Is Etsy helping shoppers at the expense & detriment of it's shopkeepers?

[CaliforniaCrownJewel]

I've been reading many comments from our team relating to plummeting sales this season.
This is what I've recently noticed...not sure if this is new, but I have been doing a lot of my own shopping on Etsy over the past four weeks and was surpised to see that once I place something in my cart and then click on my cart, a whole bunch of other shops items are below it - to tempt me to dump my cart and replace what I intended to purchase with another item from another shop.
When I consider that a shopper who comes to my store because of the hard work and time I spent drawing them in with good photos, tags, & titles might be replacing my item with a "cheaper" version due to this "shopper help" from Etsy, it makes me wonder why they favor the shopper over the shopkeeper. Any shopkeeper listing an item only has to search the item, and then list theirs for a little less money and will easily make the sale if Etsy continues to show competing shops at checkout.
In my opinion, Etsy should only be showing additional items from the very shop the shopper is shopping from.
This might not be a huge problem with unique handmade items, but it definitely is with collectibles.
I would be interested in reading your thoughts on this team members.
<3 Jewel

[Plektra]

I agree, customers should be shown items from our shops so they can benefit from the discount in shipping. Especially when they are purchasing from abroad. Why would the customer want to spend more money for shipping buying from another shop? As a buyer, I don't feel encouraged to continue shopping.

I also find that when I do searches, Etsy is recommending certain shops at the bottom of the page. Another time I was doing a specific search and found a shop's name and item title at the bottom of the list. Why is Etsy recommending shops over others?

And of course, they came up with the idea about seeing local shops coming up in searches.

I'm also 'hearing' about shops being favorited if they use DC. Some shops are only using PP by choice.

I think it's not fair for Etsy, or any marketplace, to be making this kind of decisions.

[LeedsRadio]

A couple of things.
I am not in love with other items appearing after someone clicks "add to cart" but consider this. Your items also will appear when someone clicks "add to cart" in another person's shop.

As far as someone doing a search and then low balling your price, this is why it is so important to differentiate your item and shop from all others. If you're item is unique you simply play up that it IS unique. If there are other items are similar to yours, you have push the personal side - customer service/fast shipping/beautiful gift packaging etc. You have to keep your "shiny thing" irresistible to the customer so they are not swayed by other items.

This is the reality of selling not just on Etsy but everywhere. When you own a physical shop when someone walks through the door you don't know if they're there to buy or to spy. When you have a dedicated website anyone can watch your shop and then generate counter measures for theirs.

It's unfortunate that it's getting harder, but it is. Your time is better spent finding new tactics than worrying that the old ones no longer work.

And you need additional channels. Build them now. Do not wait.

That cozy, community style thing that was Etsy is gone. Since it's a publicly traded company it's the the corporate officers fiduciary duty to operate in the most profitable way they can. This is no different than you operating your shop. It's their responsibility to maximum Etsy's profit, not yours.

Would the world be better place if someone having more, didn't mean some else has less? I think so, but that is not how it is.

[CaliforniaCrownJewel]

I totally agree Minerva and understand your points Richard. I will have to work on tweaking some of my titles to reflect any uniqueness to my collectible items to reflect a better quality and include a pic that shows my packaging.

But back to my beef, when I stop to consider a shopper walking into a brick and mortar store, the store owner has no direct competition at the point of sale - the cash register. I don't think it's asking too much for that same courtesy after advertising and capturing my customer. No neighboring store owner would dare walk up to my customer at the cash register showing their goods! And no commercial Landlord would instigate it.

Also, I highly doubt that Etsy is making a bigger profit with this competitive tactic. The very nature of competition drives prices down. Etsy may be making more sales, but not as much $$$.

Like I said in my original post, you really can't differentiate some of the collectible items I sell over those of another shop...hence the complaint. There is some differentiation that can be made in item details, however it is surprising how many people never read those.

In my opinion, the shopping cart should not be the place to put other shops like items...it should only be in search.

<3 Jewel

[Plektra]

Jewel said: "No neighboring store owner would dare walk up to my customer at the cash register showing their goods!"

That's exactly the issue! It is the stage of the transaction where others' are being advertised. Customers are still in my shop! They haven't left yet.

Sure, our shops might be appearing like that too...but how do we know? How do we know what the criteria are for selection? We don't. This kind of tactics etc do not last and they do not bring results in the long term, in my opinion.

What Richard is suggesting, though, are things we have to do to keep our customers and hope they'll come back. And those things will not be visible by our competitors. After the item is purchased, it's just you and your customer.

[CaliforniaCrownJewel]

Thanks Minerva for "seeing" my point. I needed some validation that I wasn't off track here;-)
So now the BIG question is...What can we do about it as far as getting our opinion noticed with those in the know at Etsy?

[fishcouple]

I think ebay shows those related links and "competitor"'s items after a buyer went through the payment process.

[CaliforniaCrownJewel]

Does anyone know if this is a new thing? Or has it always been this way?

[Former_Member]

looking at my cart...which has a ton in it tbh...the Only items I am seein the "you might also like.." are from the same shops as the items already there.

[BeadClearanceDepot]

Showing additional items from the same shop is a wonderful idea. A lot of people searching for a specific item don't even look at your other items, and this method would "force" them to see what else you have to offer. Yes, EBay does use the method described in an earlier post; I find it so annoying that after I've already checked out, they show me an identical item at a cheaper price. It's too bad that Etsy is resorting to these tactics.But the more you're on Etsy, the more you realize that things will always be changing, and a lot of it is trial and error.

