Got dinged in Star Seller even though she was responded to and they could see it

[RainbowCrossings]

Had a customer place an order, then emailed that she wanted to cancel. I responded to her order, and then when she wanted to cancel, I immediately cancelled and refunded her. She again emailed me thank me. Low and behold, I got DINGED in Star Seller. Etsy claims that she had sent her request to cancel in another thread and I had responded in the original thread, which her request ALSO appeared. I contacted Etsy, and they refuse to remove it, even though I sent multiple screenshots SHOWING the conversation between us. Etsy remained adamant that it doesn't matter, because she had SENT the request on a different thread. I then sent her a screenshot showing where Etsy had sent out the notice that starting in June, they were going to combine messages so we didn't have to chase all these threads down. Still doesn't matter, because this thread happened to be opened in the Help center, even though it came through regular. I guess we need to do searches in Etsy to see where the threads originate. Unbelievable that even when they can SEE an instant response, Etsy feels fit to refuse to remove their penalty strikes. I just can't believe how crappy they treat their sellers. 

[JCMSGifts]

Just send it to spam. It should adjust it. Cannot promise, but in the past it adjusted the message response

[CraftyCornishMaids]

It also means you will never see messages from this customer again.

so if they are a repeat buyer, and they ask a question, you loose the sale

and if they have a problem, prior to opening a case, you will miss it 

it is not a good solution, to mark non-spam messages, as spam

[hopeandjoystudios]

They won't see messages added to that message thread from that customer (which is not happening anyways) but they will get any new messages from them. Spam just spams that thread..not all incoming.

[RainbowCrossings]

Just did that. Hopefully, it will adjust. So pathetic that Etsy makes their sellers play this silly game. AND, not to mention, if they know this part about sending it to spam, you would THINK the agent I was having this conversation with could have informed me of that. She was looking right at the screenshot I sent her, which had all the correspondence in the thread, all dated the same day, and you could CLEARLY see I responded to her immediately. This is so lame there are no words.

[CraftyCornishMaids · Accepted solution]

@RainbowCrossings 

Etsy does not combine all messages in the same thread, if they come from different sources, you misunderstood the message

it said

How does this new messaging experience work?

New incoming messages from buyers will be consolidated into an existing thread so that you have the full messaging history with a buyer all in one place, making it easier to keep track of communications. Please note that Help Request messages will remain distinctly separate threads.

you have to reply to each new message thread once

so a message through purchase and reviews, which says "help request" will not be put in the same thread as other messages,

and any message, sent through an order, is NOT part of the message system

When you look at your messages, if it is a new message thread you have to reply to, it is highlighted in BLUE so you can't miss it

[post50modern]

I got dinged for this as well. Apparently you have to respond to ALL messages. Messages generated by the "return" system and private ones directly from the buyer. Seems silly, but it is in the terms and condition of etsy if you dig deep enough. Very frustrating.

[RainbowCrossings]

Not exactly. On May 31, 2022, I received the following information in an Etsy newsletter: "In June, we’ll introduce a new-and-improved Messages experience that will start to combine messages from the same buyer into a single thread. To earn your Star Seller badge you’ll need to respond to initial messages from buyers within 24 hours in fewer threads than before, since you told us it was difficult to stay on top of your messages. Not only will this change make it easier to qualify for Star Seller, it will also make managing all your messages much more streamlined." I guess the key words in this is not the bolded first sentence, but where they tucked "fewer threads than before" further down. Ridiculous!

[BagmakerSupply]

@RainbowCrossings: The wording of many of these announcements sound like they were written by an attorney seeking plausible deniability instead of providing clarity for the intended audience.

You do not have to respond to all messages, you need to respond to the FIRST message of a NEW THREAD.

Etsy is now putting a blue text warning / advisory (blue banner on desktop, and a blue dot on mobile) on those messages they consider to be a "new message" but should semantically be called a "new thread". Subsequent messages from the same account (a buyer may have multiple accounts) are supposed to be combined into a single thread with some exceptions.

[JDTotesnDolls]

You have to respond to all NEW messages.  Messages in the order or refund and cancel are not related the the message system.

If a buyer messages you refund and cancel, you need to answer that message.  The one to refund and cancel does not count as it is not part of the messaging system.

Messages that are combined show this with I believe a blue dot.

So it is new messages in message system that need to be answered or spammed   

[VintageGiftsEE]

Send this message to spam folder , in few days your score will restore 

You are not alone , many of us was in this situation. 

[RainbowCrossings]

I'll try that. Thanks!

[LynnsLittleShop]

Yes, that help center one got me, silly me I sent her a message as I cancelled the transaction. Even though it says you are sending your customer a message, it's not the RIGHT message. Ridiculous is the appropriate word.

[hopeandjoystudios]

Yep that is it. Have to answer in the message area not just the refund/cancelation or notes to seller box

[RainbowCrossings]

Gotta love how Etsy seems to think we sellers have nothing better to do than search around their website trying to see where a customer's email generated. If you answer them - ANYWHERE - within 24 hours, that should be good enough. For crying out loud! So ridiculous!

[CraftyCornishMaids]

You should always answer customer messages,

however , if you are that worried about star seller

you don't have to search, you don't have to worry where it's from

if there is a BIG BLUE message, under the Message, in the message section, you need to reply,

[LynnsLittleShop]

@CraftyCornishMaids I made my mistake before they had the big blue message. 

[CraftyCornishMaids]

the big blue message saying it's the first time, has been there since before our current badges were calulated

the other big blue banner, with the hands, in the body of the message, for the notification of seller protection, is more recent

[RainbowCrossings]

My messages are forwarded to my email address. I go to the Orders and Shipping page and respond there. That should be enough. They are answered in time. I thought they had taken care of this idiot policy, so I was comfortable with not needing to look around to see where the email was generated. I have waited up to nine days to get a response from Etsy before. They shouldn't make rules for their sellers that they can't even comply with.