The Power of the AI Description Writer in Shopify

Let’s use the power of the AI Description Writer in Shopify to keep up with the rapidly evolving world of e-commerce. The quality of product descriptions can make or break a sale.

A well-crafted description can entice potential customers, highlight key features, and create an emotional connection. However, writing compelling and unique descriptions for every product can be a daunting and time-consuming task. This is where the AI Description Writer in Shopify comes into play, offering a revolutionary solution to streamline and enhance the process. Let’s look at the benefits of using the AI Description Writer and how it can transform your online store.

Enhancing Efficiency

Traditionally, crafting product descriptions involved extensive research, writing, and editing, taking up significant time and resources. With the AI Description Writer, Shopify merchants can save time and effort by automating this process. The AI model leverages the power of natural language processing and machine learning algorithms to generate high-quality product descriptions in a matter of seconds. This enables businesses to focus on other critical aspects of their operations while still maintaining an impressive and consistent product presentation.

Since I have always written my own descriptions, the idea of using the AI Description Writer to write them for me seems a bit foreign. I decided to give it a chance with a product that I already had a description for and let it work its magic.

The magic purple thingies in the left hand corner is where the AI Description Writer lives. Click it.

The Power of the AI Description Writer in Shopify

Using the Power of the AI Description Writer in Shopify to Create High-Quality Content

The AI Description Writer is trained on vast amounts of data and understands the nuances of language, ensuring the generated content is coherent and engaging. The descriptions produced by the AI are tailored to highlight the unique features, benefits, and selling points of each product. By using the AI Description Writer, Shopify merchants can consistently produce professional-grade descriptions that captivate customers, boost conversions, and drive sales.

While I wasn’t quite happy with the description it came up with, I did tweak it to my liking. Since I work in SEO, I do try to keep up. Although, I have to say that my Shopify store front has not kept up since the product descriptions have not been rewritten over the years. Maybe, I should use AI to beef them up.

Most of this description was written by AI, but I tweaked here and there. Here is what I tweaked:

The Power of the AI Description Writer in Shopify

Customization and Personalization

I think that the AI tool writes fairly generic and impersonal descriptions. However, the AI Description Writer in Shopify allows for customization to align with your brand’s voice and style. You can provide specific guidelines, keywords, or even snippets of existing product descriptions to maintain consistency and inject your brand’s personality. The AI model adapts to these inputs, generating descriptions that seamlessly integrate with your store’s existing content and reflect your unique brand identity.

Here is the final product:

The Power of the AI Description Writer in Shopify

Continuous Improvement

The AI Description Writer in Shopify is not a static tool. It is a dynamic system that continuously learns and improves over time. As it generates more descriptions and receives feedback from merchants, it refines its understanding and language capabilities. This iterative process ensures that the AI model becomes more accurate, efficient, and aligned with your brand’s requirements, delivering even better results as you continue to use it.

Read this post to help you write your Shopify meta tags.

Seamless Integration and User-Friendliness

Shopify’s AI Description Writer seamlessly integrates into the platform, making it easily accessible and user-friendly. The intuitive interface allows merchants to generate product descriptions with a few simple clicks. You do not need any technical expertise or coding knowledge. There’s nothing to install either. It’s already in the Shopify description box.

Conclusion

In today’s competitive e-commerce landscape, standing out from the crowd is crucial. Compelling product descriptions play a significant role in achieving that. The AI Description Writer in Shopify empowers merchants by automating the process of generating high-quality, customized, and persuasive descriptions.

By harnessing the power of artificial intelligence, Shopify merchants can save time, improve efficiency, and enhance their online store’s performance. Embracing this technology gives you time to concentrate on building your business, not writing descriptions.

Don’t have a Shopify store? Check out their free trial.

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How to Write Shopify Meta Information

Knowing how to write Shopify meta titles and descriptions will go a long way toward being seen in organic searches on Google, Bing, or any of the other search tools. You have to think like a copywriter (give the reader the benefits as to why they need to buy your product), and write like a novelist (be entertaining and engaging) and do it all with a human flare.

