[2008.10.23 19:48:18] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:48:25] shopaholic chick: matisse a lot of people will add a sticker or a button to hit the coupon thresholds;)
[2008.10.23 19:48:52] Bacon: remember stocking stuffers: buttons, stickers etc.
[2008.10.23 19:49:30] DafnaCP: Let's not forget decoration items. This is a good time to start selling those.
[2008.10.23 19:50:07] DafnaCP: Framed prints and pillows, yard signs, keepsake boxes, tile coasters are all items that make great holiday decor
[2008.10.23 19:50:58] DafnaCP: Does anyone currently have items up that are meant more as holiday decor rather than gifts?
[2008.10.23 19:51:11] MaxMuhlin: Yard Signs to give the neighborhood a Holiday Greeting
[2008.10.23 19:51:24] Tropicando: I have to tell Cafepress something, for the longest time I ignored ornaments, I thought they were like cardboard thingies. Didn't realize they were ceramic. I thought they were like those pine tree car ornaments :)
[2008.10.23 19:51:30] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:51:40] DafnaCP: they're really nice aren't they?!
[2008.10.23 19:51:46] BrittaCP: They are very nice. Aren't you glad you discovered them?
[2008.10.23 19:51:50] LittleLizzyLou Josh: If you haven't seen a yard sign yet - they are great, and impactful!
[2008.10.23 19:51:52] MaxMuhlin: Christmas. . .or I should say HOLIDAY Banners !
[2008.10.23 19:52:01] Dooni Designs: i sell "ornaments" year round.. picking up now though
[2008.10.23 19:52:31] Kate@LittleLizzyLou: the banners are really nice too. very big! would make a nice party sign or something.
[2008.10.23 19:53:02] DafnaCP: yes, I love the banners and I can just see someone putting Noel on one and turing it into mantel decor
[2008.10.23 19:53:13] DafnaCP: I’m often asked which topics sell best on Cafepress.
[2008.10.23 19:53:24] Tropicando: Yeah, I have thank Sag with getting me into selling yardsigns
[2008.10.23 19:53:32] MaxMuhlin: Dogs !!
[2008.10.23 19:53:37] DafnaCP: There isn’t really a good answer to that question.
[2008.10.23 19:53:51] DafnaCP: The answer is, if you’re passionate about it then so are others. The bonus there is that you already know something about your market – because your market is you.
[2008.10.23 19:53:58] DafnaCP: That said, the holidays are all about interest related gifts.
[2008.10.23 19:54:10] DafnaCP: For example, I have an Aunt who is very much into softball.
[2008.10.23 19:54:10] LittleLizzyLou Josh: holiday parties/seasonal house decor
[2008.10.23 19:54:37] DafnaCP: For the holidays I’ll be looking for a shirt that speaks to that interest. Think “Softball Sweetie” or “# 1 Softball Aunt”.
[2008.10.23 19:54:47] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:54:55] DafnaCP: Maybe your aunt is into dogs or music. Whatever the interest, the point is to play it up!
[2008.10.23 19:55:23] MaxMuhlin: I have two very productive Dance - related Premium Shops
[2008.10.23 19:55:55] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:56:14] DafnaCP: Great Max, be sure to add that holiday SEO and you'll do well with them this season!
[2008.10.23 19:56:46] MaxMuhlin: Yes, Teacher gifts. . .
[2008.10.23 19:57:01] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:57:10] QueenBee: When I worked in a retail store we noticed that people bought decor in November and then gifts in December. Is it the same online?
[2008.10.23 19:57:14] BrittaCP: you bet
[2008.10.23 19:57:22] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:57:23] BrittaCP: that's why it's important to be ready to go now
[2008.10.23 19:57:29] shopaholic chick: people start earlier online though
[2008.10.23 19:57:45] DafnaCP: that's true, they do start earlier online
[2008.10.23 19:57:51] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:57:55] DafnaCP: so get 'em up now!
[2008.10.23 19:58:13] shopaholic chick: gifts start going in november because they want to allow for shipping - then right after black friday it will go nuts grabbing everything they couldnt find on black friday
[2008.10.23 19:58:17] TexasFiddler: My sales basically ended last year about the fifteenth of Dec
[2008.10.23 19:58:21] MaxMuhlin: People also buy Whatever Holiday strikes their eye whenever they are in your shop, so leave the designs up all year
[2008.10.23 19:58:25] Kate@LittleLizzyLou: Also, something about this year is that people may start buying earlier, and we might see that sales happen in waves, to go along with paychecks
[2008.10.23 19:58:33] Bacon: Anyone have a Holiday themed shop or section they'd like to show off?
[2008.10.23 19:58:42] BrittaCP: We'll open up the lobby in just aminute
[2008.10.23 19:58:46] BrittaCP: and you guys can all share
[2008.10.23 19:58:49] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 19:58:51] TexasFiddler: Good point, Kate
[2008.10.23 19:59:01] MenagerieMayhem has left the room (logged out)
[2008.10.23 19:59:21] flyingwolf has left the room (logged out)
[2008.10.23 19:59:29] DafnaCP: So unfortunately it's 5:00 and while we didn't cover everything, hopefully you've got a good idea of the creative ways you can make the most of the season.
[2008.10.23 19:59:30] matisse: How soon after 11/4 should we remove poltical designs or should we?
[2008.10.23 19:59:33] BrittaCP: Think about rediesigning those election themes... to comment on the winner and the losers
[2008.10.23 19:59:36] MaxMuhlin: Thaks for some great ideas, Dafna !!
[2008.10.23 19:59:42] MenagerieMayhem has entered the room "CafePress Chat Room"
[2008.10.23 20:00:05] PhotoGirl has left the room (logged out)
[2008.10.23 20:00:10] Message sent to moderator(s)
[2008.10.23 20:00:12] QueenBee: Does CP have a shipping deadline for Christmas?
[2008.10.23 20:00:13] BrittaCP: We'll be announcing those when we roll out our Holiday campaign.
[2008.10.23 20:00:16] Tropicando: Thanks Dafna

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