[MariasWorkshop]

Hi,

I just did a test and, like Breanna, the only items I see in the "you might also like" section are items from the same shop as the items that I had placed in my cart.

It is when I remove the items from my cart that other items from other shops are suggested.

[CaliforniaCrownJewel]

This is what I have seen repeatedly...IF the item I put in my cart is very unique AND the same shop has similar items that are the same but maybe a different color or different wording etc, only their shop items will show up as teasers under my cart...BUT if I'm ready to purchase a common item or collectible, many other shops items will appear below my cart.

[MariasWorkshop]

Interesting. I will keep checking.

[Plektra]

Some time ago I read that a customer was checking out and saw other items from a different shop not the shop she was purchasing from. Maybe that changed now....

Here's something else I just noticed....

I was looking at sold items from a shop from the Item Review page. I clicked on one of them and I got the message 'This item is unavailable'. And below a whole bunch of recommendations from other shops, not the shop I was visiting. I checked the front of the shop and I noticed that the seller did have some similar items. Not the same one listed, but there was lots of selection from the same shop.

I tried the same, in another shop. I clicked on sold items from both the Sales and Reviews pages. I got recommendations from the same shop.

Then I tried the same in my shop and I am seeing my own items being suggested.

I then tried one more shop and in some cases their own items were not recommended. I didn't check any further details. I don't know what I'm missing here. What are the criteria?

Wherever and however it happens, I think our items should be recommended first.

[PatsysPressedFlowers]

The first time i was clicking around on my sold items and noticed other shops items recommended I was stunned. I did see a few of my items but other shops products were listed. As a customer looking for a certain item only to learn it sold, something similar might be of interest if it pops up. It was kind of unnerving to see other shops items on my page, but I did find my items also popping up under other shops sold items, sometimes exclusively.
So, in my mind, I need to have similar items of each listing, which is sometimes not possible. Sigh, I have no control over Etsy's actions, although they continue to evolve too. Build a customer base to keep your own sales growing, by offering quality products and good customer service.

[PatsysPressedFlowers]

I do agree with Minerva.
I also wanted to point out today on a radio talk show they were discussing Etsy, and how shoppers were able to get a quality item for a better price than they would at a mall!
High praise for Etsy sellers was given. The possibility for success and a little piece of the American dream still alive!

[BeadClearanceDepot]

I agree with Patsy. I think my #1 priority going forward will be to keep my repeat customers coming back for more. Then I don't have to rely so much on Search and Seo and Etsy experiments and things that I have little to no control over.

[WilliamsGiftshop]

Just another reason to use your talents and stand out from the crowd.
Buyers won't be tempted to change their thoughts while purchasing your items if your items are more interesting, unique and of better quality then those other ones.
That is the 'secret' to success. There is no secret. Just bad, average, good and excellent products (and customer service). Buyers who can afford it will go for excellent, and will not be tempted to get less than excellent, even if it is for less money.
There are different markets to be served, quality versus bargain, and lots of shades in between.
If you offer excellent products, you don't want to aim for bargain hunters. Let them go and get the cheaper product. They are not your target market.

[MariasWorkshop]

"This is what I have seen repeatedly...IF the item I put in my cart is very unique AND the same shop has similar items that are the same but maybe a different color or different wording etc, only their shop items will show up as teasers under my cart...BUT if I'm ready to purchase a common item or collectible, many other shops items will appear below my cart."

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Jewel,

I kept checking and yes, while I was still in the shop, completely unrelated items from another shop appeared on my "cart" screen. I experimented with several shops and it did not happen every time, but it did happen more than twice.

I have no idea of what criteria is used.

[Jewelrybeyondthesea]

I am also a hairstylist. There are hundreds of stylists in my area, yet I still do good. I truely believe that giving your best product , great service and a great amount of passion will bring the customers. I try to put my energy here instead in my compitition, although sometimes it is difficult. Mary Kay cosmetics always said "don't worry about the dollars, just do the work and the money and customers will come". Also I believe clients will precieve the value of your art by the price you put on it.

[GemPassionJewelry]

Some good points in this thread. Not sure what has caused the decreased sales this season. I know jewelry is saturated and has grown so much. Figure it's that. Was not thrilled with sales this December (was 1/3rd less than last year) and I work my shop full time and offer excellent customer service. Always working on changing, growing, social media, SEO, tags - and doesn't seem to have made a difference over this last year. Summer sales dropped off as well. Just have to keep at it. Going to try some other avenues to sell.

[Plektra]

I have been testing my shop from another account.

A few days ago, whenever I added an item in my cart, I would see 'You might also like....' items from my shop. Only my shop. This is at the Checkout stage, before clicking on 'Checkout with PP'.

If I removed the item from my cart, then I would see items from other shops, not mine. So I'm out of Plektra shop now and I can start browsing other shops. !! You can go back by clicking on the arrow on top left corner of your screen...but do buyers know that? And do they want to do that?

Today, I tested again. At Checkout stage, things look the same.

I remove the item from my cart. Then, under 'You might also like...' I see 2 of my items and whole bunch of items from other shops. This is annoying. They are still in my shop!

This must be new. Etsy has announced that they changed the search...yet again! Here is the message: https://www.etsy.com/teams/7716/announcements/discuss/17343108

[Plektra]

Then I tried adding different items in my cart from my shop. When I remove them, I see the same recommendations from Etsy time after time. No change. And they are not even relevant to the items I put in my cart. Only 2 were relevant based on the material.