Here are some tips that I have learned about writing effective meta titles and descriptions for Shopfy:

Write Shopify Meta Titles

Your meta title acts as an important SEO signal and typically appears as the clickable headline in search results. Here’s how to write a great one:

  • Keep it within the limit – Google typically displays the first 50-60 characters of a title tag. If you keep your title under 60 characters, you can expect at least 90% of your titles to display properly.
  • Incorporate keywords – Make sure to use the main keyword for which you want the page to rank. The keyword should fit naturally within the title.
  • Be descriptive – Describe accurately what your page offers. This helps users to understand if it’s relevant to their search.
  • Entice the user – Make the title catchy and attractive so that users want to click on it.

Example: Organic Cotton Shirts for Men | YourBrandName

I am including a meta title and description that I wrote years ago for one of my products. I am way over Google’s recommendations for word count on the description.

Write Shopify Meta title and description to include relevant keywords.

Meta Descriptions

Your meta description acts as a short summary of a page’s content and can influence a user’s decision to click through or not.

  • Stay within the character limit – Google typically truncates meta descriptions to 160 characters. To ensure your entire description is visible, keep it below this length. Mine was way too long as it was.
  • Use your keywords –Just like with the title, incorporate the primary and secondary keywords naturally within the description.
  • Be clear and descriptive – Describe your product or service accurately. This will help users decide whether to click on your link.
  • Use a call to action – Encourage users to click on your link with a compelling call to action.

Example: Discover our range of high-quality, organic cotton shirts for men. Ethically sourced and designed to last. Shop now at YourBrandName!

After doing some fresh SEO searches using Google, I came up with some other keywords that I want to use in this product. I want to add best teacher gifts, best gifts for female teachers, idea for teacher gift because they are long-tail keywords with medium competition.

Write Shopify Meta title and description to include relevant keywords.

Remember that your meta titles and descriptions represent your brand in the search results. They should be appealing, accurate, and reflect the content of the page. It’s worth spending time on these to improve your SEO and click-through rates.

Don’t have a Shopify store? Sign up for your FREE trial here:

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Why Blogging is Good for Your Business

Blogging is good for your business by providing a number of benefits for your business. In today’s digital age, blogging has become a powerful tool for businesses to connect with their target audience and establish a strong online presence. While some may view blogging as a hobby or personal outlet, it offers numerous benefits that can significantly impact the success of a business. If you ever wondered whether you should start a blog or get better at being consistent at blogging, keep reading.

Blogging is Good for Your Business because it Boosts Search Engine Visibility

One of the key benefits of blogging is its positive impact on search engine optimization (SEO). By regularly publishing high-quality blog posts that incorporate relevant keywords and topics, you increase your website’s visibility in search engine results. Search engines value fresh, original content, and each blog post presents an opportunity to optimize for specific keywords and attract organic traffic. Increased visibility in search results can lead to higher website traffic and better brand exposure.

Blogging Establishes Thought Leadership

Blogging allows you to showcase your expertise and position yourself as a thought leader in your industry. By sharing valuable insights, industry trends, and expert opinions through blog posts, you demonstrate your knowledge and credibility. This positions your business as a trusted source of information and establishes your authority within your niche. Thought leadership can lead to increased trust from potential customers, media recognition, and opportunities for collaborations or speaking engagements.

blogging is good for your business

Blogging for your Business Drives Website Traffic and Lead Generation

Regularly publishing blog posts creates opportunities to drive traffic to your website. Engaging and informative content attracts visitors who are seeking information or solutions related to your industry. By including relevant calls-to-action within your blog posts, such as inviting readers to sign up for a newsletter or download a resource, you can generate leads and expand your customer base. Blogs provide a platform for capturing potential customers’ attention and nurturing them into loyal clients.

