Why I Am Closing My Etsy Shop After THREE Years & 100's of Sales
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 30 ก.ย. 2024
- I finally did it. I finally closed my Etsy shop. I can't exactly say that I am happy about it. I honestly was rooting for Etsy to pull through and do what they could to help me. Even during the months that my shop was suspended, Etsy STILL charged me for each item that I had listed, even though they weren't allowing me to sell nor helping me with my problem.
I truly hope that if you have an Etsy shop, that you never have to experience these things. But please, if you are contemplating Etsy, go in with your eyes wide open!
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I worked as an auditor in the automotive industry for over 20 years, and it reminds me of a troubling situation we would see often. We called it ‘robbing Peter to pay Paul’. It was a way for a dealer to use funds from one bank to pay another, because they were, technically, insolvent and didn’t have enough funds at one time to cover both. It sounds like Etsy is doing something similar. By holding funds, it allows them to invest (gamble) some of their sellers $$$, while they pay others. Likely, they don’t have the revenue to pay everyone on time, so it’s a good way to stay afloat and not expose their insolvency. Essentially, it’s a warning sign of a sinking ship.
You should have many more likes for your sensible comment. It’s all about money!
Not just Etsy, alot of online conglomerates double dip (invest) with owed money, hence waiting up to months to pay you, if they pay you at all.
good thing to know, i didnt know this, i had my funds withheld also
I literally had that thought and I have no financial background, but I was like "why would a company want to hold money..." they need it and are doing stuff with it...HMmmm smart unless well they REALLY NEED IT.
I was thinking this exact thing. The only way I can figure that a lot of established sellers are suddenly having funds put on hold is because Etsy, for whatever reason, is putting off paying them.
we need to start a new handmade platform. Etsy is done.
I heard about Folksy. Like an early Etsy from what I hear.
It should be worldwide and great customer service for both sellers and buyers
Absolutely true
Not just Etsy but eBay as well. They are horrible. You can’t rely on them.
@@someonewhoknows1891 You've got to remember that eBay isn't really for handmade, it's a platform to reselling mass-produced products.
I’m sensing a class action lawsuit is going to happen with Etsy.
Then they'll block ur store with an AGREE (to abandon class action lawsuits button) like Roku et al., did before allowing u to continue using their products!
When a company goes public in the stock market, run, run, run!
Etsy should be investigated. I’ve read they’re doing a lot of ilegal things. Lately I been thinking about starting a small business. If I do it won’t be with them. It’s better off to have a website and make promotions on your own.
@@evarodriguezalequin5705 I got insider informations, and they really do ban for no reason at all and even the appeal can be closed down by a bot. Sometimes they do something like april cleansing and just ban randomly whatever.
where do I sign?
I have been watching a lot of these types of videos lately, and a few people got exactly what they needed, because they contacted the Better Business Bureau and filed formal complaints against Etsy. I think you all should do the same, it will force Etsy to stop this crap.
BBB is untrustworthy,at least where I live.
@@davidr.wilson8194 BBB has helped me several times, like when Apple tried to cheat me out of a trade-in credit for a new laptop. The largest businesses will often cheat customers if they think they can get away with it.
@@davidr.wilson8194 They helped me out lol
BBB cant do anything, they have no auth.
You have no idea how the deep corruption is in this world.
Unfortunately Etsy doesn't care about their sellers 👎
Bite the hand that feeds them.... stupid business plan.
My Etsy account was permanently suspended last week. They initially suspended me without sending an email explaining why, and once I filed an appeal, they were asking questions like what would I do differently to restore my account. I told them I wouldn't change anything because I don't know what I did wrong, and within 30 minutes of me sending my appeal, they permanently suspended me. I am Extremely disappointed in their business practices. I hate that at that moment, I was caught with all of my eggs in that one basket, but I won't let that be the end for me.
Your jewelry is absolutely beautiful, and I wish you success.
I’m so so sorry to hear that that happened to you, that’s awful! 😭I hope you’ve been able to start a website and continue your business 🥺💜
Thank you for your sweet words and encouragement. 🙏🏻🥲💜
I won't shop there anymore!
This sounds like it's an AI system operating... the same thing happened to me at a second hand website but I asked to speak to a real human and my account was reinstated immediately.
