In searching for similar items to what I want to list the search function no longer has a filter for the section, department or category... In other words if I am searching for a wire bird as a "supply" there is no longer a drop down of the category.. The first drop down would show all the different departments where a person could refine their search.. Home & Living, Craft and Supply, Art and Collectibles... etc..
This drop down menu selection is gone. What's going on??
Same here and it's INFURIATING. Trying to shop for last minute gifts that can arrive after Christmas, and can't even filter the search .
You can find the category drop down at the top, between the Etsy logo and the search bar.
@AbstractArtHome - Yes, the Categories option is there (relatively new for me) but how it's planned is counter-intuitive, at best. Useless, at worst.
Prior to this change. if I entered Etsy thru their main page I'd see the Search Bar. This is normal, here or on any site. I enter my search term "vintage garden tool" & get over 100K results. Before the change I could go into Filters & drill down to the more relevant 1K or less results.
Now when arriving at the home page, never mind that the Categories menu doesn't jump out at me, lets say I type in the same term "vintage garden tool". Again, since I typed in Vintage I'm there in vintage. I go to filters & none there to help me narrow down the results.
But maybe I notice the Categories menu. So I click on that & choose "Craft Supplies & Tools". I am now on a page that has the header "Craft Supplies & Tools". The results are about the same, over 100K results.
But more importantly my search term has disappeared from the search bar. A glance at the results on the page only shows 100% irrelevant items. So now what do I do?
Do I reenter my search term to find gardening tools in this Category? Uh, no, don't do that. You'll be right back to the start of your search, as if you'd entered a completely different search term.
Well, maybe go back to the Filters? Click on that & now I see Etsy has filtered down to Craft Supplies & Tools. I can now continue to drill down to gardening tools.
Ah, but I made a mistake, opting to do this. All other filter options are gone. I'll hit "Apply" anyway. So if location, etc. was important to me I don't see them.
The results now have me in "Gardening Tools" per the page header, but I see 5,919 results. What happened? Well, Etsy dumped me out of "Vintage" and is now showing me "All Items". Thankfully the Filters are back & I can open that menu to re-select "Vintage".
Editing To Add: Let's say I immediately see the "Categories Menu" just to the left of the search bar. Oh good, I'll click on "Craft Supplies & Tools". I'm brought to a page with the header "Craft Supplies & Tools". But don't think entering your search term in this "Category" will give you specific results. If I type in "vintage garden tool" the results are as if you didn't choose a category to begin with.
But, even if I have not entered a search term yet, yes, the search bar is blank, by opting to go into the category "Craft Supplies & Tools" the Filters menu has become active. I can use the "all filters" option & drill down to gardening tools, though I'd better remember to use any other pertinent filters first.
Now apparently buyers are supposed to know that by choosing a category, they might be able to drill down thru Filters to find what they're looking for - realize that the buyer has not entered a search term into the search bar yet.
And I say "might" since I'm looking for specific things and there are a bazillion search terms I've never used, here or anywhere else. I don't know how wide-ranging Etsy's categories & additional filters are. End of Edit Addition.
At some point in time whether the buyer has the patience of a saint or is "on a mission", I can see this "new & improved" search being much more frustrating.
Again I'll say there is a reason I purchase more on eBay. If I type in the same search term, I can sort by "newly listed" & within seconds I'll be able to see if there's an item I want to view in further detail. (The search results are 98% relevant, too.) Change my search term & eBay remembers my "newly listed" filter. Decide to get more specific with my search term & opt for "Antique" or "Collectible", instead of "All"? Well I'm there, in that category. It remembered/still shows what I typed into the search bar & shows me results for that term. I don't need to change anything else either, the "newly listed" filter sticks.
IMO Change for change's sake is rarely a good.
Then it needs to be a lot bigger. How many people are going to notice that piddly little word?
Thank you for that. I didn't even see it!
100% Yes, @JMOldeVintage, not sure if it's a problem with their execution, design or both. Likely the latter. I find Etsy search for specific vintage items completely unusable. I used to purchase a lot on Etsy but now it's just. too. painful!
@AbstractArtHome Omg, thank you! I wonder how long it's going to take for everyone to find this new location.
I just had one of the most fruitless and frustrating conversation with a customer service representative ever about this. Its like they were speaking in code.
it is still a problem... Etsy sucks just more and more.
Since they started their star review and free shipping BS, one get to know that they do not care at the sellers at all.
When I couldn't find the category filter, I reached out to customer service. I was told "that the filter by category is no longer available" and that the "product team is taking care of this matter." Why a company spends time holding meetings, updating code, etc to get rid of a necessary feature that helps buyers find sellers (so that a site can make money) is beyond me. I think I will be saving loads of money taking my business elsewhere and hope sellers find new platforms too.
The same loser who ruined eBay for its sellers (who also buy) is now ruining Etsy. Freaking idiot.
"Etsy - we make it easy impossible to find your thing -because we won't let you refine your search."
Yes, this is horribly inconvenient.
Etsy ... PLEEEEASE! Bring back the search by category!
They don't want you to find your thing but buy something they suggested because they know best. This is a delusion of grandeur. One who thinks they are a genius, is clearly not.
I was looking for jewellery supplies but I couldn't filter out the ready made jewellery - so I bought them on ebay.
That's the problem I had too. Extremely annoying and timewasting.