Fosters Customer Engagement and Interaction

Blogging opens the door for meaningful interactions with your audience. Through comments and social media shares, readers can engage in conversations, share their thoughts, and ask questions related to your blog posts. This direct engagement allows you to build relationships with your audience, gain valuable feedback, and understand their needs and preferences better. Responding to comments and fostering discussions demonstrates your commitment to customer satisfaction and builds a loyal community around your brand.

Blogging Supports Content Marketing Strategy

Blogging serves as a core element of an effective content marketing strategy. By consistently producing high-quality blog posts, you create a library of content that can be repurposed across various channels. Blog posts can be shared on social media, featured in newsletters, or adapted into video or audio formats. This repurposing increases your content reach, attracts a wider audience, and reinforces your brand message consistently across different platforms.

Improves Brand Awareness and Reputation

Consistent blogging helps raise brand awareness and contributes to shaping a positive reputation for your business. By offering valuable content, you increase the visibility of your brand and establish a stronger online presence. As readers find your blog posts helpful and informative, they are more likely to share your content with their networks, thereby amplifying your brand’s reach. Over time, a well-maintained blog can become a valuable asset that enhances your brand’s reputation and fosters a positive perception among potential customers.

Blogging offers a multitude of benefits for businesses in the digital landscape. By investing time and effort into creating valuable, well-crafted blog posts, you can unlock the potential to attract and retain customers, enhance your industry standing, and ultimately achieve long-term business success.

If you would like to start blogging or don’t have time to blog, then feel free to contact me, and I will help you with either pre-written blog posts for your industry or affordable SEO content for your site.

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Why You Should Use Printify to Boost Your Sales

Use Printify to create products for holidays like Mother's Day or other personalized gift ideas.

I’ve been using Printify for a long time, and I’ve incorporated it into my Shopify and my Etsy store, as well as offered some products on Amazon. Printify is a print-on-demand service that allows you to create and sell custom products without the need to invest in inventory, production, or shipping. There is no inventory to keep and you get to be as crazy creative as you want with your designs! The above Mother mug was something that I created just for Mother’s Day, so be sure and create holiday themed products for that extra boost of sales.

How Does Printify Work?

If you’re wondering how does Printify work, then you’ll be happy to know it’s really simple. Every product on the Printify website has a template available, so you know when you’re working within the print boundaries. All you have to do is take that fantastic photo or create that stunning artwork and find a product that you want to display it on. Use the templates and set your design. If you want to see more about how Printify works, then read this post about using Printify to create spinoff products and earn more revenue.

How Can Printify Boost Sales?

By using Printify to generate income, you can leverage several key benefits:

  1. Low startup costs: Printify’s print-on-demand model eliminates the need for inventory, which significantly reduces upfront costs. You only pay for a product when a customer orders it, and Printify handles production and shipping.
  2. Wide range of products: Printify offers a vast selection of products, including clothing, home décor, and accessories. This variety allows you to cater to different target markets and expand your product offerings easily. I have found that the wearable departments like T-shirts are the most challenging to work with, so I don’t sell them. If you have time to keep up with the changing suppliers and sizing, then t-shirts can be lucrative. I never wanted to deal with people wanting to return them due to the wrong size. But, that’s just me.
  3. Customization and branding: With Printify, you can create unique designs and branding elements for your products. This personal touch can help you stand out from competitors and attract more customers. It’s easy to set up a template for your customers to customize. This will require you to manually send the order in, but personalization is a big seller no matter what the product is.
  4. Easy integration with popular ecommerce platforms: Printify integrates seamlessly with ecommerce platforms like Shopify, WooCommerce, and Etsy. This allows you to manage your online store and track orders effortlessly.
  5. Automated order fulfillment: When a customer places an order, Printify automatically takes care of production and shipping, saving you time and effort. I never have to worry about fulfilling orders on my website or my Etsy shop, but since I manually add my products to Amazon, I do have to manually send those orders in.
  6. Global reach: Printify’s network of printing partners spans across North America, Europe, and Asia, enabling you to sell and ship products worldwide. This broad reach can help you tap into new markets and increase your income potential.
  7. Scalability: As your business grows, Printify’s print-on-demand model ensures that you can easily scale without the need for additional investments in inventory or production facilities.
  8. Eco-friendly and sustainable: Print-on-demand reduces waste by only producing items when they’re ordered. This approach is more environmentally friendly compared to traditional retail methods that rely on mass production and unsold inventory. I like this part because I have a closet full of beads and jewelry! If I am going to a show, then I will have some mugs made or have prints made ahead of time. If you run out and you’re using Shopify, you can take the order right there at the show through your tablet or phone and let Printify take over for you. I like that part a lot!

