Holiday Sales Without the Hustle: Preparing Offers That Actually Sell

Can you really have a profitable holiday sales season without the burnout?

 Absolutely — but only if you plan ahead.

In this episode, Kaylie and Delores share how to prep for holiday sales now (yes, even in August!) so you’re not scrambling through Q4. 

Whether you sell handmade goods, digital products, art prints, or teach online — this episode is packed with real examples, tools, and advice to help you lay the groundwork calmly.

✨ Topics We Cover:

• Why your November sales are built in August
• How Delores plans 12–18 months in advance (and why you should, too!)
• What to repurpose, refresh, or bundle from last year’s offers
• How to spot trends and winning product ideas on Etsy and Pinterest
• Gifting psychology + easy upsell ideas for handmade & digital sellers
• Smart scheduling tips for emails, Pinterest, and social content
• Print-on-demand tips (platforms like Zazzle, Printify, Gooten & more)
• How small touches = big brand loyalty
• The importance of visuals, mockups, and batching promo graphics

Whether you're launching a seasonal product line or want to prep a few evergreen giftables, this episode is your calm-before-the-chaos checklist.

🎁 Plus, Kaylie shares details about her upcoming Holiday Sales Prep Workshop — a planning session to help you map your offers, email strategy, and visuals with ease. Find the waitlist link in the show notes!

🎧 Listen now and start building a holiday season that sells without the stress.

🔗 Resources mentioned:
– Kaylie’s Holiday Email Templates + Workshop Waitlist (You will get the option for the holiday email bundle once signed up for the workshop)
– Creative Market, Etsy, Zazzle, Printify, Prodigi, Gooten
– Delores's resources

Tag us on Instagram and share what you’re prepping!
@spellweavercreativestudio @deloresartcanada

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Delores Naskrent - Website & Digital Art School - Instagram - Facebook - Pinterest - Youtube

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Transcript

Kaylie Edwards: [00:00:00] Welcome back to the Creative Juggle Joy podcast. I'm Kaylie Edwards, creative mentor and Toddler Mum from North Wales. And I'm here with my lovely co-host, Canadian artist and educator, Delores Naskrent. 

Delores Naskrent: Hi everybody. We're thrilled that you're tuning in. Today, we're diving into something really timely and that's preparation for holiday sales.

But not in a frantic, burnout inducing way. That's why we're talking about it so soon. We're talking practical, calm, and proactive planning. 

Kaylie Edwards: Well, selling handmade goods, digital art, or products on platforms like Zazzle or Etsy. Now in August is the time to lay the groundwork for stress free and profitable holiday sales.

Delores Naskrent: Yeah, 

Kaylie Edwards: here's the thing. Your November income is built now. In August and September, I used to resist this, but I've learned the hard [00:01:00] way that early planning gives you breathing space and makes your sales feel more joyful instead of chaotic. 

Delores Naskrent: And isn't it always the hard way first? I don't even know that.

Does it ever not happen the hard way first? And thinking back of all of the mistakes I've made, this is one of the things that you can really, learn from with people who have experience. And if you're designing stuff for selling on print, on demand, or you're uploading products to platforms like Zazzle, you need that lead time.

Learn from our mistakes. Their systems need time to index your products and customers need time to find them. 

Kaylie Edwards: Yes. Like the algorithms change, the search engines change. You need to make sure that you give them the time they need to be able to index and put your products out there. And sometimes they don't show when you want them [00:02:00] to.

And if you try and put them up the week before Christmas, it's not gonna work. So make sure you get them in beforehand. And it same goes for like, Delores will even say that art licensing and things. You want to be months, months ahead when it comes to designing for seasons and holidays. Like we didn't plan very well last year.

Let's be real. Our Black Friday offers were a bit last minute, and the results showed we were stressed, rushed, and it just didn't yield what we hoped. This year we're doing it a bit differently. So Delores, how far ahead do you usually start planning your designs for seasonal products? Any mistakes you've learned from in the previous years?

Yes and yes. 

Delores Naskrent: I've now plan things and you're not even gonna believe this, but 18 months in advance. So if you are doing art [00:03:00] licensing and you're planning for Christmas. You are not planning for this year's Christmas. I can tell you right now you're planning for next year's Christmas if art licensing is what you're into as far as planning for product-based businesses, we at this time of year would be.

Producing all of the product for our holiday sales. So we were at this point always in the summer working out in the shop, cutting the wood for our magnets, all of our cards and our new, whatever product we were thinking of for that year. All of that stuff was being done. Well before this time of year, if I was at the point where I was cutting the wood for the magnets, the artwork had already been developed, was already done, and by the end of the summer, so by the end of August, we were in the final [00:04:00] stages of production.

