Star seller

[AdrianesCraftCottage]

Hello,

• I purchased an SVG file from a seller, then many days later he sent me a message soliciting business out of the blue even though he never sent anything directly after purchasing. I also had issues with the file itself and was not in any way, shape or form interested in doing more business with this person. I chose not to respond to his message and now it has blocked me from getting star seller for the month of January. It had nothing to do with me as a Star Seller, my “entity” or business did not buy the file from the person, I did that under my personal account. After spending upwards of 30 minutes with customer service trying to rectify this issue, they were unable to resolve it and suggested I  file a case here. If this is a requirement- that as a buyer, I’m also required to respond to messages within 24 hours to be on track for Star Seller, that needs to be clearly written in black-and-white within the Etsy Seller handbook. I reviewed everything multiple times, and I work really hard to earn that badge every month.  I am being penalized because I chose not to respond to an unwelcome solicitation seems incredibly unfair to me. Additionally, the option for me to choose to “SPAM” that message was not there until well into my conversation with customer service this evening. I have screenshots in our message thread that reflects that technical issue as well.

[GieseDeseiGns]

It does not matter who the message is from, ALL initial messages must be answered either by acknowledging them, saying something or putting them in SPAM. The messages are not read and bots have no way of knowing who the message is from, they just see something is unanswered and marks it so,  it has been this way since SS inception over 2 years ago, nothing has changed.

[AdrianesCraftCottage]

Thank you for the feedback!:) I understand where I went wrong now, unfortunately I didn’t realize spam was only available as an option for messages viewed in the web browser. I do 99% of my business through the app, but I’m thankful for everyone here that shared their experience and expertise.I’m not a new seller by any means, but this is the first (and absolutely the last!) time this situation has happened to me. 

[GroundZeroCreations]

We read these complaints almost daily. If the SS badge is important to you, please review the requirements. There is a link on your dashboard to access the SS requirements. If you don't respond to all messages (first message in a thread only), you cannot qualify. If it is junk, send it to spam. But you either have to respond or mark it as spam.

Your spam folder is ALWAYS available. and that is where you need to send it to.

[AdrianesCraftCottage]

Thanks for the feedback! I recognize now that “spam” wasn’t reflecting as an applicable option because I was viewing through the app. 

[BootifulLabels · Accepted solution]

If you get a message you feel you don't need to answer, you need to ask yourself, is it spam?  Spam means any message that is unsolicited and unwelcome.  If it is not spam, an answer within 24hrs is required, regardless of the content or other factors.  If it is spam, mark it as such, (you may need to use a browser on your phone if that is what you are using, as the app does not display the Spam Button)  it is not good enough just to ignore it, the system will count that as not responded.  Simple solution, mark it as spam now, so that it doesn't continue to count against you for the coming months.  It is too late to do anything about the badge already awarded, Etsy will not correct "errors" (whether theirs, or yours) retroactively.

Moving forward you may consider not using your seller account to make purchases, it is a simple process to open a second, buyer only account for purchasing, and then you don't need to worry about your purchasing activity messing with your Star Seller goals.

By the way, you are NOT "filing a case here" regardless of what the CS agent told you.  This forum is peer to peer, we are all just sellers like you, who do what we can to share our experience with those who need it.  All we can do is advise you, it may help for future situations, but it will not result in any change to your current situation.

[AdrianesCraftCottage]

I appreciate all the feedback! My assumption is because I wasn’t in a web-browser,the spam option wasn’t available for me to select. I understand this is where I went wrong in this scenario, how unfortunate -  something that seems so simple can’t be fixed. Lesson learned.  

[BagmakerSupply]

@AdrianesCraftCottage: "... that needs to be clearly written in black-and-white ..." Did you see what it says right on your Star Seller page: "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."?

[AdrianesCraftCottage]

Yes, I read the SS page, the FAQ’s, the Etsy Seller handbook, etc. Thank you.    Maybe I’m too literal - but the verbiage you just showed me directly from the Star Seller page states the rule applies to messages “from” both buyer and seller accounts. The way I interpret that is my response within 24 hours is applicable to messages I receive from both buyer and seller accounts via messages I receive through my business/seller account, not my personal/separate buyer account. Hope that makes sense.

What I mean specifically about my comment “black and white" is the verbiage comes across incredibly subjective. I feel like that is evident based on the variation of responses from everyone here.

[WitticismsRus]

@AdrianesCraftCottage 

Just FYI since you prefer to use the app- The 'mark as spam' option is available on the orange etsy shopping app so if you have that one installed you can mark as spam there. It stinks that we have to use 2 different apps for a simple function. Hopefully they add the mark as spam button back to the sellers app (the old sellers app had it) but I wouldn't hold my breath for it happening any time soon.