How Can You Get Started with Printify?

If you’d like to take a look at Printify’s wide variety of products, click here. There are so many to choose from that it’s hard to decide, but some day, I want to do children’s clothing and pet products. If you sign up through my link, I may make a little commission that comes from Printify, so I thank you!

Here is more information on using Printify to open a print on demand store.

Open your own Printify store or add it to your Shopify, Etsy or Woocommerce platform.
Open your own Printify store or add it to your Shopify, Etsy or Woocommerce platform.

While I don’t sell every product that Printify offers, I do use the ones that work well with my artwork or photography. I like their coffee mugs, prints, posters, and canvas wall art and have many of these products in my home featuring my photography.

Do You Need a Shopify Site or Printify Account?

If you need a Shopify account, click here to sign up for a free trial. I might make a little commission if you sign up, so again, thank you!

Do You Need Images for Your New Printify Account?

If you like this post, then please share it with your friends! I appreciate all the help I can get to get my posts shared, and I always love comments, so feel free to let me know what you think! 🙂

How to Create Greeting Cards using Printify or Zazzle

Greeting cards are a hot commodity, and when you can design and sell your own, you have an extra revenue stream for your website or your Zazzle store. 

If you are looking for art to use, then check out the backgrounds and images available on Creative Market. I used some sort of Creative Market image for all of these example cards. I have a soft spot for watercolor art. 

You can get your own Creative Market art by clicking the ad below. I will earn a small commission for your support. Thank you!

If you need a place to host your creative greeting cards, then check out Shopify – I’ve been with them for seven or eight years now – or IndieMade where many of my handmade friends have shops. 

Click the banner for more information.


If you don’t have a Printify account, open one today and start making extra income with your prints and photos. I use them for all of my hot rod mugs and prints!

​Thank you for stopping by and say “hi” by leaving a comment. Please share this post. 

How to Turn Your Unhappy Customers Around

Online selling is hard. I do not get to see my customers face-to-face. I also know that the burden of trust is on them, and I must do everything within my power to maintain and nurture that trust. There are a lot of reasons for customer dissatisfaction. 

Like you, I am sure we have all had hundreds and hundreds of online purchases over the years that we did based on the trust of the website or profile. I am sure that you, like me, stopped a few times and thought maybe this was not going to go well. We either turned away or went forward.

What do you do if a customer is not satisfied?

First, that customer must come to you for a resolution. If they cannot get it resolved by coming to you, they will take it to the card processor or their credit card. This is their legal right to get a resolution. The seller – you and me – is responsible to get a package to a customer no matter what crazy thing happens at the shipping company. This is our obligation. If a customer is not happy, you can bet they are going to do what they can to let everyone know they are not happy. I have seen this happen to a few sellers I know. It is not pretty and it was not handled well.

The first place many unhappy customers go to is the vendor’s website if they are a part of a marketplace like Etsy or any of the others. They file complaints there after they have tried to get you to resolve the problem. Independent website owners like me may find that our merchant account processor will let us know of a problem.

After that, they are headed for the social network tsunami. As much as we like to use social networks to get our products out, people who feel they are being ignored or wronged like to use them to take you to task for your negligence.

If you find yourself in this situation, there are several steps you can take to calm the situation down and turn it around.

