Getting Customer Feedback?

[Former_Member]

I was told that Etsy has rules re: customer feedback but I cannot seem to find them, does anyone know what the rules are and/ or the link to them? (ex. can you provide an incentive for customers to leave a review?)

I mainly sell my items at markets but want to start promoting my etsy shop, the few sales I've had through etsy not many people leave reviews...wondering how to encourage this.

[RomaMiaTradingCo]

Try scouring older threads in this team for tips. I know this topic has been brought up many times. Unfortunately, its hard to get customers to leave reviews.

I personally leave a note when sending out shipping notices asking people to leave reviews than leave it at that. I know I have gotten packages from etsy, where people left notes on the packing slips to leave reviews. I think asking beyond that might be a bit pushy.

[OneFairfaxRoad]

Here's the link for Etsy's seller policy:
https://www.etsy.com/legal/sellers/?ref=list#identity

Scroll down to the part about Communicating with buyers, which states that "Conversations may not be used for the following activities:

Sending unsolicited advertising or promotions, requests for donations, or spam;"

Conveying a buyer to provide an incentive for leaving feedback feels like both unsolicited promotion and spam to me.

I don't worry too much about the number of reviews my shop receives, I feel it's out of my control. I do enclose a handwritten thank you note in my order, but don't ask people to leave reviews.

Good luck!

[OohlalaBeadtique]

I do not use Etsy convo to remind customers of feedback.

I include a packing slip with each of my orders. In there I thank my client for shopping in my store, and I add a note if he/she is happy with her order, she can leave a feedback :)

[fishcouple]

I don't ask for feedback but when a clients wrote me that she's happy with my work. I would remind her that she can leave a review.

[TwistsnGems]

I always write a letter with each sale item I ship. It has additional information about the item they just purchased, and information about care of the item.

I always ask them to please complete the review if they have the time because it is the nicest gift they can give to anyone considering making a first purchase from the shop. Most of my clients do leave a review.

[PaperBoundLove]

I actually don't ask for reviews - I should, I think.
But I still get reviews often enough, so I'm happy with just that for now.
I think you can ask for reviews when sending a shipping notification or include a little tag asking for a review.

- Khin J

[Former_Member]

I include a little note with each item that asks for a review :) It helps!

[Plektra]

I believe Etsy is sending emails to customers to remind them to leave feedback...there is no need to tell them again.

The whole feedback thing is getting too much everywhere. You talk to a company for 2 mins, they ask you for feedback. You sent a query by email to a company, they ask you for feedback.

Customers do know feedback exists, it's hard to miss nowadays. If they don't want to leave feedback, they might send you a private message.

I don't ask for it. They don't have to leave feedback, it's optional. It's best not to annoy them.

[OohlalaBeadtique]

When I ship out an order I email my customers with shipping update via Etsy and also via PayPal - 2 emails. Few days later I get customer asking if I already shipped out his/her order. Obviously the emails Etsy and PayPal sent, ended up in their Spam/Junk folder. With so many emails and spam out there, we use filters, and so do our clients. You think Etsy is sending them reminders to leave feedback, yet many customers are not getting any emails.

Other issue I have is, I ship fast, and when my client receives my product, he/she goes to leave me a feedback and apparently she can not. Etsy has time restrictions, and only after X amount of days since the purchase date, a customer can leave feedback. My clients tell me that they will have to return later to write the feedback, and half forget and go on about their lives.

I believe customer feedbacks are VERY important! And a store should try to get as many as possible. I know when I shop online, as a buyer I like to know ahead what quality of product I'm buying, if there are any issues with it, what customer service I should expect and so on.

Buying online is limited because I can not see the item in person, and I can not touch it physically. Also it is one thing for a store to write out its policy and advertise customer satisfaction and good service, but it doesn't necessary mean the the store will follow through once I make purchase and I'm not happy with the item. Customer feedback will tell me a lot.

I'm an avid shopper 10+ years on eBay and Amazon, and first thing I do is when I'm interest in a product, I go to read store feedbacks. If a store has small amount of feedbacks and not much to go on, I hold off on a purchase. Opposite happens when a store has lots of feedbacks and they are mostly positive, even thou I'm not 100% sure about the purchase, I give in and buy. Because I'm convinced and motivated by the feedbacks.

On Etsy one has to make a purchase to leave a feedback. But there are so many sites out there like Amazon, Google and so on, where anyone can just create and account and leave a feedback for a product he/she didn't even buy. And this has turned into business itself. There are companies who pay people to leave "fake" feedbacks about their products. And I've seen on kijiji people posting adds that they will review and leave positive feedbacks for products for a small fee/ payment. Paid feedback is a huge business. Google it and see.

So please don't dismiss the importance of customer feedback, and don't assume that customers will remember, or that Etsy reminders are getting through to them.

Don't be pushy asking repeatably for a feedback, but mentioned it once in a polite manner.

[Former_Member]

I have had multiple customers ask me how to leave a review and mistake the heart button on the item for leaving a review. The process is clunky and really needs to be updated. I've tried notes thanking people ahead of time for leaving feedback but alas to no avail.
Maybe we can ask Etsy to make the feedback process more user friendly.

[Former_Member]

I put a note in orders saying thank you for making the purchase and that if they're happy with the product that I'd really appreciate a positive review.

My question though is: are you allowed to (for example) say "for a positive review on Etsy you will be given a $5 off promo code"...kind of thing?

[Plektra]

I would not do that. Thinking as a buyer....I would not like it if someone gave me an incentive to leave feedback. I also don't like it if a seller implies I should leave positive feedback. I want to decide what to do. Anything I don't like as a buyer, I wouldn't do to my buyers.

Besides, I wouldn't like a 'lazy' type of feedback just to fulfill the obligation. That wouldn't look good for my shop and it cannot be deleted.

I would prefer to leave things with the buyer to decide. A lot of customers don't take advantage of any coupons or offers anyway.

[fishcouple]

My business type often generates lots of communications before the orders. When clients are VERY happy with my work (or not happy), they will leave the reviews.

When they wrote me a personal message expressing that they really loved the items, I'd remind them that it would be appreciated if they could leave a review, and oftentimes, they do.

[Former_Member]

Mostly I get review from people if we were communicating during custom order making process or I had some questions and extra notes for customers. They come back saying thank you. Some of them says thank you and tells me that they will leave a feedback. Sometimes I ask them to leave a feedback. There are also a group of people I message asking did they get the packages, cause post system sometimes shows that notice was left or like right now USPS do no track mostly packages from aboard. So, when people answer me saying thank you I ask them to leave a feedback as thank you. I think it's normal.
But I do not spam people if the only question is to leave feedback. Also I don't send messages for past customers with discounts for future purchasing.