Important surprising info on abandoned cart coupon (freshly after Etsy chat) FUMING

[#1]

I have listed a dress literally less than 14 hours ago. Etsy has sent "abandoned cart" offer to a buyer in less than 24 hours of the item even being on the site. Buyer applied coupon and purchased. Thing is, I was convinced that there must be at least 24 hrs for item being carted for this to even happen. I contacted Etsy via chat and after being pushy and not letting go, the customer service ADMITTED that now there is no time limitation for this type of discount anymore! Quote:[This content has been removed by Moderation. We ask that you please review Section 1, Item 2 of our Community Policies prior to posting.] Oh wow. Shouldn't such info be available so that you know precisely what you get your shop into?? But guys, keep reading, it only gets better. 

 I kept being pushy calling them out on absolute lack of transparency and it only got better from there... Here comes literal quote from the chat about the ABANDONED CART OFFER:[This content has been removed by Moderation. We ask that you please review Section 1, Item 2 of our Community Policies prior to posting.]. This made me lose my mind. I have sent them literal quote from my dashboard [This content has been removed by Moderation. We ask that you please review Section 1, Item 2 of our Community Policies prior to posting.] And I asked how on earth am I suppose to conclude from this dashboard info that offer ISN'T IN REAL abandoned basket but something entirely else ?! And can be sent out by Etsy randomly, not just in case of abandoned basket as stated ?! THIS IS LITERALLY MIND BLOWING. They have forwarded my case to specialists who should reach out to me via email. I will update this thread when I receive such email.

This is absolutely horrendous case of misinformation and I am not just leaving it like this. Especially that they had audacity to tell me I should be happy item sold. It would have sold full price and I know it but it isn't even about that anymore. It's the principals. How is it even legal? Even though I'm reading this forum daily and am aware of much worse things going on recently (refunds of delivered items make my skin crawl), I am still shocked. It's like they told me "yeah, we say it is A but in real it is B, sorry for confusion, hehe, ciao". U N R E A L

[EnergyPeace]

@NoFrogsAllowed she said this item had only been listed 14 hours. So that one sure couldn't have been in the cart for 24 hours.

[NoFrogsAllowed]

@EnergyPeace 

And nowhere does Etsy say that the item that is purchased has to be in the sellers shop over a certain length of time.  It could have been listed 5 seconds ago and if the buyer has the code  they can use the code and get a discount on that item.  If it is in the shop it is fair game.  It's always been that way.

[EnergyPeace]

@NoFrogsAllowed except if you go to Etsy help page they say this:

"Offers will be sent to people who’ve left items from your shop in their cart. These shoppers will get an email offering them a discount for that item 24 hours after they abandoned it in their cart. "

It specifies 24 hours after. Etsy themselves says this. 

Of course, if a buyer kept the coupon from before they could use that, I get it. 

[artbyjocelyn]

Yes, that would bother me a lot, it would make me feel like I looked like a jerk.

I am unsure, cannot recall, if the cart coupon thing was only for the actual item that was in the cart, before. But, in essence, even if it was 48 hrs, the buyer could just cart the new item they want and wait the time it took to receive a cart coupon, before, anyway. But ...

Basically, anyone getting a cart coupon moments after they put something in their cart (and I got 2 so far in the last little while as a buyer) then it's Not really an abandoned cart coupon anymore, and that to me is a huge issue with it. It is supposed to be a marketing push for carted items where the potential buyer is wavering on purchasing or wishfully hoping they can buy at some point. As well, it seems it is retroactive now too? Now, it seems it's then a perpetual % off sale running all the time for a shop who enables it, and I can see why the OP or many other sellers would not be happy with that, especially when they did not know the terms had changed.

[AnnaleasFinest]

@TheUglyJumperClub 

I'm sorry you are stressed out about this..!

I'n sure it came as a big surprise.

Well, since you offer it, , -- does it really matter WHEN the coupon is being used...?

I've never offered it, because it might happen to items that I don't want discounted.

Your only solution is probably to drop it altogether.

[TheUglyJumperClub]

No, I'm not gonna drop anything. If we all do that, nothing ever will change. This is obvious and clear violation on Etsy's part. I opted in for this particular discount not for general random discount for all my items that Etsy sends out as they wish. 

[hopeandjoystudios]

I think she meant drop using the abandoned cart coupon offer.

[TheUglyJumperClub]

Oh sorry, in that case, it goes without saying, first thing I did was turning this discount off

[AnnaleasFinest]

@hopeandjoystudios 

yes, thank you, that's what I meant!

@TheUglyJumperClub

[hopeandjoystudios]

I never used it but I  am surprised they could apply it to other items. 

What does this even mean? We’ll include up to 12 different discounts per offer email. 

[funkydreamsmosaics]

I *think* it means that if I abandoned items from 12 different shops, and they all have abandoned cart coupons, I could get one email with 12 coupons.

