Double check your "Etsy Search Visibility"

[#1]

I Just noticed a warning banner on my shop regarding "Etsy Search Visibility", you may want to double check your "Etsy Search Visibility"

I have never had anything less than blue ticks across the board since they brought it in. So I clicked on the banner to see what could be affecting it.

Seems it was my titles, for some unknown reason, each affected one had a "Colon" after the first few words of the title instead of the comma. I would never use : in my titles and suddenly it has appeared on over 16 of my listings? Which then affected my shop in the search visibility section.

Thanks Etsy!

[ChillwolfArt]

@ThePaintedCellarCo  That's crazy. Wonder what their fascination is with colons.

[CryzalisMasksUK]

In over 5 years I have been very capable of running my etsy dashboard all by myself, listings and titles without the AI doing it for me. Ok, I admit my SEO could be better but it works for me, so Please Etsy, inform me if you are doing so, especially when it screws with my "search visibility" I have enough to deal with, without having to worry about AI messing my shop up, especially when I have not chosen for it to do so or requested it.

[Adorabilities]

On no other platform do we have to constantly change our photos and listings because of the marketplace's whim. It's getting tiresome.

[GlitteramaCrafts]

@ChillwolfArt  It's ridiculous isn't it!  I don't mind shortening my titles, but no way am I using their suggestions.  I only saw the first 3 or 4 of the suggestions when I opened it earlier and they all had colons in there.....why???  It just doesn't make sense to me.

[UnicoKarmaStudios]

Yes. This happened to me today. I didn't want to change what was already getting views and favorites. I hit the "X" and bam. It updated and changed. I don't really have time to change it back as I'm on the go. I'll see how it does. Not cool tho.....

[GlitteramaCrafts]

@UnicoKarmaStudios I'm so sorry this happened to you.  Definitely not cool.....

I'm so glad I hesitated before I hit that button.  Etsy is not helping my high blood pressure these days!

[MouseGarden]

That's like when they tried the tag and pricing tool, and once you clicked you couldn't escape until you agreed to something.

[CryzalisMasksUK]

imagine it happening to those with hundreds if not thousands of listings, going to take a while to remove it all, why can't they just hand a fidget spinners if bored

[UnicoKarmaStudios]

Indeed. Isn't there enough going on these days...

[CoolCyberCats]

Perhaps in a future update we just post a picture and Etsy will make up the mostly wrong titles?

[RuncornWax]

It is of course possible  (but very time consuming) to follow the advise AI is giving on the titles and then change them individually on the listing detail itself rather in that separate editor.  Lots of the suggestions for me were good and reduce the wordy titles that we were always told would work great for SEO.  Some aren't great and it also suggests "personalized" for all of mine when its more likely that my UK customers will search "personalised"  (with an S and not a Z) instead !

My concerns are;

a) Advice was always not to touch best sellers and high performing items, especially the title - so a little nervous there

b) If I ignore it then that "alert" for not having optimised search visibility will remain and for all i know... it could indeed restrict my visibility if Etsy is focussing more on shorter snappier titles?

[GlitteramaCrafts]

The main problem is that once you go in to look at the suggestions, you cannot go back a second time to have a more in-depth look without it changing every single listing to the suggested title.

I would have been quite happy to go through my 550 listings and look at their suggestions, but that would mean when I hit that button to go back in, it would change all 550 listings before I even had a chance to look at them.

[DivineCrossings]

@CryzalisMasksUK @Thanks for the heads up and for being an AI title pioneer, but this is exactly why I wouldn’t trust Etsy and its pet AI with my grocery list, let alone titles. I’d rather flounder around on my own. But holy contradictions, Batman! I can’t believe AI made changes in direct opposition to what Etsy has recommended. SMH. 

[CryzalisMasksUK]

You are very welcome @DivineCrossings , although I rather not be their plaything.

I do not have time to worry about automatic changes being made to my "listings" without my permission or input.

I certainly do not have the time to change mistakes they have made which have affected my search visibility in a negative way, when in fact it has never had a negative warning on any of the required sections in my shop.

Why don't they go and play with those who have not got everything maxed out with blue ticks, badges and whatever else is required from us? 

Or better still concentrate on finding solutions for real issues, like posting to the United States

[RuncornWax]

@GlitteramaCrafts  I found that it gave me something like 8 per page on the suggestions.  And let me change some of them and untick others. Then once I had done that, it allowed me to abandon and continue another time.  

[ChillwolfArt]

@RuncornWax  That's good that it let you check some and not others. And that it let you abandon. Because if you don't like Etsy's suggestion, they should have it where you can Revert back to your own version.

[CoolCyberCats]

I see the link saying "Update titles" but I have not wanted to hit it because it says "update" not "review" and I was afraid it will auto change them. If I click that will I just see a list of them and it won't mess them up?

[PoochandTabby]

I saw it this morning. It now says my visibility will be lowered unless I fix 242 titles. I tried fixing one as a test to make it shorter and it still got rejected. If you repeat any word, you get flagged and if you have more than 14 words, you get flagged. My titles may not have been perfect, but they accurately described what I was selling. It's now just stringing words in my titles together that don't even make sense. 

[ChillwolfArt]

@PoochandTabby  That is crazy. Also, in search results, I am seeing listing which are  constantly on Pg. 1; they repeat a word 5-6 times in the Title (not Ads). So that is a big contradiction.

[PoochandTabby]

@ChillwolfArt Exactly. And now I noticed a few where the AI is adding words I didn't even use. I have a sparkle collar and I have in my title 'no mess sparkly design' but the AI calls it 'no mess glitter.' Glitter in not in my title. And these collars have no glitter on them. 

[RuncornWax]

@PoochandTabby  that is exactly the part that will worry most sellers. The fact it is suggesting your visibility will be lowered.  If that is just saying it "might be" (because they believe customers prefer snappier titles) then fine.  Sellers doing well can keep as they are.

If, however, they are suggesting it absolutely WILL reduce your search visibility (as in Etsy will prioritise shorter titles in search results) -  then that is a different matter and one that sellers will have to conform with I guess. 

But for me - it isn't clear even  whether this is advice .. or an instruction they will de-rank us if we do not conform  

[YunaPatterns]

In my Etsy Search Visibility tab, the AI tool you mentioned doesn’t appear. I guess they haven’t rolled out this feature to everyone yet.

[ChillwolfArt]

That's true, not everyone has it yet.

[SugarTaffySoap]

@GlitteramaCrafts  You're not required to make the changes recommended and there is no guarantee your sales will increase once you do. Your old titles will disappear unless you save them. Did you read the Sellers Handbook title update article dated August 22nd? 

[PiecesofMeCardsnMore]

I had a notification on my Etsy Search Visibility in my dashboard a little while ago. I had just listed a custom order and it only had one image. The image said "custom order." LOL The listing didn't need any other images. The buyer and I had discussed everything in a message. Etsy scolded me for only having one image. As soon as the buyer purchased the listing the warning went away. I haven't gotten the Title tool yet but I'm interested in trying it out.