Etsy layout

[Former_Member]

I just wanted ask how other folks feel about the new layouts, throughout Etsy?

As a buyer I find the homepage a little confusing as to what's actually going on here on Etsy. I think new buyers may be sat there scratching their heads? I sell here on Etsy too, but am a bit worried by that. I frequently see the same about 7 UK (in the UK) feature shops, and that's about it!

I also feel that the new activity style homepage when signed in really limits me. I loved to see new work I hadn't seen before, and find myself searching for things I actually didn't need, but wanted anyway as a result of the homepage, now it's just stuff on an activity feed, so if you don't follow many people it's probably rubbish, and someone new to Etsy, well what do they see?

I'm not really that sold on it, I think it narrows down the paths buyers may take, and surely that can't be good?

Am I missing something here? Please let me know :0)

[maydaylabels]

I like the activity feed aspect of the homepage more than I liked the FP treasuries; the thing is, the FP treasuries were beautiful but they rarely had anything I wanted (which makes sense, as they weren't tailored to me the way the new FP at least tries to be).

I don't follow anyone, and it is not rubbish, it's generally pretty nice. It's also easy to get rid of things I don't like.

If it made less money for Etsy they would not have made the change.

[Former_Member]

Thank you for your reply :0)

In a way your reply was kind of what I was saying. They are tailored to us, so what happens if you're a new buyer?
Aren't they what we are supposed to be appealing to? Rather than all the sellers already on Etsy regularly? and it will be mainly sellers as they are on here regularly. Only people who are following lots of others or have lots of favourite shops will see new items, and who wants to see all the same stuff from the same sellers day in day out. Personally I like variety as I'm quite an eclectic person and am bored of seeing these same sellers all the time on the homepage ( I am unsure if it's different in the US?)

There should be a variety of pieces for people to see on the front page. New buyers need a visual reason to buy and if you're new there isn't really one. I think the new idea is great for current members of Etsy, but is now too focused on the those and is forgetting the new guys.

[maydaylabels]

If you haven't signed up for an account yet, you see a different screen. If you've signed up but not bought anything or favorited anything or whatever, I don't know what you see. I can't see how it's any less irrelevant than the FP treasuries used to be, though.

I'm fairly sure that if new buyers bought less because of the new design they'd go back to the FP treasuries. I just don't see why the treasuries were all that engaging? They were pretty limited in terms of items/sellers (because the system was easy to game, so there were people who spent a lot of time working to be featured repeatedly) and definitely limited in terms of aesthetic/item type.

That is a good question though - I wonder if admin has answered it somewhere? What do you see when you've signed up for an account but you don't have any favorites or anything yet?

[Former_Member]

Yeah I know I have 2 different shops and frequently have to switch accounts. but in the UK the homepage is the same 6-7 sellers and each one has the entire page. So if someone comes along they get to the homepage and all they see is this jewelry gift box, and some smaller boxes of rings below they might think "oh Etsy sells jewelry, I don't want jewelry, I'll go somewhere else" Etsy isn't huge in the UK it's not well known at all. So what I'm saying is if it were me and I didn't know what Etsy was i would think it was a jewellers, or a printers or whatever else is taking up the entire homepage, and then swiftly proceed to somewhere else to find what I actually wanted. Do you see what I'm saying? its not new buyer friendly, any of it really :0/

[maydaylabels]

Do you mean the homepage where people are logged out, or for people who don't have accounts yet? That has been the way it is for quite some time; this change didn't affect it. I don't like it either, personally, but oh well - I bet it's great business for the few sellers who are promoted there!

[Former_Member]

Is that different? As when I log out and click on the homepage that's all I get. The same 7 sellers all the live long day lol.

I do think Etsy might be cutting their nose off to spite there face though. I mean What if the new buyer wants taxidermy and the first page they see has girly pottery or something on it lol.

It also feels like a massive promotion for these sellers too and hardly fair whatsoever.

Thank you for your responses Mathew and Sara, at least I know I'm not crazy now and this is actually the case lol.

