Etsy keeps removing listings for violations and they need a better solution

[HappyKawaiiSupplies]

So i have had listings removed for violating handmade but they are supplies, listed in the supply section that are clearly supplies.  I have also had things removed for violating the contraband section (they were not remotely contraband and i eventually got them relisted)  I keep hearing about legitimate handmade sellers having their listings deactivated for being not handmade because AI cant understand that they have had their photos stolen.  Worse some of these stores are getting shut down because AI cant understand the situation and see that these stores are victims and not big resellers. 

I understand etsy wants to crack down on resellers, but their AI is really flawed and needs a human eye also.  I think that when a shop has a listing taken down there needs to be an appeal button attached to that listing so a seller can immediately make an appeal and state things like, "My photos have been stolen and used by other shops"  "This is a supply"   "These sprinkles are not parafinallia (yes that happened)"   Because ultimately this whole situation erodes sellers faith that etsy cares about them or even sees them as real people.  Also it puts all the burden on sellers to jump through hoops to fix Etsy's mistakes which is super frustrating since etsy has almost no customer support.   

[BluKatDesign]

Agree, they also need better screening of new sellers, this would prevent a lot of this happening and they could solve these kind of problems quicker. It is so not fair that long time real handmade shops are guilty until proven innocent. 

[nineteen27]

how many items are on etsy now.

i can no longer see the total.

but the last time i checked.

it was 150 MILLION listings.

so yes.. mistakes are going to be made with AI.

and you have marijuana leaf pendants and beads... and mushrooms...

so i can see why they could be taken down in error.

etsy does not have enough employees to deal with them right away.

they eventually get around to it.

so sellers have to find patience somewhere until AI gets better.

[HappyKawaiiSupplies]

So the things i has taken down as drug parafinallia had nothing to do with drugs.  Playing card sprinkles, round colorful beads, containers etc.  I get that etsy has 150 million items but there just needs to be a 2nd step that sellers can take because right now its near impossible to get these mistakes fixed without wasting a ton of time.  

[HappyKawaiiSupplies]

Also etsy does not eventually get around to it and i think sellers dont need better patience, etsy needs better customer service.  

[BagmakerSupply]

"... until AI gets better ..." Which presumes that someone at Etsy is making sure the AI is being taught which of its results are false positives.

[JDTotesnDolls]

@HappyKawaiiSupplies   But Etsy cannot know that the items flagged are not related or actually are something not permitted.  Since sellers do often try to get around the guidelines and regs of various countris, Etsy has to create a broad algorithm to find those not following the rules.  And yes that does mean sometimes innocent listings will be caught.  But Etsy is caught between satisfying the needs of various governments and agencies pushing and the sellers.  There is never going to be a happy place where everything works.

[AnchorRoadVintage]

One thing about Etsy is that they will give A reason but it might not be the CORRECT reason.  I'm not sure if this for CYA so they can later say it could also be X reason or if it is because their bots aren't programmed correctly.  But you wouldn't catch me using words that can be no-nos. Not the word amber or the word ivory or Cuba or any other words that can be perfectly harmless. I blur out the word Cuba on world maps. I don't use the color "ivory" even though I listed a paper supply that literally said "Ivory" for the color on the package. Luckily it sold quickly.  So yes, the bots and programming are faulty but we don't have to help them along.

[HappyKawaiiSupplies]

I totally get that but in all honesty when i have had things taken down there has been no rhyme or reason.  I currenly have three things removed and I cant figure out the bots targeted them at all

[YinVivoWeddings]

Hmmm... well, "Ivory" hasn't affected my listings at all. It's a classic shade of white for weddings. Neither has "Amber" in Item Details.