First of all, no matter what the customer’s complaint, there should have been a resolution from the minute they yelled foul regarding the item. Regardless of who they first complained to, the first time you heard the complaint, you should have handled it. That keeps it from becoming a social media smackdown.

If for whatever reason you find yourself being blasted on social media or complaint websites or reputation websites, you must handle it.

1- Acknowledge the customer.

Let the customer know that you are there and that you hear them. They want to be acknowledged. This does not have to be public, but if you can, it does help your brand and reputation if you can acknowledge it publicly. This shows the many lurkers that you care and will engage in a civil conversation to rectify the situation.

– Hi, Jane, I heard you were having a problem with my widget. Can you let me know exactly what the problem is because I am not sure I understand what has happened here?

Open and friendly.

2- Understand the customer’s problem.

It is not enough to just acknowledge the customer, you must understand the customer’s problem. Until you can understand it, you cannot fix it. If you make your widgets, you know what needs to be done to either meet their expectation or refund their purchase.

– Your widget does not fit my widget holder. I want you to fix that.

Again, if you can do all this publically on your Facebook page or blog site, the more, the better. You can engage all the participants in the group in a discussion on how to resolve the problem. Maybe the widget will never fit because the two pieces are not compatible. You will want to refund and pay for return shipping.

Maybe Jane is trying to fit the wrong end of the widgets together. Help her to make this work for her.

3- Sympathize with the customer.

You do not need to be disingenuous. Surely, you as a consumer can find a place to meet the customer where you understand their frustration and anger. If you have ever had to call the cable company or any other big business that does not care about you, you know how frustrating that is.

You can understand where your customer may be disappointed in the product. It’s not the end of the world, and your ego will survive an unhappy customer. This is about your customer, not you.

– Jane, I can see where you might think that those two widget ends would go together. Do you have Model 374747? If so, your new widget will not fit without an adaptor.

4- Gather information to help the customer.

Jane does have Model 374747, so her new widget will not fit properly without an adaptor.

Once the customer tells you what they want you to do to help them, prepare to do that.

If the customer tells you they want their money back, then it is okay to tell them you would be happy to do that once you receive your product back. DO NOT make this an issue. If you want the product back, especially if it is expensive or can be resold, then send them the postage to get it back to you. A public fight with a customer is not worth the price of postage.

For the customer to send the package back to you, create a postage label for yourself from the customer using whatever postage software you use. Then email a PDF file to the customer that they can print out and tape to the return box. This is the best way to get the product back with the least amount of trouble.

Send the postage with delivery confirmation and insurance. Do not leave this in the hands of the customer or make it their responsibility to get the product back. Help them to get it done, and explain to them how to attach the label and anything else they need to know. You are the professional; they are not.

5- Offer the customer a solution.

– Hi Jane, I am sorry, but that widget will not fit that model. However, I can help you with that by either sending you an adaptor free of charge, or you can return the widget for your money back. 

Remember, this entire conversation and exchange is taking place in real-time in front of an audience. You must maintain a professional and courteous demeanor. If you need to charge them for the extra part, then let them know up front. 

By using these steps in a calm and friendly way, you gain the trust of a lot of people, and that means a lot in the world of online retail.

If it should get so far out of hand because others are jumping into the conversation, just take it private. You are not trying to hide the fact that there is a problem, but you do deserve a chance to discuss this with the customer in a less hostile environment.

If you find that there are complaints against you on reputation sites, then by all means, go to the site and find out what the problem is. You only have your reputation and a few photos to gain the trust of your prospective customers. You should work just as hard on your reputation as you do your photos.

This is not a matter of who is right and who is wrong. This is about business. It is about YOUR business, and what you may need to do to keep growing. You can write off postage and products if you have to, but you cannot buy a good reputation.

This scenario is assuming that the customer is a civilized individual without a vendetta or a mission to destroy you and your reputation as a seller. We all know that there are just some people who cannot be helped and we should part ways as soon as we recognize this. It is okay to stand your ground with an unreasonable customer.
Even if you do find yourself with an unhappy customer, selling online is a lot of fun; you get to meet a lot of interesting people, and you are making money. Don’t have a website, then sign up for a Shopify free trial, or open your artist website on Indiemade. The companies pay me a little money (no cost to you) if you sign up. It helps keep me running my blogs. 


