Sadly this is true. You have no control at the end of the day. I really do hate to trash Etsy because it was the first place I sold my handmade products (started the first year they opened) but they aren’t anywhere close to the same business they were then. I was terrified to switch to Shopify because it seemed like a risk but at the end of the day my fees are significantly lower and Sales are higher on my own website. It’s 100% the way to go if you truly want to control your own business!
After several months of working on my shop I got my first 7 sales, and today I woke up and my shop was permanently suspended. It is extremely frustrating! I do not think I’m going back with Etsy
I hate this! Did they send you an explanation at all? Sometimes, with new shops they want you to verify information. You can appeal it and they will restore. But...it is a great reminder that you are never in charge when you are on their platform. They can choose to shut you down, hold your money or more with zero warning or explanation...and little to know real customer service help! I encourage you to try Shopify. Check out my videos comparing the two platforms and you will see that they far outsold Etsy every month!! th-cam.com/play/PL2whdYTR6DJgPcqVRsZLz8BgfTK-qmhCS.html
I wish! Best thing I can tell you is to check your Email and See if they reached out as to why. It could be something simple like finishing your shop setup or payment info. It could also be anything from trademark infringement to not clarifying a print partner! If you got an email I would reach back out directly to them that way.
@@WendyJoDavis Thanks for your reply, My Shop status is currently showing CURRENTLY SUSPENDED and I am unable to contact support further, Etsy is not replying to my case ticket anymore, Can you share contact information of anyone from Trust & Safety who can activate my shop in full functional condition?
I don't think anyone can be exactly sure what they are trying to do here. I don't think it is that print on demand sellers are using mockups. They allow print on demand sellers to use mockups, at least from the printing partner. It clearly states this in the policy. If they are only going to allow the print provider mockups, Etsy will be shooting themselves in the foot, not to mention the print provider mockups are basically "photoshopped" to change the color and are not an accurate representation of the product. Hence why the person is in the same exact pose when you change from one color to the next on a site like printify. I am more led to believe they are cracking down on the use of AI generated mockups that are not the actual product and have flaws, either it be the color off a little, the shoulder hitting in the wrong area etc,. This is not a correct representation of the actual products and not what the buyer would be receiving. I think when they finally make this ruling more clear, we will find that mockups that are of the actual physical shirt you are selling will be fine. I hate that everyone has jumped on to sparking fear in the Etsy community for sellers that have hundreds, if not 1000s of listings on mockups that are on the correct mockup for the item being sold. I did have one listing removed out of the hundreds I have, so far, and it was for the handmade policy. That listing is a design created 100% by me, and it is listed the correct way (with the help of a production partner) on a mockup bought from Etsy, but of the correct shirt. We will see, a lot of people have had listing turned back on as well. I got a canned response when I reached out and haven't fought it since it was just one listing. All of this said, I'm trying to start a digital shop and I thank you for your video!
The fact that no one can be sure is what is so frustrating! You are correct about the print provider mockups. They are a far worse representation many times than what you can get through a good mockup provider on Etsy. Their take-downs are so random and like you said, canned responses with no way to know which rule you’ve broken. Their post does state that they allow mockups but they are specific in which ones, which at this point does not include the beautiful ones being sold by many reputable Etsy sellers. Ultimately it will all come out in the wash, it just seems to be a go-to for Etsy to do these crazy sweeping shut downs and rule changes right before major holidays. As far as digital products…our mockups are safe 🎉 And they’re still my fav! Good luck with your shop!
I think Etsy is easy for people who don’t know anything about running a business or are overwhelmed by the thought of starting their own website. It does take a lot of the guesswork out of the process. Etsy isn’t the business. Just a platform for small businesses to sell their products on. Unfortunately you are giving up control of what happens to them, which causes so many problems for so many people. This is why I teach and encourage people to set up on Shopify or Ecwid! You have much more control and it’s really not that difficult once you understand the basics!
No one should ever say that they have an Etsy business (if anyone is saying that). The reality is they have a side hustle that they don't control.
