If your sales are down it may be this issue, you might want to check the app

[#1]

Hi Everyone!

Just  posting this here in case you haven't read the my items are not showing up for customers in my store on the app posts.

There is a glitch on the app that from reading posts has been going on for around 2 weeks or so where people are unable to see your listings in the app when they visit your shop. It is worth checking out and then letting Etsy know if it is happening with your shop.

Good luck and happy selling!

[BriarMoonBeads]

@DaysofYoreTreasures 

"Since Oct 1, Etsy search is prioritising US shops with domestic shipping of $5.99 or less."

I haven't seen any preference toward it yet, in my logged in or private searches, via laptop or phone, with or without a US shipping address. It's odd to me I haven't because they use the word 'priority' and not 'boost' - which to me says 'above all else'. Maybe they're rolling it in slowly, maybe only in some categories/searches or just with some users. But with so many other factors involved in search including personalisation, good reviews and enough photos, it's unlikely that $6+ shipping is going to make or break a shop. (unless maybe every other competitor is free and you're not)

I remember a while back Josh mentioned 'the tyranny of choice' - that when someone has too many options, their motivation slows down and they becoming indecisive. This is what makes me think it's a test; Etsy could be trying to figure out if it still results in a sale to just show the 'good stuff'. If it's only being affected by 'most relevant' then it deepens my suspicions

But if deleting and re-installing the app gets rid of it, it's probably a glitch. Unless that kind of thing will get rid of a test - I don't know enough about either tests or apps to know! But there was a time not long ago when eBay planned to only show the top listings in a category and leave the worst performers (and those not up to standard) out entirely. I don't know if it ever came to fruition, and Etsy is not eBay.....even if Josh used to work for them. [sips tea]

[DaysofYoreTreasures]

@BriarMoonBeads 

I apologise for not tagging you in my comment on the previous page
https://community.etsy.com/t5/Technical-Issues/If-your-sales-are-down-it-may-be-this-issue-you-might...

I think what we saw earlier in the month on non mobile devices was a glitch but I can no longer reproduce it.
That's what made me think something similar might be happening with the app.

I hope everyone doesn't have to re-install the app to get it working right, especially with Relevance being the default sort.

[MoonstruckCottage]

@DaysofYoreTreasures Yes, I do have some small items where the shipping is $5.95 or less. Everything else is higher than $6.00. Since I reinstalled the app, I no longer see just 24 items in my shop, so I can't check which items they were. But now that you mention it, I do remember seeing many small items in that 24. Hmm......

[dlcgems]

my views/visits from etsy app and other pages have been plummeting. Could this be the issue? 

[TCCreatesNow]

@dlcgems Sorry to hear that and that could very well be the issue. 

[Vintagecountdown]

I haven’t updated my app to the newest most recent version. Could this be a problem with the latest version? I’m not going to update it until it’s fixed!

[MedicineBluffStudio]

What the heck is "relevence" mean?  This is a first for me.

[MoonstruckCottage]

@MedicineBluffStudio I assume Relevance is based on items you have searched for (past and present), purchases you have made, and whatever Etsy/AI thinks is relevant to what you might be looking for. I'm really not sure exactly how it's configured though. Does anyone?

[DaysofYoreTreasures]

@MedicineBluffStudio @MoonstruckCottage 

On non mobile devices the sort defaults to either Custom or Most Recent when you enter a shop, depending on what the seller has set-up, and there is no Relevance sort option.

But, if you open a listing from search or anywhere else, then click on the shop name within the listing, you enter the shop on a Relevance sort. The relevance is based on the listing you were looking at, so similar items in that shop will come up first.

I'm afraid I don't know how the Relevance sort works in the app, given the buyer may not have taken any previous actions to indicate a preference.

[MoonstruckCottage]

@DaysofYoreTreasures Yes, that's exactly how it works on non-mobile devices. I don't know how Relevance works in the app either. And I don't know why it's the default sort in the app when it's not on non-mobile.

[SnappyBaby]

I'll update what I can about what I know. I reached out to Etsy support and their engineering team is aware of the issue. I received an email saying that basically the issue is happening on IOS devices and supposedly only when selecting a shop section. However, MY customers have reported that they cannot see any listings that were already in existence before October 13th, no matter how they try to look at the listings. Sorting different does not help. They can see all of the newly created listings, but nothing that was listed before the 13th. When I pass on any information to the "team" at Etsy, they tell me that each customer needs to reach out to Etsy support individually so they can help each person. My customers are not really getting any help, though, and most of them didn't even know that it was an issue because they thought that my shop was on vacation since they could not see listings!

Overall, Etsy has killed my shop, so I am looking at alternatives more seriously now. I have sold on Etsy for almost 12 years and NEVER had a decrease in sales like this (well over 50% decrease this month now). I have had many customers reach out to me because of this issue with the app and it is outrageous that Etsy does not have any idea what is going on or how to fix it! I am not investing in any more inventory and will only sell off what I already have. I have other sources of revenue that I will put my time into and no longer waste my time with Etsy. I know I am not the only one. I should have sold my stock ages ago, so that's going to be sold asap. There are so many things that do not work right besides the app. It's just not worth my time anymore. I have a local boutique that I started this year and that is making me more money than Etsy now and costs less per month because I don't have a "per listing" fee. I can stick as much stuff in there as I want, and the fees are way less. It's beyond sad when a local option is cheaper than selling on Etsy now! I might actually shift to Amazon to sell off the inventory faster! 