The Pros and Cons of Twitter for Business

Image by Shahid Abdullah from Pixabay

When I scheduled this article into my calendar last year, Twitter was a stable platform with reliable levels of performance. Since that time, it has undergone new management and has become less stable with skewed reports. This article is based on the way it has performed for me in the past with the anticipation that it will return to a stable social media site in the future.

Pros and Cons of Twitter for Business

As a small business owner/writer/artist, the best way for me to get my products to the public is through social media platforms like Twitter. Like all social media, there are pros and cons of using Twitter for marketing. I wrote about a few of those in my Pinterest article.

I have found that all of the platforms go through upheaval along their lifespan and sometimes changes are necessary on your end to determine whether or not to continue with your promotions on the sites. Since so many of the newly minted business school graduates like to disrupt to motivate growth, it is best to not rely on one place for all things. It will change.

There are a couple of types of marketing available to you on the Twitter platform. One is free and the other is paid sponsored posts. I do not pay Twitter to post, so all of my marketing efforts use the free version. This means that I do the posting and work with a networking group of handmade artists to retweet their posts.

Here are some of the pros of using Twitter for business:

  • You can engage with people responding to your tweet on a personal level;
  • Feedback on your product or service can be instrumental in growing your business;
  • It is a good first step toward getting someone to look at more products;
  • You can build a community by asking people to follow you;
  • Tweets are short and sweet, so you can write several of them and schedule them to post at various times;
  • Your tweets go around the world while you sleep;
  • Hashtags help you track your reach;
  • You can connect with friends and set up a tweet network (this is how I manage my tweets);
  • You can hire someone to do this marketing for you.

Here are some of the cons of using Twitter for business:

  • Getting followers can be difficult;
  • You need followers to get more eyes on your products;
  • You need to respond to tweets and keep them alive;
  • You are open to negative comments that can break your business;
  • Not all followers are engaged;
  • Your message may be considered spam that can turn followers off;
  • Your ROI can be low;
  • If you hire someone to tweet for you, make sure you know them and approve all tweets;
  • Trolls can break your business for fun.

If you are wondering how often you should post on Twitter for your business, my networking group posts at least three times a week, and we do retweets the rest of the time. Anytime I am on Twitter and I see tweets from my friends, I hit the retweet button to give the tweet a boost.

Twitter can be a toxic place, which brings me to the disclaimer I added at the beginning of this article. I have used Twitter for my business since 2008, and over that time, I have found that it does a reasonable job of getting traffic to my website. Whether or not that will continue in the future is yet to be determined, but I hope that it will still give me and my handmade artist friends a place to share our wares and make some sales. 

There are a lot of books on Twitter available, but if you want to really delve into marketing, this might be the book for you. It is an older book, so it won’t take into consideration the current 240 character limit and it is only available in paperback, but the marketing principles and the actual platform are the same. Check it out for yourself.

If you liked this post or want to add something to it, then hit me up with a comment. Share this with all of your social media friends. I appreciate it.

Pros and Cons of Pinterest for Business

Image by Shahid Abdullah from Pixabay

If you’re running a business, then you know how important word-of- mouth advertising is to your bottom line. This is particularly true when your business is online. Unless your business is very new, you
‘re probably already sharing on social media

While not a social media site, Pinterest is an integral part of online ecommerce. In 2010, this new site gave the public a place to pin (as in bulletin board) their favorite ideas, photos and content as a visual idea board.

Creatives will recognize this as an inspiration/design board and wedding planners may have been the first to really grasp the concept. Once people realized they could visualize their ideas, Pinterest took off. 

As a jewelry designer and bead maker, I was on board from the beginning. Pinterest has made some changes over the years, but for the most part, pinning still offers artists and online sellers a great place to show off their wares. 