They let these computers run the system and lots of errors happen....
Wow. Sounds just like what happened to me. Mine happened in September, though. I'm still pretty hurt but trying to get along without them.
Probably looking at your social media.
This just confirms that my decision to leave Etsy months ago was the right one. This is all yet another sign that Etsy is dying, it's getting more and more desperate for revenue and it's getting it by screwing over the artists, this is a death spiral.
Yes! I had the exact same experience and closed my shop in January.
loses my shop after 4 years just this past month it is a waste of time and a nightmare for new shops for sure. It has gotten worse every year since i started and happy to be done with them. There are many other platforms who treat artist and sellers much much better . Do yourself a favor and don’t other with this clown show!!!
My 7 year old best-selling item was delisted saying it 'violated their handmade policy'. My images, I discovered, had been stoled and used on other mass-production sites. It wrecked my income for 2 months. Eventually they re-instated it with a mild 'sorry' but zero compensation. It's scary. They can literally do anything to your shop and you have zero control over it. I've sold handmade on Etsy since 2007. Made them probably tens of thousands of dollars in fees. This is how they can treat us...
all my items are handmade by me. all my photos are mine. thrown under the bus because my IP was stolen from etsy and used on other sites!
Same. Happened twice. To 3 great sellling listings. Messed me up before Xmas. And took a month of emailing back and forth to get anything reinstated. 😖
Are you still using Etsy or have you found a better/different alternative? Sounds so scary
Wow, that’s crazy? And for “violating their handmade policy” of all things? What a joke. 99% of stuff on there these days is drop shipping mass produced crap. =/
@@ItsVesperArt Yes - it was insane. I've been on etsy for 17 years - you think they'd do a little background check and take a look at my shop and its history before doing something so drastic, right? Building my own website currently and also planning to stop Etsy entirely as soon as possible. Zero trust now. We all deserve a LOT better. Especially true artisans who work so hard for very little profit!
Thank you for sharing this information. You just saved some newbies from a heartache. 😊
Of course! I never want to discourage anyone from chasing their dreams, and if Etsy is your only means, DO IT, 100%. Something is better than nothing, but you at least should know what the risks are. ❤
I believe the whole corporate world is trying to squeeze every cent they can from consumers. They're taking the easy money vs the Craftsman. Ads and bloatware. Just found your channel, doing great job explaining everything; I'm learning. Thank you for your content.
Which is so funny since that was the exact reason Etsy was created in the first place to fight!
ETSY held nearly $1,000.00 of mine for nearly 4 months. I was forced to front money to ship dozens and dozens and dozens of orders out of pocket that whole time. I SUSPECT they invested MY money for 4 months while they were "holding" it. I wouldn't be surprised if they have done this with hundreds of thousands of sellers.
Yep, ETSY is broke. They're holding/ stealing folks money to pay their bills
Hmm that is an interesting thought........I sure hope that isn't what they are doing lol
That's a good observation, some companies that hold onto money often do this, where they reinvest your money as a kind of interest free loan under the guise of, the account broke TOS so funds are frozen. And they often drag out the process to get an account reinstated for this reason. Rumor has it Paypal does this and you agree that they can do this in their TOS should your account be frozen.
@@MiteraMade It's clear it's them looking after their own cashflow, not the sellers, they know there are hundreds of new sellers joining every day, as you say, most aren't selling things they make, especially in your niche! Ebay does it too but it has the advantage of better customer service and they only stop funds for a short period, if something is odd about the account, for example to ensure funds are available for refunds, if you have a return requests pending.
These are the same tatics PayPal does. They have been sued many times for this.
It just takes for all of the business owners to shut it down for 48 hours, they will get the message. You are not helpless when you stick together. It’s a reciprocal relationship and they must understand that.
Yet I just saw a vid by a top seller who was shut down just before Christmas with multiple shops but he blames the ‘artists’ for not making what sells and because Etsy is a business and artists don’t know how to be a business it’s our fault. FYI. He’s not a handmade artist. He just came up with a product and sells it on Etsy. Opportunist taking advantage of what artist built but Etsy new CEO turned their backs on. So with millions of people riding the wave Etsy won’t be shut down.
So true, my designs have been ripped off by numerous Etsy sellers, they suck these days!