It's months in advance depending on the type of thing that you're doing. So at this point, if you're doing print on demand products or you have stuff going into your Etsy shop or even seasonal stuff that you're planning to sell to help artists create products, like for Christmas season kind of stuff, you should be already thinking of uploading those products.

Kaylie Edwards: Yeah, you need to be able to give people time as well to create products. So like Delores was saying, if you create brush packs or something and you do want to do a seasonal one for other artists to use to make designs, then you obviously would probably have done them by now and got them up. 

Delores Naskrent: Yeah. 

Kaylie Edwards: If you've been selling for at least one holiday season, go back and look at your data.

So what worked last year? Start there. What sold well? What were people [00:05:00] saving or sharing? Even if you only have five sales, that's still feedback. You need to be making sure that you review everything. 

Delores Naskrent: Yes, agreed. And I always review what performed on Zazzle or in my card shop on Card Isle. And sometimes I would find a surprising hit that I could refresh or repurpose.

So if I had something that sold, well, there's one in particular that comes to mind. When I knew that that particular product sold well, I had it on kind of a geometric background. I also made three or four different iterations of that one. One with different colors, one that was very floral and feminine, one that was definitely masculine.

I often did things like switching up the colors or tweaking the layout, changing the lettering or even. Doing [00:06:00] things like bundling it differently, adding, adding it to a different type of bundle I was selling. 

Kaylie Edwards: Yeah, it's so important. So like even just repurposing the content and the products that you have, you know, what can you make different or tweaked differently?

Can it be tweaked slightly differently for different recipient and just look at like styles and things that you can maybe possibly change. So if this is your first year and you don't have your own data yet, don't worry. You can research, look at the comp competitors, uh, Etsy trends, Pinterest searches.

The gifting websites to spot what's trending or what seems to be selling well and start from there. 

Delores Naskrent: Yeah. To look at, uh, what their popular items are. A lot of times they will have a spot where you can just click on most popular item or most popular search. Those are ways of [00:07:00] just kind of finding out what's out there or some.

Ways, Kaylie, that you can think of that are easy for handmade sellers to evaluate what's working for others? Like what can they learn from others without copying? Of course. 

Kaylie Edwards: Absolutely. Here's what I recommend, the first start on Etsy and search holiday terms like Christmas gifts for her, or Halloween home decor.

I see what comes up repeatedly. That's a sign. It's trending. So look at the search results as a whole as there. Is there any patterns? Are you seeing a lot of similar fonts or colors, patterns, maybe themes or topics, even phrases. Is there a certain phrase that keeps popping up on the best selling or popular listings?

Check them first. These are a good indicator. That something is working so that [00:08:00] people are more drawn to. And how can then you add that to your design? Could you mix like the most popular colors with a certain theme or for a certain recipient that hasn't been done yet? Yeah. Or maybe you can slightly tweak a phrase that could work.

And then maybe add them together and then try and sub niche down with some things as well. Then you can also check the bestseller badges, how many reviews there, there are, what customers are saying in those reviews when it comes to the reviews. See were they, was that product missing anything? Has somebody mentioned that it could have done with this?

Or maybe they could have put it in a certain color or. Maybe they could have added a different phrase or something to that product. Look at the reviews for those bestsellers and see what you can do differently. And then next, go to Pinterest. See [00:09:00] what pins are circulating in your niche. And then do the same.

And finally scroll social, but intentionally look at the engagement on posts. Not just the likes, but the shares and the saves. That's what tells you it resonated with that target audience. Yeah. And then bundles, add-ons and gifting minded people. Gifted minding people. Yeah, it sound, it can't sound right when we say, say bundle bundle bundles.

Yeah. It doesn't have to mean a huge, complicated package. It could literally just be a wax melt set with a candle or a mini print with a holiday card. If you make art prints, think about a throw cushion or an ornament with the same design or a similar design or color scheme. 

Delores Naskrent: I love that. I, I love [00:10:00] seeing that when I'm buying too.

So think about that gift buyer. They're often looking for those really easy, ready to gift ideas. So something that they don't have to work too hard for, but it, it's different. They really love things that match, you know? So if you've got two things that go together, they love themed colors or items that really compliment each other, that can increase the card value.

I mean, ultimately what we're trying to do is sell more, right? 

Kaylie Edwards: Yeah. It's like. If you are decorating your house for Christmas, you tend to follow, usually not everybody, you know, some people might be like really hodgepodge with theirs, but some people like to go with like a color scheme or like a, maybe someone is more like a Scandinavian type decor.

