The "On-time shipping & tracking" metric doesn’t always reflect the real situation.

[crawoo]

The "On-time shipping & tracking" feature doesn't reflect the actual situation. Often, I can't ship items on time because the customer hasn't provided the complete information needed for production. If I don't wait for their response, I will either need to cancel the order or ship an incomplete product. Both options negatively affect my shop's performance.

Additionally, I’ve noticed that some tracking numbers show as “lost” in Etsy’s system even though the items were delivered. If I had known this would be important, I would have saved those tracking numbers. Moreover, in the report I downloaded, I can’t see which tracking numbers are marked as “lost,” so I have no way to dispute them. I find this calculation system unfair, as it doesn't consider the unique challenges of handmade products.

[bradgoodell]

"Often, I can't ship items on time because the customer hasn't provided the complete information needed for production. If I don't wait for their response, I will either need to cancel the order or ship an incomplete product."

There is a 3rd option:  Extend the ship-by date and give your buyer a deadline informing them you will cancel the sale if you don't get the info.  You need to do this before the current ship-by date passes, but it keeps you in Etsy's graces.  Then, if a buyer still has't given you the info needed, cancel and refund.  

"I’ve noticed that some tracking numbers show as “lost” in Etsy’s system even though the items were delivered."

Etsy's system only tracks on-time shipping.  As long as tracking shows the package was accepted on-time by the shipper, you are in fine.

"If I had known this would be important, I would have saved those tracking numbers."

Since you are required to enter the tracking numbers on Etsy, the tracking numbers should be visible on Etsy.  I'm not sure what you are talking about here?  Perhaps the slips when you drop a package off?  Unfortunately, if you failed to enter the tracking number on-time, or entered it incorrectly, or the package it never scanned, the slips would not be accepted as proof.  Etsy does not adjust Star Seller or metrics due to seller error.  

[crawoo]

Hello!

Regarding the third option: "Extend the ship-by date and give your buyer a deadline informing them you will cancel the sale if you don't get the info. You need to do this before the current ship-by date passes, but it keeps you in Etsy's graces. Then, if a buyer still hasn’t given you the info needed, cancel and refund," I completely understand the suggestion.

However, canceling every tenth order isn't a sustainable business strategy for me. Additionally, Etsy only allows me to extend the shipping deadline for one order per month, which limits how flexible I can be in these situations.

Thank you for understanding my constraints! If you have any other advice, I’d love to hear it.

Best regards,
Mary

[CraftyCornishMaids]

The "On-time shipping & tracking" feature doesn't reflect the actual situation. Often, I can't ship items on time

If you don't ship on time, then they will be marked as such - it's the exact situation.

Additionally, I’ve noticed that some tracking numbers show as “lost” in Etsy’s system even though the items were delivered. If I had known this would be important, I would have saved those tracking numbers.

When you mark as complete, by the "ship by" daye, you choose the shipper you use, and you enter the tracking number
it is then there forever, they are saved on the order

It doesn't make any difference to ship-on-time with tracking, if they get lost after they have shipped.
As long as you put all the information in correctly when you shipped on time, it will count correctly

[crawoo]

It’s great to hear that the system accounts for shipments correctly as long as tracking info is entered on time. However, I still have one concern: What exactly qualifies orders to fall under the "6 orders missing tracking info" category?

I’ve been diligent about adding tracking information when I mark orders as shipped, but I want to ensure there aren’t any misunderstandings or gaps. If you could clarify this, I’d really appreciate it!

[CraftyCornishMaids]

If you don't choose a shipper from the dropdown list, when you mark as complete, and have a number that is valid for that shipper, etsy won't recognise it

... and be very careful with 0 and O

and 1 and I

and leading/training blanks

[crawoo]

Hello! Does changing the delivery time affect the stats? For example, if I manually extend the delivery time in an order?

[BagmakerSupply]

@crawoo: Customer Service and Star Seller stats are not affected by delivery, only if you ship on time with verifiable tracking.

What you can change is the scheduled to ship date for an order - as long as you do it before the original scheduled ship by date and with the approval of the buyer.

https://help.etsy.com/hc/en-us/articles/115015588087-How-to-Set-Processing-Times-and-Ship-By-Dates?s...