Does etsy shadow ban selling accounts?

[CollectiblesByBarli]

Hello everyone,

I am reaching out because I recently experienced an issue with my shop on Etsy. My shop was permanently suspended for an unknown reason, but after repeatedly contacting Etsy's customer support and legal,  they informed me that it was a mistake, apologized, and my shop was reinstated. However, I noticed that my available balance is not available for deposit and I cannot access my funds. none of the orders show up as in reserve, but there clearly seems to be a reserve on the account.

Additionally, I noticed that the Etsy ad management system says that my shop is in vacation mode, even though it is not in vacation mode in my settings. I have checked my shop settings, and there is no indication that I am in vacation mode. (edit.. it says it is in vacation mode OR INACTIVE although the shop appears to me to be active.)

Has anyone experienced a similar issue? I would appreciate any help or advice on how to resolve this issue and gain access to my funds. Thank you in advance for your assistance. 

[LastCentury]

I don't know about the shadow ban but when I search easter egg tin, your one & only listing is right there in first place, after the line ' most loved' & line of ads. And I can add it to my cart like normal.

Vintage tags for new handmade items can be confusing tho.

[CollectiblesByBarli]

Thank you. Yes, the images used in the designs on the eggs are actually vintage victorian fair-use easter postcards from the turn of the century, I tried to be clear with the "vintage-style" so as not to be confusing that it is not a vintage item. And to clearly state it is a "New" product.  I welcome feedback on if there is a better way to do this. I know etsy sellers who sell vintage items are frustrated with fake items posing as vintage and I hope I am using the term vintage-style in the listing in a fair and appropriate way. 

[Jewels2at]

When I looked at your shop...it is not on vacation.  Looks like you are selling reusable Easter Eggs.

[CollectiblesByBarli]

Thats good to know. It appears to be open to me as well, however Etsy ads says it is inactive and my balance is a significant amount, although none of it is available for deposit and non of it is being held in reserve either. I seem to be stuck in a strange limbo where I can't use ads, I might be able to sell (unsure) and I can't access any funds.

[SmudgePlant]

One of the reasons Etsy puts a reserve on a shop is "You experienced a sudden sharp increase in sales."

I'm guessing since you have the Bestseller badge on your eggs that you had a sharp increase in sales .

Here's the link to Reserves in the Help section https://help.etsy.com/hc/en-us/articles/360058722214-What-is-a-Payment-Account-Reserve-?segment=sell...

I'm not sure if you can get it removed or if you just have to wait it out.

This is the way Etsy rewards sudden success, I guess. Guilty until proven innocent.

[CollectiblesByBarli]

They actually shut down my shop for over a month, up to and after easter. They were selling great for a hot second...  the thing with the reserve is that Etsy's "help email" advised me to see what orders are in reserve and none of them are.. its just a mystery hold on my funds for no given reason, for no given amount of time.  And my reserve page under finances states that 0.00 dollars are being held in reserve.  so i'm at a loss here.

[SmudgePlant]

I think a lot of times the Help emails give you a canned response and try to wear you down so you give up asking questions.

I would keep on them since they've already admitted to making a mistake.

You need to make them realize how much their mistake has snowballed.

Good luck to you.

So sorry for what they did to your shop, especially at Easter!

[CollectiblesByBarli]

 I could not get any response from etsy until I filed a complaint with the BBB. the response I got from their legal was "In the complaint, the Customer states their account has been limited without any valid explanation. As a security measure, Etsy had limited the Customer’s account once we detected this activity."

Once we detected "this activity". WHAT ACTIVITY?? It's maddening, and i assume a completely automatic process gone wacko. 

I just came across this article and I'm laugh/crying:

https://www.etsy.com/seller-handbook/article/3-myths-about-policy-enforcement/765880647525

@iamcorinne 

I've been selling on amazon and ebay for years and have never experienced anything quite like Etsy. I understand creating a system that can weed out bad actors on the scale etsy has to must be daunting, but the tools you have in place currently are easily exploited by scammers and bots and will snuff out the very small shops that Etsy is trying to curate. I don't envy your task, but there has to be a better way.

[KultRemade]

I've seen 'shadowbans' on mass produced reseller shops.....

[ThePurplePuppy]

@KultRemade 

How can you tell a shop is "shadowbanned"??

[CollectiblesByBarli]

Interesting, can you tell me more?  I am not reselling. I have one product only, which only I produce.

[FallenAngelBrass]

Shadowbanning means that a specific person/seller/shop/account is purposefully suppressed in the search or suggestions algorithm.  How would we know if a seller is shadowbanned?  Etsy tell us openly that it employs frequency capping in the search algorithm, but that is a very different animal than shadow banning a seller (which as far as we know does not happen on Etsy.) 

[ThePurplePuppy]

@FallenAngelBrass 

Thank you. While I have heard of the frequency capping I was not sure if shadowbanning was the same. Obviously it is a horse of a different color.

[CryzalisDesigns]

If Etsy made a mistake by permanently suspending your account it may have affected your funds in your account. I have read from other sellers who have had their accounts suspended waiting months for funds and still waiting.

I would contact Etsy and demand your funds as it was clearly a mistake on their part which cost you the easter season.

Have you tried the call back option?

https://help.etsy.com/hc/en-us/requests/new?segment=selling&fbclid=IwAR3XJULkao3ZPR8XcOEf2A7143n87Xt...

[CollectiblesByBarli]

WOW I had no idea this existed. where is was this link hidden? THANK YOU

[Amaradorn]

I have heard of this before (in the forums) but I have no idea how it was fixed. It seems to be a glitch where the shop is not fully unsuspended. You could try putting your shop on vacation manually for about 20 mins and then take it off again and see if that resets everything. Failing that you will have to contact Etsy support directly.

[AnnaleasFinest]

@CollectiblesByBarli 

if you still have an open ticket, reply to it and ask when the deposit is being planned.

Etsy once froze my funds to protect me against a possible scammer and deposited only after 6 days, although I set it to daily, it would not react any earlier.

Request a review of your funds and ask for help from the finance team.

If the ticket is expired, contact chat, or request the call back.

Good luck!

[CollectiblesByBarli]

Very helpful response, I will try these, thank you.

[TheAtticRooms]

I just tried to access your shop using my phone and it's showing as 'taking a break' for me.

[CollectiblesByBarli]

I just put it on vacation mode for 20 minutes and took it off as was suggested above, I am guessing you tried right then. Thank you for trying.