Christmas is the busiest time of year for gifts. Here's what to check in your shop before the rush, and where to find each setting.
1. Check your preparation time
Every physical listing has a Preparation time: the working days (Monday to Friday) you need to make or prepare the item before you post it. It can be anything from 1 to 60 working days. To change it, go to Shop Manager › Listings, press Edit on the listing, and scroll to Preparation time.
Be honest about it in December. Buyers see the earliest date the item could reach them, and can pick a date they need it by. If they do, you'll see Needed by on the order.
2. The Christmas order-by line
From 15 October until Christmas Eve, each listing shows buyers in the UK the last day to order for Christmas. We work it out for you: Royal Mail's last posting date for the service in your delivery profile, minus your preparation time. Buyers see something like this, under the price:
How the date changes with preparation time, for a listing posted from the UK by Royal Mail 2nd Class, with Royal Mail 1st Class as a faster option:
So every day of preparation time is a day less for your buyers to order.
- If you post with another carrier, or from outside the UK, we count back from Christmas Eve using the slowest delivery time for your service.
- Once the last day has passed for every postage option, the line tells buyers the item is unlikely to arrive by Christmas.
- There's no line on digital downloads, on sold-out listings, or on listings whose delivery profile doesn't post to the UK.
3. Give late buyers a faster option
In Shop Manager › Shipping, press Edit on a delivery profile. Under the UK destination, press + Add a postage option and add a faster service, such as Royal Mail 1st Class or Tracked 24. Enter the whole postage price for it, not just the extra. Buyers can choose it at checkout, and the Christmas line tells them they can order a little later if they do.
4. Discount codes and free delivery
Both are in Shop Manager › Discounts.
- Free delivery offer. Tick Offer free delivery when buyers spend a set amount and enter the amount. Buyers see how much more they need to spend in their basket and at checkout. You choose whether it also applies to orders sent abroad.
- Discount codes. Press + Create a code. Choose a percentage off (5% to 90%), a fixed amount off, or free delivery. You can add a minimum spend, a last day, a limit on how many times it can be used, and choose which listings it covers.
Codes are private: buyers only know one if you share it, for example on social media or in a thank-you note in the parcel. One code per order. You pay for the discount, and our fee is worked out on the price after it. To take money off one listing for everyone instead, use Put on sale in the listing's menu in Listings.
5. Taking a break? Use holiday mode
Go to Shop Manager › Settings and find Holiday mode. Tick Pause orders while I'm away, add the date you're Back on and a short Message to buyers, then press Save.
Your shop stays visible and in search, with a notice for buyers, but nobody can order until you're back. With a return date, it switches itself off that day. It starts as soon as you save, so turn it on after posting your last orders.
6. Editor's picks
Editor's picks are collections we hand-pick from our sellers' shops, for gifts and the season. Only live listings that are in stock can appear, and a sold-out listing drops out, so keep your stock numbers up to date.