Star seller

[Xmbeautyllc]

I have a question about my star seller badge. So, i have 100% shipping rate, reviews and messaging. I ordered something from a seller and they messaged me to see if I recieved my order. I did, but I did not write back within 24 hours. I got % off of my messaging rate for that. If a customer ordered from me and I didnt respond I can understand, but i ordered from someone else as a buyer and got deducted in that area. is that right? -Tina

[ThePurplePuppy]

ALL (new) messages must be answered within 24 hours. "All" means"all"--they do not differentiate  as to buyer or seller. ALL means all!  IT has been this way from the start. If I get one that does not require and answer I either answer "thank you" or you're welcome". Simple as that. ONe could even make a snippet if needed. i don't get enough NEW messages to even warrant that.

[Former_Member]

@ThePurplePuppy 

I understand;)

[audreytherese]

If you use the same account for both buying and selling, Etsy doesn't know what the message is about and it requires a response. In your dashboard there is a Q&A section about the SS. I suggest reading through that, as it explains that all messages count, even ones from other sellers. 

[PinkBirdCottage]

Unfortunately there are posts about this very thing literally every day. I read the forums for these kinds of tips and lessons hoping to save myself from a similar fate. Easy to miss and super frustrating understandably. Messages marked as "Spam" will after a couple of days disappear and not count against you. Not sure how long after the fact you have, but it can be a workaround. 

[DesertChains]

Every. Single. Day.

For. Two. Years.

[OmasFabricStash]

You got a message and didn’t respond so you got dinged for it. To get and keep the SS you have to respond to all new messages, or send them to spam. Those are the rules Etsy made and it doesn’t matter if we like them or think they are fair. 

[WitticismsRus · Accepted solution]

@Xmbeautyllc 

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 isn't reading every message and making a decision if it's from a seller or a customer or what it's about. It's a computer program that calculates data. 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."

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.

It takes just a few seconds to send a simple 'Thank you'. Or you can set up an auto reply every 5 days. Etsy provides tools for sellers to use , it's up to us to use them.