Vacation mode

[MulberryCreek]

Been on Etsy almost 3.5 yrs now but have never put my shop on vacation. Couple questions...can customers see your shop when in vacation mode?
Am I wrong thinking etsy will send a customer a convo when you come back online if they request one? And is it difficult for your shop to come back up to speed when you do come back? Has anyone regretted doing this??

Thanks for any replies and info on your experience with this....

[OneFairfaxRoad]

I put my shop in vacation mode while on a trip a couple years ago and it took awhile for my shop to recover. Since then, when I travel I put a shop announcement stating that I'm on a buying trip and items may not ship until (date). I also change my order confirmation to state that in case they missed my shop announcement, I'm on a trip and items may not ship until (date). That way, I've still been able to respond to shop convo's while out of the area and orders continue to come in. No one is surprised by the shipping delay. Works much better for me!

[MulberryCreek]

Anne, I like your idea! Makes perfect sense...and I like the idea of putting it in two places. Most customers probably do not see your entire shop and therefore would not see the Shop announcement....Thanks....

[NataBurgos]

Yes I've been thinking about this too!
I have to travel 3 weeks in late October, but I'm not thrilled about the vacation mode. I guess I will modify my shop announcement and the message for the customers when I finally travel.

[JewelMeShop]

I do the same with Anne, plus I change my shipping dates. This summer I took 3 orders when on vacation, buyers didn't care about shipping time. Last year I did the same and lost some sales but at least my shop was still running.