Star Seller - did not respond to spam

[KisseeKreationsShop]

I did not receive Start Seller status this month because I did not respond to ONE spam message from an item that I purchased - the seller sent a "thank you, please subscribe to my newsletter" message, which does not warrant a response. Because I have so few messages, it brought me below the threshold for star seller. Can this be resolved? It's so disappointing.

[NanaLetha]

Go back and mark as spam

[ExpatriateVintage]

As NanaLetha says, if you mark it as Spam now, it should get adjusted in your Star Seller totals. 

It might not be possible to get the SS back for this month, but now you know that ALL messages, even unwanted junk spam, have to either be responded to or marked as Spam.

It will count against you if you don't reply or just delete it, those are no longer options for us sellers.

[vintageNCtreasures]

You have to answer every initial message, doesn't matter if from a customer or from a seller you've bought from.

If it's spam then mark as spam and that message will drop off.

You have to do one or the other, either reply or mark as spam.
This is  clearly stated on the help pages for Star seller.

[WitticismsRus]

@KisseeKreationsShop 

Etsy is pretty clear about how the message response rate is calculated in help center here https://help.etsy.com/hc/en-us/articles/4403058372503-How-to-Become-a-Star-Seller?segment=selling

There is a highlighted bit under message response rate info that says "The Message response rate only applies to the first message in a thread. Initial messages from both buyers and sellers on Etsy are counted towards the Message response rate. "

That means ALL messages. It also means each individual message thread so if someone sends you 5 different messages with 5 questions instead of putting them in the same message chain you need to respond to all 5 of them. The system is completely automated and doesn't know if the message is from a buyer or another seller. It just sees a message and calculated the response time. That's just how it works.

The info is also right there on the Star Seller page in shop manager. Just go to shop manager > star seller. Once there scroll toward the bottom until you find "Questions? We've got answers." Then click messages. The very first question there says

"What messages count toward 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."

You can try marking the message as spam now and it should be removed from the calculation in a few days.

If the star is important to you then it may be a good idea to read or review all the info Etsy provides about the star seller program.

Bottom line...you have to either reply or mark as spam.

[QuirkyAntiquesStore]

You know who cares about that star seller badge? Sellers.....Buyers care about your feedback. This is an Etsy stick with no actual carrot at the end of it. Right now its the equivalent of getting a stick on paper gold star from an Elementary school teacher. I just lost mine for the same and I really don't care. What I care about is my 100% 5 star feedback. I really wouldn't worry about it. Its just an Etsy marketing hype. Respond to your customers promptly, give them your best service. That makes you a "star seller" and you really don't need a sticker saying so.

[FirstCampaign]

This happened to me this month! UGHHHH. Mark spam as spam, but unfortunately (and stupidly!) it won't adjust your total for this current month if you mark the message as spam now. In the future, make sure to mark spam as spam before the last day of the month so that it will not affect your score for the following month. At least marking it now will not let one spam message affect your score for the next three months!!! I totally empathize with your frustration about this!