BAD DOG!
Very rarely do I get upset about something...but here's my recent issue and it's a BIG issue.
I AM MAD AT ETSY! I'm locked out of treasuries. I can NOT comment anymore! Apparently Etsy has changed it's rules and you are only allowed 100 comments on treasuries in one day. I was running a BNR last night and used them all & I couldn't even run my own BNR! I had to switch to my darling MOM'S SHOP just to TALK and moderate the BNR. This has HUGE implications for all of us.
I can't comment on ANYING until tomorrow! Think about how this will effect the very active users on Etsy:
- BNR days. I KNOW we post more than 100 comments in our own BNR...now we limited to 100 treasury comments a day.
- HUGE implications for those of us on treasury teams! (See more below)
- For those of us who get featured a lot or pop into BNR/BNS's and heart them for other teams, now we can't even say "hi" because we might use up our 100 comments!
Can you tell? I'm SO MAD about this. I think it STINKS like a SKUNK! I've been able to keep a distance with changes on Etsy and "go with the flow." But as a team leader for a HUGE BNR team that sends out over 600 invitations for a SINGLE BNR, this has serious implications. It also has SERIOUS implications as to how I can view, look at, heart, & comment on the hundreds of treasuries I see on Etsy a day.
This is more than frustrating! The implications of this are ENORMOUS for all of us, not just our BNRs. It's widely known that Etsy doesn't like BNRs (even though they get LOADS of money in fees from them) and they don't like our treasury teams because we've figured out how to get treasuries to the #1 spot....so now they are mixing it up on us and making it more difficult to hit the #1 spot and to get your treasury seen.
Think about it, on a treasury day for one of your teams: if you take a treasury to a team where you have 10-15 treasuries before you that you must comment, click, heart, promote....before too long, that's it....NO MORE FOR YOU! There are 60 treasury based promotion teams on Etsy. I understand Etsy's position on Treasury Teams and why they may not like them. However, there are few people who abuse this. The teams at times can jam the comments with pages and pages and lists and lists of comments. In regard to the treasury teams, it now seems that Etsy just "outlawed this" to get "real views" and sincere comments...not a bad approach for the treasury team giants who have wider marketing abilities and high volume users who do nothing but make treasuries all day.
This being said, some people are fortunate enough to have wide visibility and get "featured" in treasuries up to 20 times a day. Especially if their item made it to the Front Page from a previous treasury. I am featured on an average of 4 treasuries a day. Not to bad for a small single type item (I am an all polymer clay based store) storefront. But, if I would comment on those, take them to my teams where I have to comment on 10 before me. Already I'm up to 40 comments and I haven't even popped into a BNR to say hi. NOR have a cross promoted my friends' treasuries and visited the top 10 treasuries or the Front Page treasuries during the day.
As I have said before, I think it stinks. As of right now, I've been featured in Treasuries and I can't even comment on them. Now it looks like I'm a bum & unappreciative of the feature (See tomorrow's post on manners). But, it ALSO means that I can't take them to any teams because I can't comment on anyone else's Treasuries to reciprocate.
There will be more posts on how Etsy handles this in the next few days...but I see complaints coming Etsy's direction...and rightfully so. However, I can also see the positive side to this too, in regard to sincere correspondences, getting rid of comment "bots," and getting rid of spammers. Go to the Etsy Admin Forums and post your feelings about it here. Let Etsy hear from you if you don't like this either. It won't change if you don't voice your opinion.
Having read this, how do YOU feel about Etsy's new "treasury rules?" It makes me wonder what else Etsy is up to.....And here's a scarier thought, what happens if Etsy limits the number of HEARTS we can give a day?!
Still don't believe me?! Need proof?
Check out last night's Late Night Queens BNR here and watch me turn into a Moose.
22 comments:
Oh boy!!! Etsy has really ticked off a whole lot of people this time!!!!!