They always sucked.
This is also why many Native American turquoise and silver artists don't allow photos of their displays, for fear of cheap Asian copies coming out later.
That's nothing new. That was going on over 10 years ago when I was on there. They suspended me when I wouldn't comply to their "only Etsy Pay" demands. Best thing I ever did.
Hello. My name is Andrey. I'm from Russia. I am 58 years old. I am a machine embroidery designer and 3D jewelry designer. I worked on Upwork and Etsy, and because I am Russian, my accounts were blocked. I do not support what is happening in the world now, and I am against it. And I think that this is pure discrimination. But I also believe that politics should not interfere with art, this is not acceptable. And I saw that the accounts of other users from other countries were blocked for strange reasons. Sorry for my English.
I’m really sorry to hear that Audrey! 🥺💔 I hope you can get back to what you love soon. 🥺
Thank you. But just like in simple life, you meet people who betray you. Then you simply blacklist such people and move on. There is no point in throwing ashes on your head or tearing out your hair, as we say. There are ordinary people, outside of politics, with whom you continue to work and do beautiful things. Just like you on your channel.
Thats unbelivable and pure discrimination. Can't believe in what times we are living 😠
@@АндрейДульнев-й5кthat’s exactly why you are being sanctioned. Your society says “we are outside of politics”, and then you allow your government to establish dictatorship and invade other countries… until y’all become more courages and actually stop what your government is doing (murdering innocent ppl) that’s how it’s going to be. That’s like a German would be crying during world war 2 and complaining how the world treats him, when his government is committing a genocide. All of you are responsible.
I am so glad I watched this video and saw you comment. I believe this was the same reason for Instagram to suspend my account couple years ago after just one week of creating it. They said I violated community rules. Well, not sure now if I should even try to open my etsy shop.
I was contemplating on whether or not to keep going with Etsy. I sell digital products. I decided to do Etsy ads. I made a sale, and from that sale, I only made $2.19. After uploading a couple of images, I'm now having 1 cent going into my account. I stopped the ads and made another sale, but if I upload any more images, I will lose most of the money from that sale, too. I feel like it was meant for me to find this video because I was stressing about it. I wish you a tremendous amount of success in all that you do.
Thank you so much! 💜💜💜💜. I tried Etsy ads and honestly I preferred not time use then simply because of how much they take from the sell. Hopefully you can find growth in just the natural progression of Etsy without having to use their ads so you can keep more of your money 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻💜💜💜
Thank you for the information. My wife and I were just about to open an Etsy account…not now.
We appreciate your respectful comments.
I sold a coat, my 2nd sale. Spent half its cost on shipping, which was a terrible shock. Then the person said it stank of smoke and it did not. (it had spent the past 40 years in a nonsmokers house. It was on my listing as NO RETURNS. i nicely told the girl to send it back. She said she was going to donate it. (lol, and it supposedly stank) Then I stopped talking to her realizing she was a scammer. She contacted etsy and they refunded her money. so not only did i get charged for the coat, she stole the coat from me too. I closed the shop and realized people are scum.;
Oh my goodness….that HORRIBLE, I’m so sorry that happened to you 😭💔
This is a very common occurrence. It never goes in your favor as a seller.
Oh wow😂
I had exactly that happen to me on Etsy many years ago, and it certainly taught me back then that Etsy is never on the side of the sellers. Some woman bought a very expensive piece of jewelry that I had handmade, and then filed a claim, saying it wasn’t what she expected. I had a return policy, but she chose not to return it, and instead, Etsy refunded her the money and deducted it from my PayPal account. The only way I was able to rectify that was to contact PayPal and tell them I was being scammed. Apparently this Etsy buyer had been doing the same thing to a ton of people, there was a forum post about that and multiple people reached out to me to ask if it was the same person. It was!
I have lost all faith in Etsy, and I am definitely motivated to start my own store. Driving traffic to an independent store isn’t going to be any harder than setting up listings on Etsy, considering you’re competing with problematic SEO, a flooded market place, and a BS market host that happily takes your money without cause.
@@phranne1234 Flooded marketplace is so right. I did not have one sale in 2023, after doing well during the covid years. I simply can't compete with foreign countries. Those folks are happy to make peanuts compared with US workers.
