My Image is in a circle for a suggested search

[TheDreamWeaversYarn]

Hi there

I thought it best to put this in here out of all the categories as it is an interface navigation and use of images query. 

Hope that's ok. 

I've  just accessed my best friend's favourites as she has favourited my items and I was trying to see if I could message her di...

Can I message my admirers and likers directly?

My technical site related question is...

At the bottom of my friend's favourites were suggested searches and item images I assume from other seller's listings under that search. The images are in circles above the title of the suggested search. 

I noticed one of my images she favourited is being used as one of the suggested search icons in the end circle on that particular page at the bottom. . 

I've checked the search result / items it leads to and that doesn't even contain my listing. 

Is someone using my image without my permission or is it just because of some sort of connection the site has made between her favourites and my items and similar searches but not exact for the item?

As it is not even listed when using the search 'oil painting ufo'.

My image is alien themed to a degree....but certainly isn't an oil painting of a ufo or even similar

So I find it strange my image is being used in this way and just hope people haven't already started trying to use my images already in a prohibited way after not long opening my shop. 

Sorry that sounds a bit complicated ;-D hope it makes sense what I am describing and 

Thanks a lot in advance. 

[BagmakerSupply]

@TheDreamWeaversYarn: "Can I message my admirers and likers directly?" Unless they have given you permission in advance, doing so would break almost every anti-spam law in the world.

"... hope people haven't already started trying to use my images ..." Try doing a reverse image search as a first step.

[NoFrogsAllowed]

Can I message my admirers and likers directly?  No, as of about 4 months ago, maybe a little longer, you can't message people who favorite your items.  Thank God!!!!  Sending unsolicited messages is illegal in a lot of jurisdictons, is against Etsy's TOUs and is extremely annoying.  Just because someone likes your item does not mean they want to hear from you.

[AAANativeArts]

When you signed up for Etsy, you gave them the right to use your images, such as for submitting them to Google image search,  for advertising, and such.

Those round icons you are talking about come from either  tags  you added, or Etsy added to promote the categoy hierachy that listing is in. They all go back to the search pages for whatever that phrase is.

Search is individualized on Etsy, as with most search engines these days. That is part of the search algorithm they don't explain to us in detail. Probably because your friend has favorited a lot of your images, the algorithm decided it would be more inticing to her if they used one of your images. Nothing to worry about.

It would be considered spam to message people who favorite your items without them contacting you first. You can get your messaging priveledges suspended for doing that, and repeat violators can lose their right to sell on Etsy. You can, however, set up a coupon for a discount that gets sent to some portion of your favorites list, periodically. I haven't had much success with that particular coupon myself, but it might work for some people. There are 2 similar coupons that get sent to people who put your stuff in their shopping cart but don't check out, and one for repeat buyers. I have had good results with both of those.

[TheDreamWeaversYarn]

Hi there thanks for the reply 

sorry that I'm only just ackn

Yea been reading about how google uses and places the images 

Thought as much about the than

[TheDreamWeaversYarn]

Thanks  for getting back.

Yea I can see why the messaging favouriters would be classed as bugging them and  a bit annoyingly forward and bothersome

If I remember rightly I thought it was a bit odd that I could see that they had liked my shop and their details but there was no obvious contact link or anything .

Then I thought you prob had to become seller and buyer for contact options . 

Yet I was seeing advice everywhere to send admirers coupons then figured out (like you have kindly mentioned as well ) that the only way to coupon admirers was the automated thing nw 

it can be confusing when they have only changed something a few weeks ago so there are lots of discussions about stuff you can't do now

as for that photo situation yes that was very strange -  id had a lot of engagament with theg  image. and that even as just a section shot i realised that  it would   that transfer well into  appeaared  as an icon for  category it wasn't even in hmm

I've been part of Etsy as a bit of a buyer for many  years but haven't done much stuff on here until now that requires such in depth  knowledge and navigation of the site (have bar so was trying to also figure out if 

but i'm learning, learning , learning every day

thanks for the pointers and hope you can all see this collective reply thanks a lot