Questions!?

[#1]

Who has questions!? Feel free to ask them here, and I will do my best to get back to you all!

If anyone else knows the answer, feel free to chime in!

[DapperCatDesigns]

Donna, this is common in many of the promotional teams. Relevancy on etsy is a bit of a mystery, and some people believe that favoriting helps to increase your relevancy and move you up on the pages to help more potential customers find you. It's entirely up to you and whether you feel comfortable participating, but the benefit is that you get 24 favorites for your items as well. People who are following the shops that favorite your items also will see what those shops favorited so it's again an opportunity to promote yourself. I participate in a couple of these teams and I've noticed that when my favorites increase, so do my views. Not sure how that all affects sales, but I figure it can't hurt. It's entirely up to you and what you feel comfortable with :o)

[CafeOhana]

Thank you Nicole. Maybe it was because the things in the shop I was supposed to favourite just were not my cup of tea, so it didn't feel right. I might look into it again, many thanks for your reply.

[Former_Member]

Donna - I feel the same way. I only favorite items I really like because I use my favorites to remind me of great gift ideas, or items I want t o look at again. I hate the idea of filling up my "Items I Love" list with things I'm not even interested in. :)

[CafeOhana]

Hi Mama Berry, thanks for your post. I've joined another team that has a thread wanting us to favourite 5 items from different shops each time We promote something from our shop. I'm more than happy to do that and it's working well for me.

[Former_Member]

Great Donna! There seems to be a place for everyone here on Etsy. :)

[Former_Member]

Getting frustrated. I've been in a few treasuries lately (and I made a couple treasuries too) so my views have been going up. It's just not translating into sales. : / Has anyone done any advertising? If so, what did you do? Was it cost effective?

[DapperCatDesigns]

Jeana,

I do the "newbie tax" with search ads....i havent had many sales from them but i have found that if i dont do them, my views go way down....Other than that, i have just been working with some promotional teams and working on my titles and keywords to try to get found in searches.... hopefully someone else has a better idea?

[Former_Member]

Jeana - I don't advertise because I'm not looking for big time sales here. Especially this time of year - my sewing machine is busy with halloween costumes and prepping the house for the holidays. If I were trying to make Etsy my job, or looking for major income from it I certianly would try search ads on Etsy, FB, or Google.

[Former_Member]

I was thinking about trying out search ads a little closer to Christmas. Hoping for a good holiday season. Fingers crossed.

Thanks Nicole and Mama.

Good luck with your costumes and holiday preparations Mama.

[Former_Member]

Jeana - just in case you do try them out, I read a really good hint once about Search Ads.

If you buy on Etsy, they will suggest a long list of "search words" that will be used to display your ads. These words are gathered from your tags, titles, as well as commonly searched items on Etsy.

Anyhow, it would be my first reaction to accept as many words as possible to get "seen" as much as possible. However, a long time seller advised to do the exact opposite. Use very few words that are precisely what you want to sell. This will assure that your ads only show up when the "right" people are looking, giving you more bang for your buck!

[Former_Member]

Makes sense. Thanks for the tip Mama!

[DapperCatDesigns]

I have a question for you all.... I tend to make what I want to, instead of doing multiples like some people, meaning that once an item sells, I don't usually replace it unless I have more yarn and am "in the mood".... Should I say something about this in my listings? With a positive spin of course, but something like "my items are one of a kind or one of a few, so I can keep things new and fresh,". I don't want it to sound like "so buy me now or regret it later..." What do you all think?

[Former_Member]

I like "buy me now or regret it later." : ) It has a nice ring to it. ha ha.
I feel the same way though. I don't want to keep making the same thing over and over again either. The only exception is when the pattern is really easy and the project can be finished quickly. An example would be some of the cowls I have in my shop right now. Given the time, I can usually crochet one of those in a weekend pretty easily.
I've wondered the same thing though. I've seen some people use "one of a kind" but you don't really want to use that on everything you make. I used the "one of a kind" label on the denim skirt purse I made (which is still in my store). That project was a bit of a nightmare so I don't know if I'll ever make another one. In that case I didn't feel too strange about marking it that way.

You might add a note somewhere in your shop that states that you like to "keep things fresh" and you tend to not make multiples of the same thing. That way people know.

[DapperCatDesigns]

So you think it's ok to put something in there that just kind of let's people know that there won't be many more?

[Former_Member]

Nicole - I think that's a totally fair thing to say. Some buyers may be intrigued by the OOAK thing. So far I've really only made a couple duplicates and that was because the fabric cutting was easier if I just did two at a time. Here's to keeping the crafting fresh!

[Former_Member]

Nicole - I don't see a problem with it at all. You could either come up with something to say on your shop page or perhaps you could come up with a phrase about it that you include in your product listings. That way people will know not to expect a whole bunch of the same thing. Maybe something along the lines of "each item I make is unique" or "I don't like repeating myself so each item is one of a kind" or whatever gets your point across in the way you want to say it.
Personally I assume nearly everything on Etsy is one of a kind (or close to it).