[SmallthingsbyAmanda]

I always assumed any code sent out can be used for the whole shop, not just one item. When pricing items to sell you should always allow for any offers or codes that you might be sending to your buyers at any time. Yes etsy did used to wait longer before sending codes but if you are happy to offer a code does it really matter if buyer uses it in 3 hours 3 days or 3 weeks you have said buy from my shop and get xyz% off so I do see how fast they buy will really mater. I get that possibly they would come back and buy even without the code but you can say that even if you Waite 24 hours. I have often left things in my cart weeks before buying not because i was hoping for a code just because i was not ready to buy yet. 

[DaysofYoreTreasures]

@SmallthingsbyAmanda 
"Yes etsy did used to wait longer before sending codes but if you are happy to offer a code does it really matter if buyer uses it in 3 hours 3 days or 3 weeks"

Yes, I think it does matter. Etsy are contravening their own specifications as described here.

If we sign up for a service we should be fully informed of what that service provides.

[SmallthingsbyAmanda]

I agree etsy should be clear what i meant by dos it mater was dos it mater when the buyer buys if you have allowed for the discounts available in your pricing how would it be better if say the item sat in your shop for months then a buyer put it in there cart etsy sent a code a week later and buyer waited another week to buy. You got the price you worked out you where happy to sell at is a sale sooner rather than later not ok.   

[GoodNiteGracie]

It would matter to me if I listed a new item that I just made and someonecould buy it with a discount coupon before it had any views. Why should a totally new creation be sold at a discount? 

[FacetWorld]

This just happened to me yesterday. A customer bought an item, via offsite ad(I hate). Later that day she wanted to buy another item and she used the abandoned cart code, which I have no idea that it is actually a coupon code and customer can use it again and again. Plus, since offside ad brought her to my shop it also took off a fee for the ad. That's, 12% off offside ad and 15% off abandoned cart. Since I have not sold much lately, it really hurts and I still have not moved on. I just deactivated my abandoned cart offer after reading this thread. Thank you!

[SmallthingsbyAmanda]

as long as etsy have done the abended cart code it could be used for the whole shop that's not changed. a buyer can have an item in the cart and get a code after 24 hours. A week later you can list a new item buyer could buy it using the code the got a week ago and now they have that code can use as meany times as they like. That's how it as always worked. I dont get why it maters if a buyer buys with a code the day you list it or leaves it in there cart 2 days then buys using the code. If you priced your items correctly them using a code dos not matter. 

[StonesAndLeatherUS]

Etsy just wants their money, they don't care how they get it, is how it seems to me. If Etsy went by their own rules they make, this place wouldn't have aliexpress resellers lying about handmade stuff or counterfeit items. You can turn off your abandon cart coupon, but I have had coupons used in my shop that shouldn't of even been used. I had everything turned off. This place is just getting scarier by the day. 

[funkydreamsmosaics]

As far as I know, it has always been the case that the coupon can be applied to your entire shop.  So that's not new.  And really makes sense, based on how coupons on Etsy work.  

The immediate sending of the coupon seems new and as others have pointed out, different than what Etsy has documented.  And definitely problematic.

Oh, and directly quoting from Etsy chats will get your post closed.  

[SmallthingsbyAmanda]

yes codes could always be used for entire shop nothing new about that.  

[OneEyeCatStudio]

If coupon codes could always be used for an entire shop, then why does Etsy say, and I quote ...

"If a shopper has an item from your shop in their cart for more than 24 hours, they’ll get an email offering them a discount for that item 24 hours after they abandoned it in their cart."

That is an exact quote from the Help Center.

[funkydreamsmosaics]

@OneEyeCatStudio  wrote:

If coupon codes could always be used for an entire shop, then why does Etsy say, and I quote ...

"If a shopper has an item from your shop in their cart for more than 24 hours, they’ll get an email offering them a discount for that item 24 hours after they abandoned it in their cart."

Because Etsy's documentation is poorly worded?

[OneEyeCatStudio]

Poorly worded, blatant lie

Tomaytoes, tomahtoes

[ChantillyAvenue]

@funkydreamsmosaics 

It's amazing just how many things are "poorly worded" around here.  And it has served Etsy well for many years.  I assume this why they continue to poorly word as much as possible.

[PiecesOfMePaperCraft]

As a buyer, I can't remember a time when an abandoned cart coupon was sent 24 hours or more after I put an item in my cart. Most of the time I get the email the same day or less than 24 hours later. It's always been applied to the whole shop because that's how those coupons work. I have an abandoned cart enabled so as a seller, I hope it encourages buyers to look around my shop and purchase more than one item.

I guess I don't understand the rage behind this thread. You listed an item, you had an abandoned cart coupon enabled, Etsy sent it to the buyer after they left an item in their cart and the buyer used it. You got a sale out of it. If Etsy had waited 24 hours or longer to send the coupon and the buyer came back and bought the item you still would have the sale for the same amount of money. Or possibly they would have changed their mind about the item and you wouldn't have the sale. It was your choice as a seller to offer an abandoned cart coupon. What am I missing here, other than you're angry at Etsy for emailing a coupon less than 24 hours after a buyer placed your item in their cart, which resulted in a sale?