[TBQSC]

So this ongoing Etsy problem happened around Oct. 13?  That date definitely coincides with what is currently happening with my shop.  My last FAVE was on Oct. 16 ... before that date, I used to have many faves, sometime several within a day.  Now ... nothing!  My last order was Oct. 11, and now even with running sales, I have gotten no new orders! My stats have literally flat-lined, I am so deep in the red!  I have done EVERYTHING Etsy has recommended for shop visibility ... photos are correct size, I have edited titles, descriptions, tags, free calculated shipping, etc., everything says my shop is good, there is nothing else to do, and yet ... I got nothing!  It's like the faucet got turned off, and there is no longer a running well available to tap.  I can find items in my shop via search, so I know I am indexed, and yet ... ???  At this point, 15 years total now ... I feel not only has the light been turned off, there is actually no longer a physical light switch available to be turned on anymore.  I am at a huge lost as to what to do ... I know I am not alone.  My plan was to sell off my current inventory, and start anew in January with the selling of my handmade quilts again, but if Etsy is not even showing any of my listings to anyone anymore, then starting afresh is not even possible. I have already started listing some things on eBay and will continue.  Really disappointed in Etsy lately.  I know this type of "activity" happens every year around Oct, with so many changes that Etsy does, so it's not really a huge surprise things have slowed down, but this year just seems different ... very different!

[SnappyBaby]

@TBQSC I am pretty sure it "started" October 1st with their new punishment process, and it just got worse after that. They warned me that I needed to change my shipping, but I didn't because I charged less than calculated, but I finally changed, and it actually got WORSE. Their calculated shipping is garbage for parts of the country for some reason. I checked 50 zip codes and over half charge more than the other areas. I use flat rate, but it's higher than their $5.99 max and I refuse to bump up my main prices to offset shipping. They literally bullied me into changing and then punish me more. I don't know how they come up with what they do, but maybe if they focused on actually putting listings in front of buyers, then we might sell things. Instead, they bully us into horrible business tactics that have never worked. I never really liked Ebay, but I think I might be shifting there as well! Have to do something since Etsy can't figure out how to run their company right!

[cookiejarbruce]

Every year I start October well enough, then Esty starts their changes that they always make during holiday shopping season. Changes that hurt sellers. I've given up trying to understand why.

[cookiejarbruce]

But on the other hand, I don't need to buy all the bubble wrap I thought I was going to need.

[roadkillvintage]

Yes, I agree.  My sales have been far and few between the last 2 weeks for sure, I haven't changed my method but was wondering if something had changed on the other side of things.  Let's hope this gets resolved.

[Girlfriendnecklace]

They have hidden lost of listings, only 20 pages per keywords are displayed.

[SnappyBaby]

Yes, this is probably one of the reasons why sales across the board are down. I know they think people do not look past 20 pages, and I understand that, but they are not showing the correct things under the correct keywords in an attempt to punish shops for not doing exactly what they want. Lower shipping prices (they prefer free shipping), specific types of images, ship within a certain timeframe, respond to messages in a few hours, etc. They are too focused on PUNISHING shops instead of rewarding the ones that actually have good customer service and provide what the customers want. I honestly do not understand the purpose of some of the things they do... and I have seen a LOT of complaints from customers about how horrible buying on Etsy is right now. So, they have a specific type of buyer in mind and it's not what we have had over the years! Why do I see crocheted elephant toys if I type in duck fabric? I can check the listing and see that the keywords in the listing say nothing about ducks or fabric, so why show me that item? 

Etsy is trying so hard to make all of these changes for what purpose? To sell more items? Is it really working? The stock prices have plummeted since 2021 for a reason. It's not because less people are buying online! It's because less people like buying from Etsy. People can blame the economy or shift in buyer behavior or whatever... but overall, Etsy is failing its sellers and definitely the buyers!

A few years back, someone mentioned a website that was an up-and-coming competitor to Etsy. Not necessarily because they were trying to compete with Etsy, but they sold the same types of items, and it was based on a charity. Anyone remember what that site was? My main shop doesn't sell items that I could sell on that place so I cannot remember what it is, but I have other items that I don't want to put on Etsy and maybe that site is an option for others? I hope it's still around!

[StainedGlassYourWay]

Wow, maybe that is why my views are less than half what they normally average the last two weeks and my only sales this week have been from repeat customers.  The new ones can't see me perhaps?  I don't use the app (and never will), so if anyone wants to test the theory on my shop, there should be 252 listings to see if all is working properly.

[SunriseMosaicsbyBeth]

@StainedGlassYourWay I checked your shop on the app and everything seems to be there. Dare I say it, but they seem to have fixed the problem! I check my own shop once a day to make sure I can still see everything, and so far, so good! 

[StainedGlassYourWay]

@SunriseMosaicsbyBeth   Thank you very much for checking!!  I do hope the problem is fixed.

[SweaterZoo]

Sadly, I'm still seeing that only 111 of your listings are showing on my app.  Even though it says that you have 250+ listings.

Perhaps I have an older app version, but this lack of visibility seems to be a problem for many sellers. 

I had to deal with it for days and some sellers have had to deal with the glitch for weeks.

Etsy has been aware of the problem for weeks.

[MoonstruckCottage]

@StainedGlassYourWay I see all 255 of your items on the app, but I uninstalled and reinstalled the app on Friday because of this issue and that may have fixed it. So I don't know what I would have seen before I reinstalled the app.

[StainedGlassYourWay]

@SweaterZoo @SunriseMosaicsbyBeth Thank you both for checking, and unfortunately confirming that it's still an issue for some people.  Etsy really should put out a site wide notice to uninstall and reinstall the app to fix recently found issues.

[TBQSC]

@SnappyBaby — You mentioned a charity website,,, perhaps you were thinking GoImagine?