Does it turn you off ...

[LBlackbournJewelry]

I have been spending more time on Etsy than ever ... trying once and for all to get this thing off the ground. I am beginning to become acquainted with people and their shops by making treasuries, etc., and I'm loving it, and loving the people I'm meeting, etc. Anyway -- the other day, someone who I had admired was dropping unsolicited listing links into all kinds of threads. Spam, basically. I was so turned off that I dug through pages and pages of favorites to get them out of there. Don't people realize that they are not anonymous here? That the good will is worth so much more than a random view that they might get from doing that? I guess I'm just venting, but I am curious if anyone feels the same way.

[Former_Member]

Yup, totally agree with you on that.

There are teams/threads setup for showing your fresh items/listings, but spamming and hi-jacking unrelated threads seems a bit out of place in a craft community like this.

[MakeOrBreakStudio]

Occasionally I get a message like"I'm having a sale!" that's spam.
It just makes me want to stay away from those shops, and thair owner.

[ParadiseChicJewelry]

I agree, I only post on teams I am on in threads if they say share your listing or ask to share sales, but I don't agree with randomly posting in threads or sending convos to other shops about a sale you are having. It might work sometimes, but sales usually don't come from people posting sales everywhere.

[Former_Member]

I agree with urbunny—those spam messages drive me crazy! I would never click a link from one.

[EvesLittleEarthlings]

yes, that kind of thing is annoying and I wonder what the shop owner was thinking when they did it. It is as if they never read the rules and are completely uncouth when it comes to etiquette around here.

[Former_Member]

Well I just ignore it so it doesn't bother me -- I guess if I took the time to read it - it would but way too busy to care JMHO GMJ

[Former_Member]

I say don't waste your own precious time by paying much attention--just ignore or delete!

[IndigoPaisleyDesigns]

I just IGNORE! But I know what your
feelings..

Devika

[Former_Member]

Totally agree. I asked a question in one of the forums this past week and a person/shop that I admire (love her stuff and pics) responded in a snarky, mean, rude and unwarranted way. Out of the blue. Needless to say, I am totally turned off by that person now and have deleted them from my favorites and circles.

[LBlackbournJewelry]

EvesLittleEarthlings says

yes, that kind of thing is annoying and I wonder what the shop owner was thinking when they did it. It is as if they never read the rules and are completely uncouth when it comes to etiquette around here.

>>I think they think they're anonymous and that people might blindly click.

Well ... we're not anonymous. That's my point.

I ignore, usually. But like DesignsbyALY said, sometimes it's someone who you admire their stuff and their shop. That's it for me. They are out and I doubt I would buy from them or promote their stuff in a treasury. Just not sure if people who do it are aware of the possible negative repercussions.

[LaurasLastDitch]

My personal thought is that it's someone who doesn't know the etiquette and is discouraged by lack of sales and views.

[Former_Member]

I had hearted all kinds of listings in this fabric shop, and this lady kept sending me convos and basically trying to push me to buy something. Huge turnoff and I will probably never buy from her.
I deleted all the things I hearted from her shop. Better luck next time, pushy lady!

[Former_Member]

AZ, I'm definitely with you...it IS irritating. The good news is: you never have to run into that person (or their shop), so like everyone is saying, IGNORE!! There are enough GREAT people on here (who DON't feel the need to spam their stuff). I personally get REALLY irked when I see these threads on THIS team such as "New listing!!!!". I guess it's a combination of people just not CARING what the rules are and/or they never read the rules in the first place.

[Nightofjoyvintage]

As a team captain, I delete those posts when I see them, and even close threads that duplicate other promotional threads. Interestingly enough, it seems that many shops like being able to drop self promotional spam at will and because of that tolerate it in others. I feel that continually promoting one's own shop/products to others that are doing the same thing is like a dog chasing its tail - but it appears to be a very ingrained habit and difficult to break.

And yes, there are many more wonderful sellers here, who see the value in true networking, helping others out, reciprocating and paying favors forward!

[CustombyBernolli]

totally agree! it is irritating!!....

[Former_Member]

I agree with everyone and hope people who are doing this are reading this thread.

[Former_Member]

I totally agree, i hearted something and the person kept pushing me so i had to unheart. when someone hearts my items i feel fantasitic as they like it, and people in there circle can see that they like it too, its like free advertising for me!
so i dont know why some people get all pushy after a heart, they should be happy for the advertisment, and leave it at that, if someone wants to buy it they will. its like when u walk into a store and the sales person dosent leave you alone.. i just leave :S

[GildedXRoseXStudio]

I agree with you, AZ...it *is* very annoying. I just ignore it. When I was reading through threads giving tips on promoting, a lot of people would suggest the Etsy Promotions Team or whatever it is called. There are some wonderful teams on here who are great at helping each other with promotions....but there are others -- Night had described this beautifully -- as a "dog chasing its tail". That just about sums it up, really! :) In a world of Facebook and Twitter, there is still quite a lot of internet etiquette involved in the Etsy world :) (which I love!) People acting polite and respectful -- whodathunkit?? ;)

[Former_Member]

This is the internet. I have so many years of experience with the general public, I'm really not bothered by inconsequential things like etsy's version of junk email. I don't really have high expectations for strict"social policy in a place as vast in traffic as this one.

I simply ignore what I don't want to give attention.

Spend your time creating something that makes you happy. It's precious. ♥

[krochetlady]

I agree with everyone's comments. While I understand for some folks their shop is their full time job, I don't think they realize how desperate they appear by sending spam.

[TheSalvagedEdge]

I used to post tons in those promotional threads and all that and it just got me nowhere except a few hearts and feeling exhausted. I think sometimes people just get promo happy. I don't automatically write off people for something like that but if it starts to happen all the time then I do ignore them and unfavorite.

[Former_Member]

I totally agree! It's a total put off...that and when people are rude or just plain old unkind!

[LBlackbournJewelry]

Thanks for the vent! I know, I know ... ignore. I will!

[Former_Member]

Well, if it's received through a convo not only is it a turnoff, but it's against the TOU's.

I only promote through the proper channels, groups, promo threads for these specific announcements. There is practically one for each group, so it's hard not to find the right places to promote your item.

I just chalk it up to inexperience. Maybe the offending person didn't know they couldn't do that. I dunno.