Shape up for 2011

We're just days away from a lot of messages about diet, exercise, and resolutions for the new year, but this won't have you thinking about crunches and salads to get over any excesses in 2010. Rather, it's a few friendly reminders about getting an Etsy shop in tip-top shape for the start of a successful year of selling!

#1 - Don't welcome me to your shop.
Really, don't, at least not right away. Not because you don't want me and other buyers to show up, and to feel welcomed, but because starting with that friendly "Welcome to my shop" is such a waste of the key first characters in your valuable Shop Announcement space!

Don't take my word for it - read this ever-so-helpful Etsy excerpt about Shop Announcements, from the Help section on SEO (Search Engine Optimization):

"The first 160 characters of your Shop Announcement are used to create the meta description for your shop page. The meta description is the text shown under your page title on a search engine results page.

TIPS: Describe your shop and the kinds of items you sell. Use welcoming language that will entice someone to explore your shop further. Use keywords that you think shoppers will search to find your items."

And when was the last time someone searched for "Welcome to my shop!"?

Read the article, here. It's a much-shortened version of the big 25-page SEO Guide. You'll also learn about how to make the shop title, item titles, shop sections and item descriptions work harder for you.

Images from SurrenderDorothy and justmars, thanks!

Time to update your Shop Announcement?

This week I clicked on every one of our Team members' shop links to cull closed shops and be sure all our new members are included too.

Something I noticed while scanning the Shop Announcements is that some are a tad behind the times. I spotted notices about sales that ended last year, plenty of Christmas references, long-past away-for-vacation announcements, and even a mention of Halloween!

In the fine Etsy tradition, there's no "calling out" or naming of names here, but more a friendly reminder that everything from the Shop Announcement to individual listings and Policies needs an occasional review.

Image of a vintage desk calendar from ExpressionsDesign, thanks!