On another note: I've added some old crochet and knitting patterns to my store. One of them sold and I was so happy. I sent a thank you email to the buyer and she responded saying that she thought I was going to crochet the item for her. I'm sorry honey, I'm not going to crochet a pair of slippers for you and ship them for $2.50. I double checked the item listing and it clearly states that it is a PDF, a crochet pattern and an instant download. My policy page states that I have a no refund policy. On one hand I feel kind of sorry for this person because she made a mistake, but on the other hand she seems like an idiot to think that she could get a pair of handmade slippers shipped to her for $2.50. She hasn't asked for a refund and I haven't offered her one. Should I offer her a refund even though my shop policies specifically state there are no refunds?

[DapperCatDesigns]

Jeana, I've heard many rants in the forums about very similar issues... Sometimes I worry about people ;o). If i were in your shoes, I would probably refund the item, but only if she asks for it. I don't think I would suggest it because she did receive what she purchased. That may be the result of spending too many years in retail where, regardless of our policies, we have to bite the bullet and return (I've had people return shoes dripping with mud, claiming they weren't worn; clothes that smell like a bar room floor but "didn't fit"...). You need to do what makes you feel good :o). That's the beauty of etsy, it's your shop! You get to make the rules!

[Quagorsky]

Jeana, I recently had to deal with a similar situation. An international buyer purchased a card and then asked if it would be delivered within a few days, which of course isn't possible. So they canceled the order and I immediately gave the refund, even though my shop policies also say no refunds. I did wonder whether I should have, but in the end it was probably the best thing to do since I hadn't yet printed or shipped the item. In your case, the customer might not ask for a refund because it was only $2.50...if I were that customer, anyway, I wouldn't ask for one. Did you already send the pdf to her? If so, I agree with Nicole--don't give one unless she asks, and even then I feel like you're not obligated to because it's kind of impossible to "return" an instant download pattern.

One other thing I learned: if the customer paid using PayPal, you're going to lose some money in fees if you give a refund. For me it was $0.30, which isn't a lot, but still not pleasant. At least you do get your Etsy fees refunded back to you.

Finally, Nicole, you should definitely feel free to put in something about an item being OOAK. In fact, I recently bought a vintage sweater on Etsy precisely because I was afraid another buyer would snap it up!

[Former_Member]

Thanks everyone. I haven't heard anything else from the girl that bought the pattern. Maybe she is embarrassed? I know I would be. I would just accept the mistake since the it was only $2.50. I seriously considered giving her a refund, but my store policies are clear and there was no ambiguity with my listing. Plus she hasn't contacted me again. I probably would have caved and issued the refund if she'd asked. I did add a line to all of my PDF pattern listings that say it is a pattern only, not a made to order item.
Michelle- with the instant downloads, the PDF is delivered as soon as the payment clears.
Nicole- I worry about people some times too. If she'd really read the listing and taken a moment to think about it then you'd like to think that she would have figured it out. One of my main reasons for instituting the no refund policy was so I wouldn't have to deal with nonsense like that. I've worked retail as well...I've got my own horror stories. I'd like to avoid refund drama if possible. Hooray for making my own rules!!
: )

Didn't know that about the PayPal fees, thanks for the heads up.

[Former_Member]

Believe it or not I've never made a treasury and am now trying to figure it out...to no avail. Anyone willing to give me some quick and dirty directions?

[DapperCatDesigns]

What are you having trouble with? You just need to copy the URL of the item and paste it in one of the boxes on the treasury page... I usually have two browser windows open when I do this. Then, once you fill up all the items, you can move them around to make them just how you would like! Hope that helps, and if you have any other questions, just ask!!

[Former_Member]

What Nicole said.
I never knew how to get to the page to start a treasury. Go to the Etsy home page, scroll down and select Treasury under the "More Ways to Shop" heading then Create a List.
If I know I won't have enough time to make a treasury all in one sitting, I usually make a list (different than adding a favorite) then name the list whatever I plan on naming the treasury. I'll add items until I get 16 then I'll put the treasury together. Hope that wasn't too remedial.

[Former_Member]

Perfect...both of you! Neither two remedial, both very helpful!

I suppose I still don't really "understand" treasuries or their usefulness yet. But another team requires them, so I'm giving it a shot. So far, pretty fun!

[DapperCatDesigns]

They are useful in that it "introduces" you to other sellers because they see you as the curator, and the hopes is that others will return the favor and include you in their treasury :o)

[CheckerboardFaire]

Now that I've had a few sales I'm wondering how one leaves feedback/reviews for buyers? No one has left any reviews for my shop, but then I haven't left any for them either.
P.S. I really hate that you have to wait until Etsy says you can leave feedback after buying. It kills the spontaneity a buyer/I fees when they/I get the package if they/I go to leave feedback and it says "You can't leave a review for this item until XX/XX/20XX."
I always go back when it is finally "allowed," but I'm sure people who don't have shops don't feel the same way. I think this actually penalizes people who get their items sent as soon a possible and get them to their customer early.