Wholesale holiday prep: 5 tips for a successful, stress-free season

Between concerns over inflation and continued supply chain bottlenecks, wholesale holiday shopping will look a little different this year. In its 2022 Global Consumer Behavior Report, Astound Commerce found that consumers will be price-conscious and forward-thinking as we go into the season, shopping between two and six months ahead of the holidays to avoid supply chain problems and the rush for limited inventory.

Earlier consumer shopping naturally means earlier demand from retailers, who are likely to place smaller, more frequent orders on ready-to-ship items. To help independent brands like yours prepare, we’re here with the tips you need to set your brand apart, capture early demand, meet retailer needs, and reach new buyers. In short: a shopping experience that results in less stress and more orders.

1. Create an eye-catching collection

Collections—curated sets of products neatly organized on your Faire shop page—are a strategic tool to help buyers find your bestselling or newest products, and a seasonal collection can quickly grab the attention of retailers shopping for the holidays. They’re simple to frame a campaign around and make browsing and curating easy for retailers. Two easy-to-implement ideas:

Create collections around winter- and holiday-themed items, or products that make for great gifts. Use keywords we know retailers search for in the title, such as “holiday” or “stocking stuffers.”
Curate a “staples” or “high-sell-through” collection framed around products that you know shoppers will always want. This more evergreen selection is attractive to retailers looking for inventory that will maintain appeal well past winter.

2. Assure retailers with up-to-date information

With so many retailers currently browsing for the holiday season, now is the time to double-check that any new or seasonal inventory is added to your store and reflects the most accurate information.

When browsing Faire, retailers have the option to filter by several factors, including location, value tags, and order minimum. Keeping your order minimum low—around $150 or below—can increase the chances of your products showing up in a filtered search by a potential buyer and of retailers clicking through to your brand page. In addition, keeping your case quantity (the total number of units a retailer is required to buy for a single product) low can help increase the chances of a new retailer trying out your products.

You’ll also want to make sure that your product photography is up to date. Photography often serves as the first impression of your brand, so it’s essential that your imagery reflects the quality and care put into the product. If your imagery is outdated, use this holiday season as an opportunity for a refresh. If you’re adding holiday-specific products to your line, consider staging a unique photoshoot that reflects the seasonality of the items.

Head here for even more tips on how to get your brand discovered on Faire.

3. Share accurate shipping information

Informing your customers of when they can expect their shipment to arrive is especially crucial during the holiday season. To ensure buyers know what to expect, update the lead time in your brand portal and be as accurate as possible when sharing expected ship dates. If you’re concerned about unexpected shipping delays as the holidays grow near, consider encouraging your retailers to plan and buy their holiday inventory early.

Clear and constant communication with customers is key when it comes to holiday shipping. Plus, providing quality customer service during this busy season can help create repeat customers year-round. For more shipping information, see our Help Center guides:

4. Turn up your marketing channels

Staying on top of your digital marketing channels can help grow awareness of your brand, draw in new customers, and re-engage existing ones. Many of today’s consumers and retail buyers use social media as a tool for discovering new brands, and having a presence on at least one social media platform is an easy way to showcase your unique products and draw in new audiences.

For example, here are some tips that you could leverage on Instagram:

Geotag to help build an association between your brand and your community. Instagram collects all geotags from the same location and organizes them with the most recent first, making geotagging a good way to foster community around your brick-and-mortar.
Use hashtags to increase effectiveness. They make it easier for new consumers and retail buyers to find your posts because they can search for exactly what they want.
Share your most important posts on Instagram Stories. Save them as Highlights so new visitors can easily find them.

Similarly, email marketing is a valuable tool to engage customers this holiday season. Sending dedicated emails to segmented groups goes a long way to increasing your conversion rate on Faire. The Customers tab in your brand portal allows you to create your own custom email lists using a variety of filters. This way, for example, you could offer a nudge to new retailers by sending an email to:

Customers who’ve never placed an order
Customers who have products in their cart but haven’t checked out
Customers with unused Faire Direct Credit

You can also curate a smaller group of retailers who you feel would be a perfect fit for your products and create targeted email campaigns just for them. We suggest sending between three and five email campaigns a month to different segments of your Customers tab. Visit our Help Center to learn how to create custom email lists.

5. Entice shoppers with a holiday promotion

Creating promotions for the holiday season is a worthwhile way to both attract new shoppers and reward loyal customers. Use Faire’s marketing tools to let your existing customers know you appreciate them with an exclusive promotion, or give new shoppers an incentive to make their first purchase with an introductory discount. You can also advertise your discount on your marketing channels.

New this year, you can run promotions on specific products: an ideal tool for showcasing seasonal products or spurring interest in excess inventory. There’s no limit to how many product-specific promotions you can run concurrently.

Try using a product-specific promotion in targeted email campaigns like those mentioned earlier in this post. For example, you can:

Target new or returning customers
Target high-intent groups, like those with a cart modified in the past seven days or those who last ordered 60-plus days ago
Use high-searched keywords in subject lines

View our Help Center for more detailed information on running a promotion on Faire.

And here’s to a successful, stress-free holiday season.