Etsy Shipping Email

[AtMemoryLane]

Did any of you notice the latest email from etsy in reference to free shipping?  I just received it today, so please check your inboxes.  If I read it correctly, it states that etsy will now be allotting 48 slots on the first page of search for those that offer free shipping or free shipping with $35 purchase.  That is quite a jump.  As I believe, they only allot about 18 slots right now - the first six rows.

I do not offer free shipping.

I had already decided to increase my pattern only listings this coming year - as my listings would expire during the months of January thru April.  But this really makes me want to consider increasing that pattern only percentage even greater.

What are your thoughts?  I would love some input from my fellow patternians...or is it patternites?

[AzVintageVariety]

Patternetsians?

[AtMemoryLane]

@AzVintageVariety- that is a good one too.

[funkydreamsmosaics]

If you head over to the main forums, they are on fire over this!  LOL.  And understandably so.  Personally, I feel like Etsy has gone too far this time.  

I did a search for a broad search term for my items, and sure enough, the first page was filled almost completely by one shop that offers free shipping.  Her items are a bit different than mine.  My main competitors and I show up starting on Page 2.  I'm not sure how that helps Etsy at all.  It may help that seller a bit, but as I said, her items are different.  So I go looking to see what Etsy has, and find only one type of item because only that seller offers free shipping?  Search just went from bad to soooo much worse.  

It just feels so heavy handed on Etsy's part.  And I haven't been fond of a lot of changes that have been made here lately.  And I don't like that Etsy is pretty much ignoring Pattern.  

Personally, I've started looking for other places to move my site.  

[AtMemoryLane]

@funkydreamsmosaics, I am going to watch my statistics very closely to see the affect.  I must admit that I rarely look at them, but I am going to make a change if I truly want to get a handle on this.

Good Luck in your search for a new site.