Thank you for sharing your story. Though frankly, I am surprised at how many people commenting here are not aware of the pervasive problems with Etsy. There are NUMEROUS content creators here on TH-cam that have detailed similar problems starting with Etsy forcing stores to offer free shipping and suspending their accounts for no visible reason.
@@SS-hl6ut yes it does!
I have an Etsy shop that I started in June 2023. I am terrified of something like this happening to me. I have heard stories like yours from multiple sellers. I signed with with Shopify but I've not had time to build the site. I really need to get on it because I am almost at the year mark and 140+ sales. Thanks for sharing your story.
Definitely prioritise doing that. They literally remove accounts at the drop of a hat. They did that to my boyfriends account, no explanation.
I have to do it now too!
Lesson 1 in business: be in control of your business. Be that your own website, database of customers, sales facility, payment processing etc. All of this is relinquished when using 3rd party platforms.
Yes but the issue doing it on your own is you need to invest a lot of money in marketing for years to get a loyal customer base. That is the appeal of 3rd party platforms.
@@la6136 Thinking long-term, it's better to get that loyal customer base and worth investing the time and money. 3rd party platform customers are not loyal and probably don't even notice your brand. Not only that, you don't even control your cashflow from them and any customers you do have can be gone tomorrow without warning (including the whole site). I've had over 3,000 sales with 3rd party platforms (only 2nd hand goods, not my original work) and have had maybe 3 returning customers out of all those sales: around 1 in a thousand!
And the risk. Ow Etsy wants a selfie and a fee to open up shop. I gave had an account for years, but if they ever ask me for one of those two things then I’m out of there.
You will NEVER be in control of your business as long as the government regulates everything you do.
The only thing is TRAFFIC. Sites like Amazon and easy have well established customer base and name popularity. These sites do go rogue and oppressive with sellers to keep their bottom line. But, you are right mostly, but then the govt. Rules and regulations in countries like US are after your revenue and make restrictions to get their bottom line. But, still own site and authority over it is still a lot better, except for the marketing part. But, I feel this might be changing as more of us say goodbye to these oppressive monsters and switch to own sites and build customers trust.
Thank you so so much for sharing this. I was just about to start an Etsy shop, BUT, after knowing now how bad Etsy is, I will not bother. I think it is dreadful that a company can keep control of YOUR money that you have earned and change rules, OH and also when you can never get to speak to a helpful human being then not a company I would ever like to deal with.
Thank you so so much for warning everyone. XX 🙂
Knowledge is power😭 hopefully they do better and they can be a force for good again one day lol.
Hopefully but won't hold my breath. When companies get greedy they don't change. @@MiteraMade
I absolutely hate etsy. They have the worst customer service. They shut my shop ("suspended it"), refused to tell me what I'd done wrong (pretty sure I'd not done anything wrong. I've read all of their rules and guidelines, when I appealed, it came back in less than one minute with it being rejected. And pretty much then saying they don't need to tell me why, they won't reply to messages about it, and their decision is final. They're a frigging joke. Also they seem to be untouchable. There must be some body who can hold them accountable (but I can't find anyone). And they've kept my listing fees, even though they've unlisted my items. So that's a breach of contract right there. I'm sure their terms would say they're allowed if someone breaches their rules... but they refuse to tell me what they claim I did.
Man I hate etsy. If you look at videos of their headquarters, you can see how much money they're p*ssing away on that. Spend some of that money on customer services!
That is exactly what they said to me. No explanation, no warning. I appealed and they replied within 5 hours denying my appeal and they also denied my request for a detailed list of offenses - or at minimum the general allegations. They refused to tell me what I had done to have my store shut down, stating that they could not do that for "security of the market." Give me a break.
I never knew this about Etsy. Damn. I was going to start up a company there in the near future. I will never deal with a company where there is no control over what is yours. This information needs to be spread far and wide.
Everyones experience is different. I have been on Etsy for 10 years and it's ok for me.