Sadly this is true. You have no control at the end of the day. I really do hate to trash Etsy because it was the first place I sold my handmade products (started the first year they opened) but they aren’t anywhere close to the same business they were then. I was terrified to switch to Shopify because it seemed like a risk but at the end of the day my fees are significantly lower and Sales are higher on my own website. It’s 100% the way to go if you truly want to control your own business!
After several months of working on my shop I got my first 7 sales, and today I woke up and my shop was permanently suspended. It is extremely frustrating! I do not think I’m going back with Etsy
I had to issued refunds for those 7 sales. It was hart breaking
I hate this! Did they send you an explanation at all? Sometimes, with new shops they want you to verify information. You can appeal it and they will restore. But...it is a great reminder that you are never in charge when you are on their platform. They can choose to shut you down, hold your money or more with zero warning or explanation...and little to know real customer service help! I encourage you to try Shopify. Check out my videos comparing the two platforms and you will see that they far outsold Etsy every month!! th-cam.com/play/PL2whdYTR6DJgPcqVRsZLz8BgfTK-qmhCS.html
MY ETSY SHOP SUSPENDED! CAN YOU HELP ME TO GET BACK MY SHOP IN SELLING CONDITION?
I wish! Best thing I can tell you is to check your Email and See if they reached out as to why. It could be something simple like finishing your shop setup or payment info. It could also be anything from trademark infringement to not clarifying a print partner! If you got an email I would reach back out directly to them that way.
@@WendyJoDavis Thanks for your reply, My Shop status is currently showing CURRENTLY SUSPENDED and I am unable to contact support further, Etsy is not replying to my case ticket anymore, Can you share contact information of anyone from Trust & Safety who can activate my shop in full functional condition?
I don't think anyone can be exactly sure what they are trying to do here. I don't think it is that print on demand sellers are using mockups. They allow print on demand sellers to use mockups, at least from the printing partner. It clearly states this in the policy. If they are only going to allow the print provider mockups, Etsy will be shooting themselves in the foot, not to mention the print provider mockups are basically "photoshopped" to change the color and are not an accurate representation of the product. Hence why the person is in the same exact pose when you change from one color to the next on a site like printify. I am more led to believe they are cracking down on the use of AI generated mockups that are not the actual product and have flaws, either it be the color off a little, the shoulder hitting in the wrong area etc,. This is not a correct representation of the actual products and not what the buyer would be receiving. I think when they finally make this ruling more clear, we will find that mockups that are of the actual physical shirt you are selling will be fine. I hate that everyone has jumped on to sparking fear in the Etsy community for sellers that have hundreds, if not 1000s of listings on mockups that are on the correct mockup for the item being sold.
I did have one listing removed out of the hundreds I have, so far, and it was for the handmade policy. That listing is a design created 100% by me, and it is listed the correct way (with the help of a production partner) on a mockup bought from Etsy, but of the correct shirt. We will see, a lot of people have had listing turned back on as well. I got a canned response when I reached out and haven't fought it since it was just one listing.
All of this said, I'm trying to start a digital shop and I thank you for your video!
The fact that no one can be sure is what is so frustrating! You are correct about the print provider mockups. They are a far worse representation many times than what you can get through a good mockup provider on Etsy. Their take-downs are so random and like you said, canned responses with no way to know which rule you’ve broken. Their post does state that they allow mockups but they are specific in which ones, which at this point does not include the beautiful ones being sold by many reputable Etsy sellers. Ultimately it will all come out in the wash, it just seems to be a go-to for Etsy to do these crazy sweeping shut downs and rule changes right before major holidays.
As far as digital products…our mockups are safe 🎉 And they’re still my fav! Good luck with your shop!
People should stop treating Etsy as a real business
I think Etsy is easy for people who don’t know anything about running a business or are overwhelmed by the thought of starting their own website. It does take a lot of the guesswork out of the process. Etsy isn’t the business. Just a platform for small businesses to sell their products on. Unfortunately you are giving up control of what happens to them, which causes so many problems for so many people. This is why I teach and encourage people to set up on Shopify or Ecwid! You have much more control and it’s really not that difficult once you understand the basics!
@@WendyJoDavis true