Halloween is one of those holidays on Etsy where almost anything goes. People all over the world will be piecing together their costumes and decorations by shopping online, thrifting, crafting, looking to Pinterest for inspiration, and (of course) browsing through Etsy. It’s a special holiday on Etsy where virtually any shop can thrive. All you need to do is make a few simple tweaks to your listings. Have you already started prepping? If not, here are some tips you can apply right now to spookify your shop for an Etsy Halloween!
Lions and tigers and bears, oh my!
What’s great about Halloween on Etsy, is that anyone searching for Halloween listings is your target buyer. Buyers will be searching for spooky decorations and costumes, sure. But they’ll also be searching for themed decorations, and unique items to complete their costumes (whether they’re spooky or not).
If you sell vintage items, props, unique clothing, accessories, or themed products (just browse any big-box Halloween shop to see that any theme can be Halloween-related), it pays to cash in on a little Halloween marketing for your Etsy shop.
The good news is that getting ahead of October 31st is relatively simple to do! With a little Halloween-themed branding, you’ll spookify your shop for an Etsy Halloween!
In this article, you’ll learn how to:
- Leverage your existing brand for an Etsy Halloween
- Brainstorm the perfect Halloween products for October
- Market your Etsy products for Halloween
- Make sure your Etsy products arrive to your buyers on time
Let’s get spooky!
Leverage your existing brand for an Etsy Halloween
Take a look at your listings right now. Could you see any of your products being used as Halloween decorations or costumes? You may need to stretch your imagination, just a bit! But, say for example, that you sell vintage or Victorian candles. Well, your products are absolutely worthy for a spooky Etsy Halloween!
But, what if you just sell regular old, custom candles with no ties to Halloween at all? Well, then you need to get creative and throw in a touch of spooky! Since you already offer a customizable product, it’s time to throw in some custom options, specific to Halloween.
Consider changing out some of your listing photos to show your new custom Halloween branding. And if you have time, you can even take it a step further and offer Halloween scents — spooky haunted house scent, anyone?? By tweaking your run-of-the-mill listings, to add a touch of Halloween, you’ll put yourself in front of a wider audience during the lead-up to October.
Etsy Halloween product ideas
Candles are just one example, but this process can be used for other products as well. You just need to get a little creative with how you market your products to show buyers that they’re the exact product they’re looking for this Halloween. Here are some more ideas to spookify your existing products for an Etsy Halloween:
Custom Coffee Mugs: Change out some of your listing photos to show custom Halloween branding, sayings, and themes. Every good ghoul needs a pick-me-up with some dark roast coffee from time to time.
Custom Stationery: What better way to spook your friends than by sending hand-written letters for Halloween, embossed with scary designs and quotes?
“Be afraid, be very afraid”
– The Fly
Handmade Scarves: Not only is October the best time of the year to break out your fall wardrobe, but scarves are also great additions to any Halloween costume. Offer fall-themed colors and change out some of your lifestyle photos to show some dramatic characters modeling your scarf. Witches, wizards, and elements from the 19th century work best. The Headless Horseman agrees.
Handmade Makeup: Ghouls, goblins, and monsters wouldn’t come to life if it weren’t for the makeup that creates them. Again, the key with this one is to change out some of your product photos to show the monster makeup truly come to life. If you have variations of makeup colors, change some of your listings to include Halloween-themed color choices: ‘Monster Green,’ ‘Skeleton White,’ ‘Devil Red.’
The Right Products for an Etsy Halloween
We’ve just shown you some examples of run-of-the-mill items that you might find on Etsy, but with a spooky Halloween twist. But, to make the most of this holiday, it pays to promote the right products.
If your shop already incorporates spiders, skeletons, candles, monsters, blood, or anything that you might find in a horror movie or haunted house, then you have the perfect Halloween products for sale!
Struggling to make the connection to Halloween with your Etsy products? Use the examples above to get your gears turning!
Search your inventory for any products that you can add slight variations of pumpkins, fall, and anything haunted. And if you sell customizable items that you hand paint or print, your entire inventory can be overhauled to make your shop the destination for an Etsy Halloween.
Marketing Your Products for an Etsy Halloween
Once you have some spooky listings in your inventory, you need to get scary with your copy. Update the titles and descriptions of your Etsy listings to include common Halloween phrases, quotes, characters, and popular culture. Then further paint a picture in your description of how your product aligns with the Halloween themes you’re going for.
1. How will your product make the perfect addition to household Halloween decor?
2. What’s the best way to pair your product with other Halloween-related clothing or costumes?
Answer these questions in your product descriptions and with your listing photos. Then use your social media and other marketing channels to further promote your shop. Don’t forget to make sure you remain consistent with your marketing and branding across your social media channels.
Bonus tip: To help you find the best Halloween keywords in your titles and descriptions, use keyword research tools available with Marmalead.
Using the right keywords and tags for an Etsy Halloween
When updating your titles and descriptions for an Etsy Halloween, it’s not quite as easy as placing the word ‘Halloween’ in your tags. Don’t get us wrong, this is a great place to start, but you’ll find competition for this tag to be quite fierce!
Start your keyword research with Marmalead, to find long tail alternatives for Halloween keywords. If you’re selling Halloween coffee mugs, try including long tail variations of the specific niche your coffee mugs fulfill. Rather than relying on the blanket long tail keyword ‘Halloween coffee mugs’ use additional variations that specify the exact niche of your listing.
When you update your tags, titles, and descriptions to include elements of Halloween, you’ll put yourself one step closer to landing the sale during the lead-up to October.
Related: Check out how Marmalead can help you find the best tags for your product
Don’t forget about your delivery dates
When a customer purchases a Halloween decoration or custom accessory from your Etsy shop, ideally they want to receive it well before October 31st. That’s why it’s important to remember that Halloween enthusiasts are searching for Halloween-related items right now (while the hardcore Halloween enthusiasts don’t stop their search all year long).
Nevertheless, bring extra attention to your turn-around and delivery times so buyers can shop confidently in your Etsy shop. All it takes is one “late delivery” to hurt your Etsy shop reviews.
Don’t forget to be realistic with your lead times when it comes to creating your products for an Etsy Halloween. If your custom pieces take a little extra time to create, make sure your buyers are aware of this when they browse through your listings. If they’re expecting to receive their custom-made “Big Bad Werewolf” mask in time for the costume contest the week before Halloween, make sure you’re upfront with your buyer about your production schedule.
Over to you
There’s a handful of tips to help you spookify your shop for an Etsy Halloween! Follow these tips to turn your existing product listings into the perfect choice for Halloween decorations, costume ideas, and the like.
Halloween is fast approaching and now is the time to prepare your Etsy shop for this upcoming Etsy Holiday. Go try out some of these tips in the lead-up to October 31st. Once your shop is set up to market your products for an Etsy Halloween, let us know what you’ll be selling in the comments below!
