Star Seller

[BluebirdsNestShop]

I did not meet Star Seller this month based on not replying to a message. This message was not regarding my store, but was an automated reponse from another seller regarding something that I purchased from them! How is that counted against MY sales?

[WitticismsRus · Accepted solution]

@BluebirdsNestShop 

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. It won't retroactively award you the star but it will remove it from the current review period calculation

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.

Also, the only "automated response" the messaging system has is auto reply. Was it a response to a question or message you sent to them? If not then it wasn't an automated response,

[NanaLetha]

@BluebirdsNestShop  Have you read the criteria for star seller?

[SugarTaffySoap]

@BluebirdsNestShop   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. "

[JJewellerySuppliesUK]

I'm always surprised anyone thinks humans run the Star Seller. It is run by robots who just see an unanswered message. 

[NanaLetha]

@JJewellerySuppliesUK  I stopped being surprised a long time ago. Just imagine how many employees it would take to read the millions of messages each day!

[JJewellerySuppliesUK]

True!