Yeah. Advantage to themselves person. Yeah, because I quite like the [00:11:00] Scandinavian like look. So with Christmas decorations, I might choose quite a lot that kind of go together to kind of make that theme, 

Delores Naskrent: right. 

Kaylie Edwards: The same goes for a lot of other people. They might buy similar products because they go together in like a color scheme or they have a certain theme that works around it.

The same goes with your products. That's how you can kind of get more value out of your orders as well, like cross sell. Refer some matching products or relevant products that would work to go together. And don't forget about print on demand options. You might not be able to make tree ornaments yourself, but a print on demand partner can, depending on who you choose.

For example, the ones I know, Printify, Gooten, Printed Mint Prodigi, which is like a UK one and Europe I know have been said, have good quality and range of [00:12:00] products. Like I've used Printify, myself and Prodigi, and they're really good. 

Delores Naskrent: Yeah, 

Kaylie Edwards: and same goes for Zazzle. Zazzle does Christmas ornaments. Like Delores, she does them with Zazzle.

Delores Naskrent: Yeah, I found that the Christmas ornaments on Zazzle, for some reason, that must be one of their hot categories because I, there's one artwork that I did, and I've talked about this repeatedly, has sold so many Christmas ornaments, and believe it or not, the identical card. Also sell. So I don't know if customers are buying the card and the ornament at the same time, but they're both really, really hot sellers.

So I've had ton of success with the, with the ornaments. And the other category that I sell a lot of ornaments for is for girlfriends. People are buying them in. [00:13:00] Quantity, like by five of them, or eight of them for a girlfriend. So I'm imagining it's something to do with a wedding party or that sort of a thing.

Yeah. So, yeah, definitely. Some of these items are really golden to have in your available products. So now's the time to start thinking about those. Get all of your product graphics, your featured images, and your promo banners ready for your, if it's your Etsy shop or your website, or for Zazzle or for social.

I, at first on Zazzle didn't have categories. I just had all my products and eventually I built the store out so that people who were shopping for and would land on, let's say that one girlfriend, ornament or card, they would also end up in my category where they would [00:14:00] see 10 other options for something to buy for your main girlfriend.

So they were usually funny ones, quirky ones, like a friend is like a new bra, that kind of a thing. And it was amazing how one thing catapulted into another. You know, like everything kind of. Worked and you know, really, I think if you can theme your stuff or get your occasions together, all of that stuff can really help because you can then add your banners and featured sections so they can really set the mood for buyers.

Kaylie Edwards: Exactly. Yeah. Think ahead. Make sure you're scheduling your social posts. Prepare a few reels or email templates ahead of time, and then you can create your Pinterest graphics so it's all ready to go before the chaos of Q4 kicks in. So if you know [00:15:00] that you've got all your products, at least you know some of the products that you have planned out, then you can at least, yeah.

Add them into the graphics or even make sure you've at least got templates ready for when those products are finalized. Running around like headless chicken or missing, missing the promo 

Delores Naskrent: season. Yes. And my gosh, and when, I can't even believe it. 'cause you know, this is July. July is over, we're recording this July at the end of July, so August.

Then you realize, oh my gosh, like Q4 is just around the corner. Just around the corner. So Kali, what kind of visuals or content do you suggest to prepare ahead of time that really helps reduce that last minute panic? And I'm pretending here that I know this already, but I actually want to be refreshed.

Kali, tell me what I should be preparing now. [00:16:00] Yeah. 

Kaylie Edwards: I would prep a mix of promotional graphics and evergreen content as well. So for example, your Etsy shop banners, your featured product photos in Christmas colors. Even if the product is a bestseller year round, you want to be prepping them ahead of time.

I would create pin graphic templates for like bundles and perhaps some Instagram stories ready using like Canva templates. I also try to write at least three to four email drafts in advance. I normally do more just to know. I normally sit and do at a turn in a day at least. But if you want at least, even if it's just a flash sale than like three to four, you can do, you can kind of get away with.

Okay. But for like a bigger promotion, like for a week or even two weeks. 'cause some people do that. Or maybe you're having flash [00:17:00] sales between each other, then yeah, I would definitely plan your emails ahead of time. One, maybe announcing the collection or the new product, a reminder of the limited time with any social proof from past buyers, or just making sure that you've got plenty of mockups and styling so people can at least imagine what they're buying.

Is gonna work for them two with like a car close reminder on the day, like one in the morning, one in the evening before the promotion ends. 

Delores Naskrent: Okay. 

