Add buyers phone number field

[DesignInFocus]

Please can Etsy add a field to collect buyers phone numbers. I cannot believe this isn't a feature for such a large website, particularly one that is international and encourages sellers to sell internationally. Phone numbers are necessary for the vast majority of couriers for international shipments. Furthermore, with tracked services being the norm for most domestic couriers nowadays they provide buyers with a better user experience enabling end to end tracking updates, leading to more reliable delivery. This is true for both international and domestic shipments. Almost all other websites collect this information and it is completely normal to do so. 

The only way to collect this information is by adding 'personalisation' to all products and denoting that this is to collect customers phone numbers for delivery purposes. This causes confusion for many buyers who still think items can be personalised, causing wasted time with back and forth messaging and delays with orders, further damaging the buying experience on Etsy. It also puts off buyers who think items have to be personalised but don't want them to be so.

Please make the simple change of adding a phone number field to the checkout. 

[Marmalady]

If you search past forum posts on this subject, you will see that the overwhelming number of responses is that the mandatory collection of phone numbers is not wanted

Many people go so far as to say that they would even leave Etsy if this happens.

For me, I would not want to give my phone number out routinely.

My country's postal service ( which is how I would prefer to receive my items rather than by courier) do not ask for or use recipients phone numbers.

I am well able to track any packages sent via a courier online -- which is quite sufficient for my purposes.
I do not need a phonecall or text to alert me to its delivery status.

[Recyman]

Just because the postal service works well in your country, doesn't mean it does elsewhere. I would NEVER send via the postal service again, because that is the biggest tragedy and nightmare, which everyone in CZ knows. The postal service here is about to go bankrupt. I have currently had to stop selling due to this tragic service and the large influx of orders. And Etsy doesn't even offer me the option to set up other carriers. There is only OTHER option for my country

[Recyman]

Just because the postal service works well in your country, doesn't mean it does elsewhere. I would NEVER send via the postal service again, because that is the biggest tragedy and nightmare, which everyone in CZ knows. The postal service here is about to go bankrupt. I have currently had to stop selling due to this tragic service and the large influx of orders. And Etsy doesn't even offer me the option to set up other carriers. There is only OTHER option for my country

[JDTotesnDolls]

@Recyman   You could use a photo to ask that the buyer include a phone number.  Many sellers use a photo to ask for certain information they need.  Just ask the buyer to include phone number in note area.

[DesignInFocus]

If what you say is true then don't make it a mandatory field but strongly advise that it will help to ease delivery and only be used for this purpose. If a buyer doesn't supply then we can message like we have to do now where it is required.

I don't understand any concern with providing a phone number online for delivery purposes, it is completely normal for all other websites. Websites checkouts are encrypted so any information provided cannot be seen and no seller is sharing this information apart from with couriers. Far safer taking this info via checkout than via messaging. 

[Recyman]

Exactly. I'll just add for those who here suggest adding a personalization box. NOT POSSIBLE. This field can only be added once. I have this box for real personalization, eg name and number on the product. If I write "please add your phone number" there, NO ONE WILL DO THAT!

[NoFrogsAllowed]

Use your own phone number.  That is what a lot of people do.  If the courier calls you can contact your buyer if it is really necessary.  Or you can add a random phone number.  Chances of anybody calling are very small.

I, personally, would make up a number, so what good does having a phone number box do?

[Recyman]

What you write probably only applies to the US. It doesn't work that way in Europe!
On Etsy, there are sellers from many countries, there are some rules everywhere.
I don't see a problem with adding a phone number field as an option. Those of the sellers who want to use it will choose this option, those who don't will not use it. Shipping with postal transport is about health. You don't know the conditions here.

[JDTotesnDolls]

@Recyman   About health?  Care to explain a bit.

As to the US, we are cautioned not give out our phone numbers indiscriminately.   

I would have no idea how my number would be used by a seller i did not know.  A large corporation has to follow certain rules and regulations about use.  But small time businesses are not usually subjective to that about how they would use a phone number.  Etsy is not secure enough.    

And on Etsy the personalization box does  work for that and where the seller can assure the phone number is only for the purchase. 

[CraftyCornishMaids]

No, never

Etsy does not police this site well enough, for me to give out phone numbers,

and they are not legally required for  international shipments

[BeautifulArtPosters]

If it is legally required or not is not the point. 

If I ship with a carrier that requests the number (like UPS) and there is a delivery problem and the number is wrong, the carrier will refuse to refund me the shipping cost (in my case sometimes 50-100$ + shipping back fee again 50-100$) in case of a non delivery.  That is why I cancel all sales (I do not care if it is legal or not..) in case I need a number and do not get it.

[BeautifulArtPosters]

I'd suggest to put this field only for international transactions where the number is often needed for larger items. 

But honestly, if etsy would run a test with that field I'm sure it would impede a fraction of the sales...  

I usually reach out to the customer after the payment and get the number in 90% of the cases.

