Star Seller Issue

[ScarletChickadee]

Hello!  Jolo from Etsy Support sent me here to see if I can get a Star Seller problem fixed. So far this month I have had seven messages. I have responded to six in time. There was one that I did not respond to at all, but that was because it was a seller contacting me as a buyer to let me know that the shipping date had changed for the item that I purchased. I didn’t see it as something I needed to respond to. And I also was in the capacity of the customer not the seller, so it should not affect my Star Seller score.  I asked Etsy Support if they could recognize this mistake (probably caused by AI) and fix it so that my response would still read 100%. They were not able to do so. Can anybody here help me? 

[PlatypusDream]

"Etsy Support sent me here to see if I can get a Star Seller problem fixed."

We are only other sellers here that can do nothing for you.

They sent you here so we can say "There, there. Etsy sucks, we know".

"because it was a seller contacting me as a buyer to let me know that the shipping date had changed for the item that I purchased. I didn’t see it as something I needed to respond to."

The Star Seller rules state that you must reply to ALL messages.

You made a mistake, so there is nothing to fix or adjust.

https://www.etsy.com/your/shops/me/star-seller?ref=seller-platform-mcnav

"What messages count towards the message response rate?

Your message response rate is based on just the first message in a conversation, not ongoing conversations. This means you just need to respond to the first message within 24 hours. This applies to messages both from buyer and seller accounts. Messages from Etsy staff do not count toward your response rate, and neither do messages that you mark as spam. You can also now find a breakdown of your message response rate score by downloading a CSV."

[TheVintagePineapple]

There's no one here who can fix if for you anyway since we're all sellers.  Support sent you here because there is nothing that needs to be fixed.

From the Dashboard/Star Seller Q & A section regarding messages --

''What messages count towards the message response rate?

Your message response rate is based on just the first message in a conversation, not ongoing conversations. This means you just need to respond to the first message within 24 hours. This applies to messages both from buyer and seller accounts.''

[ScarletChickadee]

Seems odd that it affects a Star Seller rating which we are supposed to care about to be better sellers. It seems very disingenuous. Without that badge, buyers will think that I do t respond promptly and might not be a trustworthy seller. That could not be further from the truth. They suggested that I create an automatic response to all messages so I don’t get dinged. That too seems like “cheating” or finding a loophole in their system. I’m pretty frustrated. 

[BootifulLabels]

Without that badge, buyers will think that I do t respond promptly and might not be a trustworthy seller. 

It is unlikely that buyers will think anything if the sort, in fact most buyers have no clue about Star Seller and wouldn't even notice whether a shop has the badge or not.  In the 3 years the program has been in place my shop has scored the badge a grand total of 5 times, and my sales are much the same whether I have the badge or don't.  

[PristinityJewelry]

"...Jolo from Etsy Support sent me here to see if I can get a Star Seller problem fixed...."

That is Etsy support's way of passing the buck, and avoiding confrontation.  There is no one here in the fora that can help, just fellow sellers that might be able to explain how "Star Seller" works, and that Etsy will not retro-actively adjust it.

Reality is, "Star Seller" metrics to qualify have been the same, for a very long time.  EVERY  first message must be responded to within 24 hours (or spammed).  Etsy, or it's bots, have no way of knowing if a message is from a buyer or a seller, or what it is regards to.

[TROPICALBREEZECANDLE]

It’s clearly written in the star seller info, there’s nothing for etsy to fix

[WitticismsRus]

Easiest fix is to create a separate buying only account and use that one to make purchases. That way it will not be linked to your sellers account at all and will have zero impact on your shops star seller bits. 

[AAANativeArts]

It doesn't matter if it is a buyer or a seller, you have to answer ALL messages at least once. Mark the one you missed as spam, and it may come off your record in a few days.

[Poppycbrilliant]

Exact same thing happened to me. Etsy help advised set up an auto message. 

[BagmakerSupply]

@ScarletChickadee: "... so it should not affect my Star Seller score ..." Most of your fellow sellers would agree with you, but Etsy disagrees. As it says right on your Star Seller page and elsewhere, you need to reply to (or mark as SPAM) the FIRST message of EVERY NEW INCOMING THREAD within 24 hours. It does not matter who sent it, the subject matter, if it is a duplicate or blank or anything else.

Your Star Seller page even specifically states that "This applies to messages both from buyer and seller accounts." under the section 'What messages count towards the message response rate?'.

Unclear if this controversial workaround still works but if the unanswered new thread is not a Help Request it appears that marking an unanswered new thread as SPAM (even after the 24 hour deadline has passed) will cause your reply percentage to change in a day or two (but not retroactively) if the original message was within the current star seller period. BUT BE WARNED that according to Etsy "You won’t receive any new messages from that member, and they’ll be unable to reply to messages in an existing thread."