Frustrated

[KellBellCustomDesign]

I am frustrated regarding losing my star seller badge due to not responding within 24 hours. One of the conversations marked with king art is where I am the consumer, not the seller. As a consumer, I should not have to respond if I don’t want to. Another one was when a client asked for a refund, which I immediately processed for them, even though I have a no refund policy. I assumed me processing the refund would be a sufficient response. There should only be one conversation that I missed the 24 hour mark. At that point, I didn’t realize it was some thing that you guys tracked. And it wasn’t a comment that really needed a response.

[UniqueGiftOrnaments]

The star seller info clearly indicates that every new message must be answered or put into spam.

[WitticismsRus]

Etsy is pretty clear about how the message response rate is calculated in help center here https://help.etsy.com/hc/en-us/articles/4403058372503-How-to-Become-a-Star-Seller?segment=selling

There is a highlighted bit under message response rate info that says "The Message response rate only applies to the first message in a thread. Initial messages from both buyers and sellers on Etsy are counted towards the Message response rate. "

That means ALL messages. It also means each individual message thread so if someone sends you 5 different messages with 5 questions instead of putting them in the same message chain you need to respond to all 5 of them. The system is completely automated and doesn't know if the message is from a buyer or another seller. It just sees a message and calculated the response time. That's just how it works.

The info is also right there on the Star Seller page in shop manager. Just go to shop manager > star seller. Once there scroll toward the bottom until you find "Questions? We've got answers." Then click messages. The very first question there says

"What messages count toward the message response rate?

Your message response rate is based on just the first message in a conversation, not ongoing conversations. This means you just need to respond to the first message within 24 hours. This applies to messages both from buyer and seller accounts. Messages from Etsy staff do not count toward your response rate, and neither do messages that you mark as spam. You can also now find a breakdown of your message response rate score by downloading a CSV."

If the star is important to you then it may be a good idea to read or review all the info Etsy provides about the star seller program.

Bottom line...you have to either reply or mark as spam.

[CarpetCollectionAU]

1)  "I should not have to respond if I don’t want to." Sorry, but if you an the SSP Badge you have to comply with the SSP Rules

2) "I assumed me processing the refund would be a sufficient response" It is never safe to assume anything. The Help Request or Message reqquesting the Refund must be responded to as welll as processing the Refund. The "Note to Buyer" on the Refund is not a Message for SSPcalculations

3) "And it wasn’t a comment that really needed a response." How would the SSP automation "bot" know that? A simple Thank-you or a smiley face emoji would take no more time than it took you to read the message and decide to disregard it. If it truely required no response then "spam" it.

It is truely amazing that more than 12 months after implementation, the key elements of SSP are still so misunderstood.

[TonsOfPaper · Accepted solution]

Hello @KellBellCustomDesign,

Please know that the Message response rate counts initial messages in new threads from all Etsy members, both buyers and other sellers. You may want to create a Saved Reply in order to quickly and easily answer messages from other Sellers. Using a Saved Reply within 24 hours will count as answering the message. If the message you've received is not a spam message, it requires a response within 24 hours. If it is a spam message you can mark it as such and it won't count towards your score. Marking a message as spam will remove it from your inbox.

While it is not possible to retroactively remove this message from your score, we do understand your concern, and really appreciate you sharing your experience with us. We've gathered your feedback and will be sure to share it with the appropriate teams. 

Thank you very much!
 

[moonbeamgifts]

I started my buyer account (disclosed but the shop isn't open) years ago when the retaliation feedback issue arose for others.    I am very glad I've kept it both for this situation as well as it's nice to have all of my purchases separate from my sales - especially when tax time rolls around.    Unfortunately it won't help with this month but it is proactive for any months going forward.