Shop put on pause by Etsy

[CarolinaFarmDecor]

Hi all.  I have a couple of questions.  Etsy put my shop on hold due to overdue orders (I think that was the reason?) .  And that's fine I was actually going to do that anyways.  My question is, about a year ago I was WAY more behind than I am now but this didn't happen.  Any idea why?  Also, am I supposed to get out ALL OF MY ORDERS to open back up or just get caught up SOME?  How do they gauge that?  I don't have any cases open or anything and I've let all of my buyers know the challenges I have been facing.  But I am quite behind...I don't have a problem closing for a while, but it would be very comforting to know that this isn't the beginning of some nightmare where they never open me back up or take too long.  I suffer from some mental health issues and I am kind of freaking out.  If someone could help me out I would appreciate it.  I can't find a way to speak to someone who at Etsy. Not even a live chat.  

[NanaLetha]

Things were different a year ago than they are now. Extend your shipping dates before the date they are due to be mailed. Fill your current orders and then take a break. Chat won't help you.

[CarolinaFarmDecor]

I really appreciate your response.  I'm working really hard to get them all done.  I'm actually glad it happened as it takes some pressure off me, I just hope I don't run into any problems with getting it turned back on. 

[NanaLetha]

And - you must add your shop policies.

[CarolinaFarmDecor]

Will my shop be taking off pause automatically or is it something that I need to reach out and ask about? 

[NanaLetha]

@CarolinaFarmDecor  - It will be taken off vacation mode automatically. Maybe not immediately. Make sure you are using tracking.

[CarolinaFarmDecor]

You are very kind to take the time to help me with my problem.  Everyone is so busy so thank you. 

[VivessenceDesigns]

I had a similar issue right after Christmas. A ton of orders backlogged (not late yet) and came down with COVID. I mistakenly did not push the reschedule out far enough and had some orders hit late. Etsy put me on vacation before I got around to it myself.

I reached out to all my customers, explaining the situation, and offering to cancel if they did not want to wait the additional time for their order. They were wonderfully understanding, only a couple of cancellations.

About the time I was getting caught up enough to want my shop reopened, Etsy reopened it before I ever contacted them! I was surprised, as I was expecting an ordeal to make that happen. 

The 3 week break I was on did not seem to have much of an impact on sales after that either.

All that to say, take a deep breathe, one day at a time, it will be ok. 

Wishing you the very best.

[CarolinaFarmDecor]

Oh my God this message has helped lift my spirits so much!  Thank you.  Yes, my father in law had a stroke and needs a lot of care.  I can't work to my full potential.  I have kept everyone in the loop and mostly everyone is very kind.  I DID NOT know Etsy was micromanaging like this,  I mean I get it!  They need to protect their brand.  Had I known though, I would have restructured all of my listings accordingly to reflect a longer handling time.  Now I have learned. Will I need to ship out EVERYTHING or just get caught up so nothing is super late?  Or is every circumstance different?  Thank you!!!!! 

[VivessenceDesigns]

@CarolinaFarmDecor 

I am not sure the exact criteria, but I still had orders in the works when I was reopened. 

It certainly sounds like you have a lot going on. I would definitely try to arrange my processing time to not add unnecessary stress. A few minutes of quiet time each day are a big help for my mental health. Hang in there.  

[JJewellerySuppliesUK]

It is a new thing Etsy is doing.  It started when new mask shops were overwhelmed with orders and had so many open ones so Etsy put them in vacation mode.  It seems they are now using it for any shops who look like they are behind.  It is best to use tracking so upload that each time you send something.  I believe you have to ship all the outstanding ones before Etsy will reopen you.  I read in the forum that it can take about a week to be reopened and, don't fret, you will be open again.

[CarolinaFarmDecor]

My goodness you guys are stars. Here I am thinking nobody cared lol.  Thank yall from the bottom of my heart 

[moonbeamgifts]

The status of sellers on Etsy last year and the year before are why we're seeing these changes this year.  I'm guessing Etsy ended up losing a ton of money in refunds they were forced to issue to buyers.  We've seen this before in high holiday peak times but the pandemic times were different.

At the beginning of the pandemic when everyone and their cat was making masks, we saw many complaints of placed orders in high volumes - then the shop went poof with buyers either receiving subpar product or nothing at all.   Purely my suspicion but in reading other extremely established sellers experiences in even the past couple of days, I'm suspecting that just like with "amber-gate", it's a bot's responsibility to go out and fish for information.    Sometimes a sea shell gets caught up in that fishing net - and it's going to take a human to untangle it.

[feltplanet]

I had a similar situation around Christmas. I caught up in a few and let etsy know. They reopened. You should be fine.

Congrats on all the sales!

[chandellesFUNKY]

Hi, did you remember how long it took to get reopen? I am in this situation right now, just did all my orders, but i can’t see where to get in touch directly with Etsy to ask them to reopen.

thank you

martin

[VivessenceDesigns]

WE are the Etsy that keeps commerce human! 🤩

[NostalgieCT]

So sorry to hear about your FIL's stroke. Something like that can alter the focus of your family's life. I'm speaking from personal experience.  Use this down time to get through your orders, figuring out what your new normal might look like. You may have to adjust your Etsy business to account for added family responsibility or you might get lucky, your FIL recovers making this a temporary situation or somewhere in between. Try not to focus on tomorrow or getting your shop back open. I know that this is difficult advice to follow. Best wishes for your family.

[CarolinaFarmDecor]

I really appreciate everyone's help.  Someone from Etsy sent me a message but this is what I'm talking about with me worrying about something going wrong.  It LOOKS like more overdue items than it actually is because I have a WHOLE lot of orders from the past few years where the buyer and I MET UP physically and I handed them their order. How do I clear this out?  The guy from Etsy says mark it as shipped but I can't do that!  It's making me add tracking.  Is Etsy counting those two year old orders that I delivered myself as OVERDUE????  

[CarolinaFarmDecor]

"For older orders, you can copy and paste a note to each buyer when sending the shipping notification so they know you're just clearing out old transactions and haven't shipped their order a second time." was one thing he said.  I don't know what this means?? 

[JJewellerySuppliesUK]

You don't have to add tracking, just leave it blank.  Yes, it might have been these historic ones that got the bot to flag your shop in the first place.  

I would click to complete the order and create a standard message to go along with them reading something along the lines of.  Dear valued customer, I am clearing some admin and need to mark your order as dispatched even though we met up in person.  bla de bla whatever you think sounds best. 

However, I know that Etsy could clear these for you without going through these steps so perhaps you could request that. 

[CarolinaFarmDecor]

It's forcing me to add tracking, I can't click "complete" what am I missing?  Can I call you lol.  You're a godsend thank you for helping me but I can't figure this out 

[CarolinaFarmDecor]

Oh I see now!!!  Duhhhhh!  

[CarolinaFarmDecor]

What about the "fully refunded" orders.  Why are those in my "overdue" section? Because I didn't cancel?  I can't do much about those can I?  Hoping Etsy isn't counting those? 

[bradgoodell]

If you fully refunded them you need to cancel them as well.  You need to do both.  Etsy may be counting those, you can cancel them now.  

[CarolinaFarmDecor]

I want to thank everyone for their help.