Kaylie Edwards: That's a minimum. I would have these ready, which saves me from scrambling when my son's got a cold or life throws a curve ball. Yeah. At least you know they're kind of there and you can quickly tweak them and get them out and I would definitely schedule them ahead of time if you can.

That is our big time saver is when we have loads of promotions going on, is making sure we have some [00:18:00] set scheduled out. Yeah. Ready. So if anything does happen, at least they're ready to go. Yeah. And even if you don't know the exact details of the products you are going to be offering, but have a rough estimate of the product types you're gonna be offering, at least have those templates set that you can add those exact details to before they need to go out.

If you don't know what to write in those promotional emails, you can look for other creatives who sell promotional email swipes or templates you can buy. Can you? I'm gonna be selling my own. Awesome. And customize yourself with your own details and personality. And literally, if you get a template from somebody, stick it into chat, GBT if it knows who you are and what your brand is and all about your business.

Don't just stick it in there randomly and hope for the best because that won't work. It needs to be able to know what you are and what you're offering. It needs to be very detailed with chat GBT if you will do that. [00:19:00] But if you check the episode, show notes or description, I will have a link there to my new holiday sales and promotional email templates for you, Sam.

There are three sets there possibly more by the time I this episode launches. You can choose from. So whether you are a handmade product seller, an artist, or sell digital products, there will be a version there for each of you. Awesome. And you don't have to do everything. Choose one or two key offers, maybe a new bundle or one bestselling product and plan around that.

You don't need 15 options. 

Delores Naskrent: I try to keep it simple. Honestly. One strong collection. With a seasonal feel or one printable gift set and a few related blog posts or pins. That's honestly all I have the mental bandwidth to do anyways, and it's enough, especially if you're juggling family or other work, you work full time.

You know, you're, you have to do the best you can and, and be happy with it. [00:20:00] 

Kaylie Edwards: Yes. This is what we'll be mapping out in my upcoming holiday sales prep workshop. Your offers, your calendar, your graphics, all done in a calm session. Hopefully I will have the wait list link sign up. Below in the description and in the show notes for anybody who wants to help plan out their holiday season.

Prep people. Remember the brands that made their gift giving easier or more special. Think about how you can add meaning, thoughtfulness, or convenience. That builds the loyalty. 

Delores Naskrent: Yeah. Even something small like a matching tag or printable bonus, I do a little sticker for an envelope seal. That's one of the things that I've done often.

All of these things can lead to someone coming back again in January or for the next holiday season. I was gonna say holidays. They're gonna come by every year. Every year. So just [00:21:00] think of this planning that you're doing right now. All these ideas Kaylie just gave you as a template and as a routine that you're gonna be able to repeat year after year.

So consistency and care go a long way. 

Kaylie Edwards: Yes. And Delores, have you had repeat customers who originally found you? Through a seasonal offer. 

Delores Naskrent: Yep, absolutely. I had been doing on Creative market my little card kits, so it was a kit that you could buy. I think the very first one I did was a Mother's Day kit, but I could be wrong.

It might have been Christmas, and I've had people who would buy the little kit and make their greeting card. I don't know whether they were using it just for personal use or if they were. Using it to create cards that they would, uh, reproduce and sell. But I have had people come back year after year to buy the card kit.

So that's just a really good example and I'm [00:22:00] glad you asked me that because that has brought not only people in and. Having them buy these card kits from me, but people who have become more and more interested in creating greeting cards, then they have also come into my Five Card challenge and from the five Card Challenge have then gone on to start selling on POD sites or on Card Isle.

Like what, which is PODI guess. But that is kind of a snowball effect that's happened. So yes, it can work. 

Kaylie Edwards: Yes. It's such a good thing to actually plan ahead and like I've mentioned the workshop. Uh, I will have the wait list link in the description. If you're ready to prep your Q4 calmly, join me for the holiday sales prep workshop.

We'll build out your offers, your email plan, and get ahead on visuals and marketing. You'll walk away with a ready to go roadmap during that workshop. 

Delores Naskrent: If [00:23:00] this gave you a few ideas or light bulb moments, we would love to hear them. And one of the words that just really stood out to me there, Kaylie, was calmly, if you want to plan and prep calmly.

So if that resonated with you, please tag us on Instagram or send a voice note or contact us whichever way you would like. We'd love to hear from you. 

Kaylie Edwards: Yep. And share this with a fellow creative who's already stressing out about the holidays maybe, or hasn't even thought about it. Let's make the season profitable and peaceful, calm.

Yeah. Keep creating, keep juggling, and most importantly, keep finding joy in the process.