Requests to cancel orders should not require a reply in the messaging system

[BarberPond]

I got marked off for not replying to three customers within 24 hours this past month.

Two of them were requests by the customer to cancel orders which I did within a couple hours. There's nothing to reply to when I get an automated message from Etsy that the customer wants an ordered canceled. Your programming needs to be upgraded to reflect that sellers have done what was requested. The customer didn't ask a question, they asked for an order cancelation and it was done.

I will make a note now that I have to waste my time doing an action that is not normal rather than doing what the customer asked to satisfy Etsy to keep my Star Seller rating.

The other "late" reply was a customer who asked a question in messaging, but then ordered a couple minutes later and asked the same question in her order and I answered that. If I've answered the customer once, why do I need to waste my customers time and my time replying in two places?

Again, your programming and algorithms need updated to reflect when a seller DOES respond to a customer even though it may not be in the messaging system. This is not a hard fix.

[ChristmasIsLove · Accepted solution]

The Star Seller criteria are clearly explained on your SSP dashboard. ALL messages count.

[BarberPond]

The cancelations were messages that appeared to come from Etsy. I did the requested action. 

The other message was from a customer who placed an order within minutes and asked the question there. I responded with the order - which is what makes sense for the customer AND me. I waste my customer's time (and mine) when I reply to the same question twice in two different places. 

What this means is Etsy would rather I gave a customer worse service - sending duplicate messages in multiple places - in order to keep my Star Seller rating. I've been a star seller all but one month since the program started. I missed the 24 hour window once when I was in the ER then admitted to the hospital. I understood that one.

[NanaLetha]

The program is automated. No one from Etsy is reading those messages.

[BarberPond]

The agent I spoke with in chat advised me to post in this forum. If no one checks this, then their people shouldn't tell sellers to post here.

[DesertChains]

@BarberPond 

Nope. They shouldn’t.

[NanaLetha]

@BarberPond  They told you to post here because they have no ability to change anything in star seller 

[TastefulArtisan]

@NanaLetha

Knock on wood but I've never had the misfortune of contacting Etsy. They really say that?!

No wonder there are so many slow sales/star seller/holiday type posts.

Explains a lot. What a shame. 

-Maria

[moonbeamgifts]

Copy and paste is your friend.    I write the message once, then paste it in each place the buyer has messaged.    I figure that covers all of the bases and if something didn't go through on their end (why they sent two messages for one question, etc.) then I've replied to whichever one they show did send.

[TastefulArtisan]

@moonbeamgifts

Same! I had a client send 15 messages once because she didn't think her messages were going through. 

Copy and paste came in handy. 

She felt terrible but in the end I gained a repeat client and she was happy that I even responded. We both had a laugh that day: )

-Maria

[BootifulLabels]

If you want the badge you need to play by the rules, even if you don't agree with them.  Etsy gives us plenty of tools to make that easier, auto-reply, snippets, green flags etc.  It is up to us to use them.    Acknowledging the buyer's request is just as important as processing the refund.  The messaging component of the badge is the one area that is completely within the seller's capacity to control.

[BarberPond]

This was new to me this month. I DID message the canceled sales - through the order.

I did not realize this automated message sent by a process on Etsy counted as a buyer's message and there is zero reason I should have known that. 

Obviously I will make an adjustment and I know how to copy and paste. The fact that an automated message counts but a message through the customer's order doesn't is really crappy programming on Etsy's part. I'm a programmer and teach UI/UX and programming in my real life. Etsy is wrong here and needs to fix these things rather than punish their good sellers.

[PillowDetails · Accepted solution]

Heads up - a Custom Order Request also requires a response, even though creating the Custom results in an email being sent to the Customer.  You still need to write a little something and send that.

[BarberPond]

Good to know! I usually have to clarify requests with customers in order to make a Custom Order Request, but this is REALLY good advice because it would feel like a timely reply to me.

Thanks, PillowDetails!

[SugarTaffySoap]

@BarberPond   Many have done the same thing you did (not respond). Here is what Etsy Staff says: 

"The Message response rate counts initial messages from all Etsy members, both buyers, and other sellers. This is because fellow sellers could be potential buyers for your shop. If it's not a spam message it requires a response within 24 hours. If it is a spam message you can mark it as such and it won't count towards your score."

Here's what a Community Specialist has posted in several threads regarding Star Seller:

"We suggest using the Forums' Search function prior to posting (just be careful to not bump an old thread that hasn't seen any activity in the last months/years), as questions regarding the Star Seller Program have been extensively covered by our fellow members since its launch, as well as our official Star Seller Guide, which contains in-depth answers to some of the more common questions regarding Message Response Rate, Shipping, Local Pick-Up, Digital Orders, and other topics. You can check it out here: etsy.com/starseller. "

[Donobob]

Unfortunately, most of the threads on all those subjects, Message Response Rate, Shipping, Local Pick-Up, Digital Orders, are basically a big list of work arounds that the community has sorted out because Etsy is not going to change their programming to solve these problems any time soon.

Message response - use auto reply and don't forget to set it up every 5 or so days cause it stops.
Shipping - track everything
Local P/U - send an empty envelop tracked (lol, but it solves the problem)
Digital Orders - don't sell physical goods and digital in the same shop

All ridiculous work arounds that cost the seller more money and/or more time.