Etsy is glitching on shipment notifications

[dorothydomingo]

I bought some handmade soaps back in April. I got them just a few days later.

Etsy just sent me *two* emails about the exact same order telling me they are on their way and will be here soon. I'm a seller so I know this is a glitch, but what if they are sending these emails to *my* customers too? It also makes me wonder if they are tinkering with something else and it's causing the system to send notifications about older (delivered) shipments.

[CanningCrafts]

Did you get notifications back in April when you originally purchased? Just wondering if this was a case of a seller not marking something as shipped until now? Probably not, since you specifically say "glitch"! 

[dorothydomingo]

I got all the normal notifications after I purchased and the order was shipped/delivered. This is not on the seller; this is on Etsy's notification system.

Maybe this is part of the weird stuff going on with messages and notifications (some of them years old) that I've read about here. Add this to the mix, I guess.

My bigger concern is not that I got this notification about a completed transaction/delivery. What do *my* customers see? Is this also happening to them? Do they think *I* am the one doing something dodgy or do they realize Etsy is not functioning properly?

We usually see Etsy breaking something as they go in to "fix" something else. Fun, fun.

[CanningCrafts]

There are definitely some bizarre things that have happened with notifications & messages here. Not sure how glitches like sending out messages for purchases years earlier can even happen. Hard to know how many buyers this has affected. No doubt Etsy would say it's for a "small" number lol. 

[TheHomespunLoft]

@dorothydomingo 

Etsy might be glitching-lol.. but I find if you communicate with your customers then it really doesn't matter a whole lot if they are glitching.

[dorothydomingo]

I think it does matter.

What would you think if on some website you buy from, if you got a message saying the order you placed two or three months ago (that you already received) was just shipped and on its way? Would you think you're getting another order? Would you think the seller can't keep track of their orders and/or is doing something dodgy?

Either the seller or the website looks unprofessional or problematic. WE know it's Etsy - does the buyer?

[TheHomespunLoft]

@dorothydomingo 

I can see that it annoys you...but Seriously I do not worry about it..I likely communicate more than most with my customers. Most of my customers just contact me to chit chat after the sale anyways. I do believe they would just reach out to me and we could figure it out together. And if it was me who got a similar message.. I would reach out to my seller and see what they thought. 

I don't think this is a totally new glitch.. I seem to think I have heard this happening before.

Have a good week..

[dorothydomingo]

So it's totally cool that Etsy sends out unnecessary and confusing shipping confirmations that are months old?

I'm not worried; I'm irritated. And also concerned that it's probably connected to something they are tinkering around with and probably broke something else. I've been here long enough - I know how they operate.

[CanningCrafts]

Anytime a glitch like this happens on Etsy, it reflects poorly on the seller, as many buyers don't understand sellers have no control over some of this stuff. It may panic or annoy some buyers. If the buyer felt the need to contact the seller, their time has also been wasted.  And now you're worried what else a customer might be getting that you aren't aware of. I get why you are upset, I would be too.

[dorothydomingo]

And...

today I just got another email about the same (old) order. It tells me that my order is getting closer and now it's in Florida, lol. 

I'm guessing I'll get at least one more when it's "delivered" 

[SmudgePlant]

Thanks for letting us know. It's good to be prepared in case it happens to one of our customers. 

[ZehOriginalArt]

I wonder if this has anything to do with the USPS reusing tracking numbers? There have been weird things going on with Etsy due to that. What Etsy should do is when orders are shown as delivered, they should not keep the tracking open anymore on those orders because of this.

[dorothydomingo]

I could understand if my order was really old, like 5 years as some sellers are reporting having issues with. But this purchase was only from April. I know USPS reuses tracking numbers, but not after only 2 months surely.

This seems more like an Etsy hiccup of some sort since they  sent emails to me (as the buyer) like the transaction just happened and keep updating me as part of the normal tracking process.

My cynical side is almost reading this as a passive aggressive attempt to make me leave a review. I wonder what would happen if I do just that, if it will allow me to since it's pretending like the order hasn't arrived yet. Hmmm

[ZehOriginalArt]

@dorothydomingo 

I believe USPS is reusing the numbers on a more frequent basis now from what I've seen reported by Amazon and Ebay sellers. Some are as frequently as only a few weeks ago causing all kinds of issues. USPS is trying to economize - perhaps this is why?

At any rate, supposedly the old scan should clear on the first new scan, but that does not seem to be happening with your order, so it's a mystery at this point - either an Etsy glitch or a USPS glitch, who knows?

I agree with you that this is not good when it happens to our customers. Confusion about an order is never a good thing especially with all the scams proliferating online.

[SeasideRoseCreations]

Have you tried the USPS site to see what the tracking # shows?

That would clear up the reusing question.

Either way, this is bizarre.

[dorothydomingo]

I just checked from my purchases page. The tracking shows the entire process in April all the way to the delivery. I also clicked on the shipping label number which took me to USPS site and that also shows all the same info.

So how can USPS have reused that tracking number but all of my info is still there? Wouldn't there be some other recipient and location if it had been reused? 

Logically it would appear that the problem is not on the USPS side, but Etsy's notification system. And I guess it's nothing to get bent out of shape about, but how many other buyers are getting these "ghost" notifications? Anyway, it's weird, it shouldn't be happening. I'll probably get the final email today telling me my order is here, lol and then I can forget about it.

[CanningCrafts]

If you see correct tracking info on USPS, I don't think it would be a resused tracking number issue. Most likely an Etsy issue. But yes, there have been times when USPS recycles numbers way too soon. I experienced that a few months ago. I had customers contacting me asking if I gave them the wrong tracking # since the tracking was all wrong. The tracking  showed packages were delivered 2 weeks prior. 2 weeks is too soon to recycle numbers, but it can happen.