Here are some pros and cons that I have found over the years:

Pros

  • 433 million global users a month;
  • Qualified audience with an average income of $75,000;
  • The search engine is accurate without any “suggestions” from the site;
  • Conversions are higher;
  • Marketing budget can be almost zero;
  • Photographers and graphic designers can set up a samples board for clients;
  • Private boards can be set up for clients where ideas can be worked out;
  • All boards are public, so everyone has a chance to see your content;
  • You can add a link to your photo driving traffic to your site;
  • Users find it to be a positive site without negative images or advertising;
  • Posts have a longer life-span around 4 months; 
  • It is a great source of inspiration and mood for artists and designers.

Cons

  • It takes a while for a post to gain traction;
  • It can be very niche oriented, which is good if you have a niche;
  • You need to constantly share in order to get traffic;
  • Images can be shared without the link to your site;
  • Images can be stolen and uncredited later;
  • Design ideas can be copied without your knowledge;
  • There are specific image requirements such as size and dimensions;
  • It can be time consuming to post several times a day;
  • Scheduling software can be expensive.

I know that Pinterest drives a lot of traffic to my site, but it’s also very easy to get into trouble with the site. They only want certain content, products and information on their site, so it can be tough to get your site okayed.

I’ve run afoul of their requirements by having the same “About Me” across the internet. I’ve been selling online since 1996, so yeah, it can be a duplicate. If they send you a rejection, just comply, as they are a great source of traffic and sales. 

If you need a site, then check out Shopify. They have a free trial.

With Shopify, there is an addon that will do scheduling for you. I use Outfy to run all of my product posts. If you need help, you can hire a freelancer to do things for you. 

Should I Close My Store for the Holidays?

The holidays are just upon us, and every year I wrestle with the conflict between “should I keep my store open, or should I close it and take some time off?”. The last few years I have been faced with a mountain of paperwork that needed to be done at the end of the year, and I have had an office/studio/bedroom that looked like a herd of wildebeest had run through it.

Veteran sellers always said they took the time off at the holidays because they had worked so hard. That was back in the day when eBay was hot and they were selling collectibles. Those times have changed, and now everyone scrambles for every dollar they can get since online sales are not the least bit reliable.

Let’s look at the Pros and Cons of keeping your store open:

Pros

  • More income as people spend holiday money
  • The chance to get rid of more inventory
  • Clearance and holiday sales to spur buying
  • People are home during the holidays
  • Post-Christmas shopping

Cons

  • You have to work during the holidays
  • People expect things delivered quickly
  • No time to spend with family
  • Gambling the income will be worth it

Personally, I prefer to take the time off and work towards making up the income difference along the next year. I am less stressed, and it gives me a chance to breakdown my art studio, clean and reorganize. I throw things to the side when I am packaging orders one right after the other, so it’s a real mess by the time I shut down. I do the same thing with my bookkeeping, too.

This year, I am shutting down the second week of December. This helps me avoid the stress of people asking where their package is and will it get to them by Christmas.

In the meantime, during my holiday, I am going to catch up on some of my reading!

Happy Holidays!
Julie
PS – Here are a few things on my reading list this year:

Decorate Your E-Commerce Store for the Holidays!

Decorate Your Store for the Holidays!

You wouldn’t shop in a mall store that didn’t have holiday decorations up in December, so why would your online customers want to shop at your website if there are no decorations to enjoy?

Decorating is really easy. There are so many freebie graphics available on the internet that you can use to spruce up your logo or even create a banner. 

Here are some ways to spread good cheer:

  • Add a wreath to your logo
  • Add a holiday greeting to your home page
  • Create a banner ad with holly and mistletoe
  • Add festive stripes to your pages 

Here are some great places to get festive decorations for your website:
Pixabay 
Public Domain Vectors 


Creative Market

When you need graphics for your website or ideas for your Printify products, do like I do and shop at Creative Market where you’ll find thousands of ideas and premade graphics to choose from.