[bradgoodell]

This is one of those situations that I can see both sides.  I understand it's a hassle.  

But as someone who both buys and sells on Etsy, I go with nope.  And definitely not mandatory.  

Etsy allows anyone to open a store on Etsy.  It is one of the easiest marketplaces to get started on.  And some sellers are extremely questionable it their ethics and practices.  Many already spam the shlt out of people.  Do I want Spam phone calls and text messages from shops?  NO.  If someone requires it for shipping, they can request it.  But I'm not giving over my number without a very specific good reason.  

That is my take on it.

[JDTotesnDolls]

While I sympathize with the issue a bit, for the most I do not want a box for a phone number included.  I don't want it made mandatory.

I wonder overall how many times a phone number is actually used.  In all my years as a buyer and now as seller I have never had a shipping service call except once.

[weekendjewelry1]

As noted above, if an international shipment requires a phone number, I use my own. That way if the shipper needs to contact someone about the package / delivery, they have my number (as the seller).  I do know that in various discussions over the years, many of my customers have said they would not order if they had to give their phone number.  I actually feel that way too.  There are exceptions sometimes, but mostly I don't give my phone number out when ordering something.  It's not the seller I distrust - it's the venue or medium.  Not secure enough! 

[BeautifulArtPosters]

The solution would be very easy, leave the desicion to the individual seller.

It would be very easy to add a section to the account setting where a seller could adjust if this field should be active or not, filling in a number made mandatory or not.

[CraftyCornishMaids]

Many sellers don't want their phone number shown on etsy,

however they are happy to plaster their buyers phone numbers all over the package, and let shippers harvest them, with no legal requirement for them to be needed.

let the sellers use their own number, if they think it's an OK thing to do

[Recyman]

This is a completely useless argument and discussion. All carriers in Europe require a phone number. Dot. Without it, the shipment cannot be sent. There is nothing to solve. Suggestions like use your own phone number, random number, personalized box, etc. are unrealistic because shippers in Europe always contact the customer and I use the personalized box for real personalization.
I can't dictate to the carrier whether or not to require a phone number. Everyone just wants it. I asked them for a solution. Answer. Get a phone number. When I ask a customer for their phone number, most do not respond.
The result is that I cannot use incomparably better shipping services, which are a big plus for the customer and are in their and my interest and in the interest of Etsy, and I have to use only one carrier, which is the tragic Czech Post, which is the only one that does not require a phone number .

[BeautifulArtPosters]

I agree 100%. If we put our own number which does not have the same country code with some carriers it does not work and with others we risk to not receive the necessary info and if so we can still not reach the customer, especially if it is in a different time zone.

I guess some people here just sell stuff for 20$, if there is a nondelivery or lost parcel the financial risk is not large. If we ship valuable parcels (especially above the 250$ limit) we should be 100% sure that there will be a safe delivery.

If I do not get an answer via ETSY message within a few hours I send the same message via email. I usually write something like I can send with fast courier but need the cell phone number. And since I add "I will of course not call you" I get an answer in 90% of the cases.

[Recyman]

Yes. For the last two days I have only allowed shipping to Germany (neighboring country) - I don't have any domestic orders, it doesn't work like that here, I'm not in the US, I only have international shipments.
I wrote a long explanation that, in case I receive an order from Germany, I will send to the customer and state that he will either provide me with a phone number that will only be listed in the online order with the carrier, or if he does not want to provide the number, I will cancel the order and give a full refund. So far only a few orders and I got the numbers in reply. I also consulted with Etsy support. But it's a terribly impractical solution.

[ReginaldSpleen]

I usually ship using Royal Mail which doesn't need a number. If I get an order going to North America which will weigh over 2kg (Royal Mails limit) I will send them a message straight away to let them know I need their number for the courier. So far almost everyone has supplied it promptly, when they don't I push the dispatch date out and send another message saying I need it by x date or I will have to cancel the order.

If you know you are going to need the number on a lot of orders why not add a note to the purchase confirmation message that gets sent out when a customer buys an item. "Some couriers require a telephone number, please message me with yours in case it is needed." You should have a privacy policy in place so they know you will not be passing on the number to any agency that does not need it.

Not an ideal solution, but it may help.

[DesignInFocus]

It just seems silly for it to fall on sellers to individually chase buyers for phone numbers when a simple fix would be for etsy to update their our of date system and add a field requesting this information in the first place. Most buyers do respond to requests but it is unnecessarily time consuming to have to message and for those that don't respond they receive orders late, making them less likely to order on etsy in the future. 

[GorillaCandles]

This would be so helpful. My international rates are so much better than Etsy's. I always have to send a message requesting a phone number. If the customer doesn't respond, I'm forced to use Etsy shipping at a higher cost. Often $20 more per package. 

[BlissMuseum]

I'm in Australia and have always used manual customs forms. Auspost have decided to not have that option for much longer. So today I have been attempting to fill in the digital form. I cannot fill it in without a buyers phone number.