Multiple messages and Star Seller

[wiregems]

I could have sworn I read that Etsy was going to combine all messages from a single buyer into one thread so that we don't have to keep track of which we've answered and which we haven't.  Apparently not, however.  I had a customer message me twice with the same request within 2 minutes of each other, and I got dinged for not answering one of them, bringing my message response rate down to 97%.  I realize that's still "acceptable", but I've been at 100% since the beginning and this irritates me.

[NanaLetha]

Messages from the same buyer will now be consolidated into fewer threads. To help keep track of messages you should prioritize for Star Seller metrics, new threads now have notification badges showing if a message is a buyer’s first time contacting you, or a new help with order request. Both of these types of messages need to be responded to in 24 hours to be counted positively toward your Star Seller score.

[BagmakerSupply · Accepted solution]

@wiregems  :  The metric is the FIRST message of a NEW thread must be replied to (or marked as spam) within 24 hours. Subsequent messages from the same account (a buyer may have multiple accounts) are supposed to be combined into a single thread.

Help Requests always start a new thread. By the way, if you are creating a custom listing based on the message, you still need to reply to the message. Etsy is now putting a blue text warning / advisory on those messages they consider to be a "new message".

At least for the time being, it appears that marking an unanswered message as SPAM (even after the 24 hour deadline has passed) will cause your reply percentage to change in a day or two if the original message was within the current star seller period. But be aware that doing so may cause you to miss other messages from that account.

[PalmettoDriftwood]

I just discovered the same issue. I swear, every time I think Etsy has their act together, something like this happens. And it makes me crazy. I’m a one woman business. Don’t you think Etsy, with their billions, could fix this????? Programming is not their strong point.