Wow, it's certainly going to change things for us BNR folks!!! Such a complication! I am on a team that does a monthly 24 hour BNR! I guess it'll be the end of that. . .
How very daft! What the heck are they thinking and why? Glad you shared your anger though as one of my teams has a BNR this weekend.
If Etsy had a specific issue with the treasuries, teams, etc., I wonder why they didn't just address it and not add these out-of-the-blue blockers.
Guess it's a wait and see situation for now.
Thanks for getting the word out to others!
Wow I did not know that
thank you for bringing this to our attention and I'm sorry you got locked out of your own BNR
gives me lots of food for thought on treasury promotion,
perhaps that is etsy's goal, to prevent us doing just that
lots to think about but thank you for letting us know
OMG! what the EFF Etsy!? Thanks girl for telling us about this...
WOW! What is Etsy really trying to do here?
It seems as though they don't want any of us to communicate with each other. Really? Is this a divide and conquer technique? But, why? We can't send convos and we can't leave comments... Communication is a main component of growing your business (which also grows their/Etsy business.) So, why are they doing this? Maybe they don't realize what they've done???
I'm sorry to hear you were locked out of your own BNR. It's always something with Etsy isn't it? I will be sure to pass this along! Thanks for sharing with us.
That just SUCKS....
No notice, no nothing from etsy on this and we find out because it happened to YOU, Katie. BNRs are a good way to promote and a good way to get sales, not just seller to seller IN the BNR, but also the networking etc. We'll see what happens but, as much as I love my friends and colleagues on etsy, I may have to change sites or do something else to keep my stores alive.
I don't participate in BNRs but between my two shops I am in about 40-50 treasuries most days. Plus I make several a day. I also like to to comment on team treasuries and occasionally put a treasury through a click team.
Not happy about this change.
What annoys me the most, is that Etsy calls itself a community. I am not so sure that is going to last. Next stop for the Etsy police is probably the teams.
:(
I think before Etsy makes a change such as this, it should be thrown out to the community of users to see the pros and cons. We definitely are due an explanation!
I have joined Artfyre today. Just getting tired of all these new rules.
Communication is the key, even though I completely understand the need to be rid of "bots." Those of us who are curators or assitants require the need to be able to post more than a 100 times a day. Perhaps ETSY can supply Team Leaders and captains the abbility to post more than the 100. I think it will be the only way that BNR's and BNS's probably can continue. I did notice teams having the convos in team forums, however I believe ETSY will hit there next. SO...my plan.. wait watch and join Artfyre for the moment, just to see what happens next.
I started an ArtFire store today - I just don't know what to think about Etsy any more. Why do we active sellers not get a survey or a questionnaire about what we want and don't want. Why do Etsy simply impose things on us, restrictions etc. I don't understand it - the BNR and BNS system creates so many sales every other day that simply would not happen otherwise.
Saying that - I've not yet found any kind of BNS treasury on Artfire - but it does seem to be a very small and inactive community compared to Etsy.
my big idea....
we pick a 24 hour period where we boycot with no bns/bnr's and see if etsy likes how it impacts their bottom line. then maybe they will decide we aren't so small and that we are mighty and deserve to be heard!
Thanks katie, gosh it is so hard to watch all the things you loved about this site go away and not being replaced with things you do like better
Thanks for the blog post! Etsy has done it again--changed things without notifying their sellers! Are they stupid at etsy--they make money on sales yet they limit the way we can promote our items! I'm a vintage seller but I still participate in BNR/BNS's for the exposure ((I rarely get a sale in one) and am a team leader--I'm open to suggestions as to how we can circumvent this whole issue.
This is crazy, honestly. WHY do this? Because of a fear of bots?
REALLY??
I have to tell you, we're thinking of opening up a second shop, either on ArtFire or over on Foodoro.com (a site for artisan food makers). Way fewer restrictions, so it'll be a nice back-up.
But we can't leave Etsy. We've gotten too connected to the community.
*grumble*grumble*
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