{this season, shop the Gussy Sews Holiday Gift Guide}

{squeeeee} The holidays are ALMOST here, and to get ready for the cozy season I’m putting together my second annual Holiday Gift Guide. In about 6 weeks I’ll launch the guide ~ which is so exciting {hooray!}. This is the perfect blog “event” for me because since I started blogging I’ve loved learning about & promoting other handmade businesses. And since this event starts at the beginning of peak blog traffic months, this is a great opportunity for indie biz owners as they prepare for the holiday shopping season.

The Holiday Gift Guide is this years go-to list of the best holiday gifts, selected specifically for the Gussy Sews community… and this community means so much to me ~ without your help I wouldn’t have been able to leave my day job 18 months after learning how to sew to focus on Gussy Sews exclusively. And actually, some of my favorite holiday purchases are handmade items I found while reading other blogs, like this mug I had customized with the word CHAMPION just for Zack, or this glass that has a sandblasted mustache on it, which we gave to my dad last year for Father’s Day. The list goes on, but the point is that this gift guide is just for YOU ~ a fabulous member of the Gussy Sews community. And truthfully, it would bring me so much happiness to be able to share with you some amazing gift ideas for this holiday season.

The Holiday Gift Guide is a really great way to connect indie biz owners with loyal customers who are passionate about the handmade community.

Sponsorship with the HGG includes more than just a link to your shop ~ read on below for more information!

The guide will be hosted on a separate page on my blog and will be linked to from the front page of my blog {in the right sidebar} plus at the bottom of blog posts 2-3x/week. Here’s a small preview of what the HGG will look like:

For the HGG, each participating shop will receive a Large ad that links to their shop + a short blurb describing their product listed directly below. Everything will be organized by shopping category, which is super convenient for shopping.

I’m looking for a variety of categories for the feature, and here are a few that come to mind right away:
+ jewelry & accessories
+ creative art {paintings, illustrations}
+ clothing
+ handbags/camera bags
+ home decor & accessories
+ vintage pretties

If this is your shop, fill out this form! If this isn’t, but you have a great product, fill out the form! {What can it hurt? Besides, I’d love to learn about your wares.} Keep in mind I’ll be accepting a limited number of shops to feature in the Holiday Gift Guide. I wish I could accept everyone, but that’s just not possible…

Here are the details —

HOW TO BE INVOLVED AS A SHOPPER:
Come on over, starting October 15th, to see the Holiday Gift Guide. Shopping will be easy; each shop will be organized in the guide by category.

HOW TO BE INVOLVED AS A HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE SPONSOR:
Your shop will be listed in the guide {hosted on a separate page on my blog} by category and will receive frequent links via social media {twitter & facebook}. Every HGG sponsor will also be featured in a small group post on the front page of my blog {1 item from their shop will be featured}. These posts will occur randomly throughout the 60-day Holiday Gift Guide term. Each post will include a photo of the featured item, plus a description, price, and link ~ selected by me!

SPONSORSHIP DETAILS:
+ Duration: the guide will run October 15th to December 15th {60 days}
+ Size: 261 x 125 pixels {a Large ad}
+ Price: $225 USD, paid via PayPal
+ Feature: Each participating shop will be spotlighted in a group feature post

♥ Keep in mind that this HGG sponsorship opportunity is a really great price ~ ad rates are typically high because of the time of year ~ the monthly breakdown is $112.50 for the Large ad AND it includes multiple social media/blog mentions + a feature post on the front page of my blog. {A Large ad on my sidebar doesn’t include social media/blog mentions but the cost is a noticeable contrast.}

♥ If you sign up for both the sidebar blog sponsorship & the HGG, I’m offering a 20% discount on the Holiday Gift Guide. Please email my assistant Cambria: cambria AT gussysews DOT com for sidebar sponsorship rates. (You must be a sidebar sponsor in October, November or December to get the HGG discount.)

THE HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE WILL BE PROMOTED TO:
Facebook: 6,450+ fans | Twitter: 6,050+ followers | Blog: 100,100+ monthly page views | Newsletter mailing: 2,650+ subscribers

HURRY ~ the deadline to sign up for the Gift Guide is Sunday, October 2nd.
*click here to fill out the form!*

Source: flickr.com via Gussy on Pinterest

OK, so that’s it! I’m so excited for this upcoming cozy season of family & friend time, festivities, and handmade creating & shopping. See you in 6 weeks! xoxo

Holiday Gift Guide image credit // design credit