[maydaylabels]

No they're the same (logged out or no account yet), I agree, and it's pretty limited. They must have done some testing and decided for some reason that it is ideal, but I dunno.

[ILovePrintable]

Just wonder, is this new layout help seller improve the sales for the past two week? I'm feeling its slow...

[Former_Member]

The funniest part is that now some of these sellers don't even have any items in their shop lol.

[Former_Member]

We'll personally I'd say no it won't help sales, but that's just my opinion.

What I can tell you though that I would go somewhere else if I were a new buyer from the UK as it's unclear what Etsy is :0/, well to me anyway. I want certainty not a shot in the dark when I'm shopping :0)

I dunno maybe it's just me, but I'm a little fed up of those same sellers on the homepage, seriously it's doing my head in, I change account a number of times a day. ARGGHHHH! Lol

[maydaylabels]

Ah, I never see it, maybe that's why it doesn't bother me :)

We have more views from the FP since it switched to the personalized thing, which makes sense because we have a lot of shop favorites but we don't do treasuries so we were pretty much never on the FP before.

Overall, though, the difference is miniscule - less than 1% of views one way or another.

[TwistedKnickersInc]

I just had a look at my own personal "buying" account. I have only faved one shop, which is my own, so for my activity feed they show me "similar items to the ones i have favored". These similar items are all based on my Twisted Knicker "shop favorites."

The only difference for me with the new look is that I now get lots of views from the "Front Page" :)

[Former_Member]

Haha, Sara, I rarely do treasuries either and I was never on the FP before, but last night I was. I had 76 views from it and I sold the item. (Of course it was a $7 thing and not the $199 scarf, LOL.)

It's the only thing I've had on the FP, so I'm thinking it must have been on the not-logged-in version? Or am I just confused? If it showed up in some individual follower's feed, only that follower would see it, correct?

I'm pretty good at SEO itself but this Etsy FP thing has me flummoxed.

Well, guess I shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth.

[spacefem]

I like the new front page better with the activity feed a lot better.

[maydaylabels]

No, Etsy makes recommendations beyond the followers/feed thing - but if you were favorited by someone who is followed by a lot of people, I'd assume that would show up on a lot of people's FPs, so who knows. It is much less easily figured out than the old FP, for sure.

You were not on the logged out version. I am willing to bet those sellers (who are there pretty constantly for, as far as I can tell, weeks) get thousands of views per day from it.

[Former_Member]

Ah, that makes sense.

That also explains why I'm still getting views on it today even though it's sold.

So the goal now, instead of getting into treasuries, is to get your items faved by people with huge followings. Hm, how to accomplish that ...

[maydaylabels]

Yes, that is the goal. I have no idea how to go about it, except to have good photos, good SEO (so these people can find you in the first place), and a good product. Trendiness probably helps but oh well :)

Luckily those things are integral to success on Etsy anyway, so I am not wasting any worry on it.

[Former_Member]

My biggest worry with this new layout is added competition. When I favorited a glass blown ornament the other day, the next day my feed included 2 more glass blown artists. When I favorited a painting, I had several new painters show up in my feed... So does that mean that when people favorite my trees that they are within the next few hours comparing my shop to others? If someone favorites my items, I don't want someone else's similar item put next to mine for them to mull over... I want them to choose my item.

I know that may sound selfish but as a seller in a flooded jewelry market I don't need anymore competition. I have seen a huge rise in views because of the layout but this second half of September sales have slowed even with the view increase and I cannot help but question if the new layout has anything to do with it.

I wonder if the new layout is more beneficial to buyers or sellers... I would hope Etsy would cater to the needs of their sellers first and extra competition wasn't on my list... an easier, direct method to my shop payment account would be nice though... lol

[MaxplanationPhotos]

I agree with Mathiew and Sarah I just changed my goal- try to get faved.

I am not going to spend time worrying about it , when I can spend my efforts on figuring out the quickest way to assimilate lol :)