Wrong Feedback From Etsy Support Which correlated into negative status on my Etsy star seller.

[PositivePrintingCorp]

I love Etsy and everything Etsy has done for me and my family and how it continues to fulfill my dreams. About a month ago I had contacted Etsy support on the chat. I asked would sending packages without a tracking number hurt my star seller status. They responded that it wouldn't, I sold this item via UPSP postage and sent the items without tracking since then only have sold about 30 item but my "on time tracking" badge has been deducted by 30 orders and my store has gone from above average to now just "meet standard" Etsy has stated they can do nothing to fix this. I wonder if I can just refund all the orders and take a loss that way or if there is a way to add tracking to the packages after they've been delivered. I worked 2-3 years to hit star seller and now when I was on track and it still shows I have 95% on time shipping but because of the no tracking number issue my store score has dropped tremendously. Please help! 

[CatsWhiskersCurios]

Did you purchase your labels on Etsy?  

Star seller criteria:

• Message response rate: reply to 95% of first messages in a thread within 24 hours
• On-time dispatch & tracking: 95% of orders dispatch on time, with valid tracking or a postage label purchased on Etsy (when required) 
• Average review ratings: 4.8+

[vintageNCtreasures]

Don't ever trust chat.  Chat is outsourced and most times have no clue of the rules on Etsy.
They were 100% wrong telling you tracking didn't matter for star seller.
Tracking is required for star seller.
This is shown on the help pages.

Etsy won't fix it and there're nothing you can do to fix it either.
How can you add tracking on 30 packages if you didn't have tracking to start with?

Why would you refund all of those 30 orders? Has anyone complained about not getting their items??

Did you print labels on etsy or go to your PO?
If you printed the labels on etsy then they had tracking #'s and would have been automatically added to the orders.

How did you mail the items with USPS? 1st class letter/flats? Did you mail them at your post office?
If those items were mailed 1st class letters/flats then you could have "printed" that postage through Etsy and it would have been enough for the star seller.

Do you know the items were delivered?
If so, how do you know? By reviews or did you have tracking on them or did the buyer let you know.

What is the "Star Seller Badge? – Etsy Help

• On-time shipping & tracking: 95% of orders ship on time, with valid tracking or a shipping label purchased on Etsy (when required) 

How to Track Your Progress Toward Becoming a Star Seller – Etsy Help   

All other currencies (inclusive of USD)
Tracking or a shipping label purchased on Etsy required for all orders.

[DOKOcreations]

Sorry you received misleading / incomplete info. It sucks, but Star Seller really doesn’t have a big impact on sales.

I wonder if I can just refund all the orders and take a loss that way

That would be the worst overreaction to a minor issue! Your Star Seller will recover in a few months when these untracked orders drop off the metrics. Refunding 30 orders in a short time period will likely flag your shop to Etsy that something is seriously wrong - don’t do that!

[BrooklynStVintage]

I agree, don't lose sleep over it, you can earn it back. It is not that big of a deal.

[ArtDollsbyJD]

It does not impact sales but it can impact being on Etsy and whether or not a shop ends up in payment reserve.

[BrooklynStVintage]

You would be better off in the future to try to find the answer to a question in the "help" pages at the top of this page, maybe the seller handbook or here in the forums. My understanding is Etsy chat is farmed out.

[hopeandjoystudios]

It will right itself in 3 months. No sense refunding. Most customers have no clue what SS is and would not even know you are missing a badge. SS makes little to no difference to sales. Now if it was 30 1 star reviews, that would be a problem! Take a deep breath and carry on from here. I know it feels catastrophic, but it is not that bad.