My experience there ended badly, but I can’t say it’s not worth the TRY if you aren’t planning on having a website. 💜 you could be like Mele and have a wonderful experience. It’s just worth it to know what can happen and what has happened to a lot of people. If you don’t plan on having a website, it’s worth going for it, hoping for the best, but being financially prepared for anything.💜
I hope you continue with your plans on whatever platform you choose and thrive! 💜💜💜
I’ve had a pretty good experience with Etsy but I do agree the customer service is horrible. They put my shop on vacation for the same reason and they said I only had 2 tries to get my information correct when there was nothing I could change. It was all correct. I sell supplies and they are around $3 so fees for Etsy are way too high. I started selling on Michael’s craft store. Some things are not perfect there but customer service is way better. They gave me a customer service person I can call or email for everything and it’s always the same person and I’m not waiting over 2 weeks for a response.
And after verifying all my info a couple years later they say it’s incorrect again when nothing had changed. Luckily this time they didn’t put my shop on vacation mode. I also don’t like that we only have 24 hours to respond to a message 7 days a week and they say they can take up to 72 hours and it’s been way more than that when I have contacted them.
Sitting at nearly 700 sales since opening December 2022. They froze nearly $1,000.00 of mine for MANY MONTHS (approximately 4 to be precise) a couple months after I opened.They just dribbled a few dollars OF MINE, NOT THEIRS, here and there my way for that amount of time. I had to pay out of pocket for shipping dozens and dozens and dozens of orders during that time since MY money was NOT available to ME. I SUSPECT they invested MY money to earn interest for themselves during the many months they froze my funds. I suspect they have done this hundreds of thousands of times. IT would be a mistake to EVER TRUST THEM.
ugh, listening to your story made my blood boil. I can relate so much. I left Etsy a while ago and the final push was also a total lack of professionalism and support from Etsy. It was ridiculous and left me disgusted as an honest seller that has been making them money for years. And I agree - their customer service is garbage, that's almost an understatement. I wanted to share my story for a while and you've given me the push to finally do it! While I agree with you that Etsy is great to start and experiment, there's so much, that small makers and business owners need to know, to avoid massive disappointments and problems with this platform. Excellent video, thank you for sharing!
I am so sorry this happened to you as well! 😭💔 I'm really interested in hearing your experience! I'll definitely keep an eye out for your video! 😭❤
I was also going to use Etsy and am so thankful to you guys for warning us all. Who do you strongly recommend we use now to start up an online store? Many thanks again! :)
I'm hearing more and more stories about Etsy like this. It started off with being a genuine site for small makers but now it's pushing all those legitimate makers out and caters to ppl who buy wholesale from fast fashion sites and pose as makers. I don't buy from them anymore. I only go to artist's personal websites to buy now. Keep going and keep promoting your site, and ppl will come ❤️
It happens to every platform it seems.
@@MeriaDuck I wouldn't be BIT surprised if Amazon doesn't buy Etsy in the near future.
I have been on there ten years. It's been a struggle since day one. Absolutely have your own website
Etsy cancelled me too. My experience was exactly like yours and I’m only a buyer :/ .
I feel that Etsy wants to become another Temu or even Amazon.
Glad your business is doing well. Best wishes.
Airbnb is going through the same thing. The original premise is gone.
I am done with Etsy too! I am now selling everything off my own website. Etsy has lost its way! Like you said in the video, Etsy was there to help sellers in such a great way. Now they don't seem to care about anything. They will take down any listing and give you a generic reason or supply you with a violation , one of many things that you may have violated, but they never tell you the EXACT reason, so they take down your listing. I cannot wait for a big time investor or movie star with some clout to create a brand new homemade website and put Etsy down. They could have been so good, but they choose to ruin so many things. Anyway, I can now offer free shipping on all of my items because now I have no Etsy fees! I hope more and more people watch your video and learn to have a backup selling store so they do not depend on Etsy! Bye Bye Bye Etsy! Thanks for the video!
Good for you! I've sold jewelry making supplies for over 30 years, mostly brick & mortar. Went 100% online in 2020 with my own website. I also started Etsy around the same time because everyone seemed to be doing it. Those sales have been a lot slower because I don't really have much of a following there. However your story is all too common, so I decided to only list my clearance items on my Etsy site. Which has worked well since people are looking for specific items, and requires a lot less work on my part since I'm not trying to grow that store into a business.
I'm not on Etsy at all but I take a similar approach on eBay for sports cards. It's a pain to set up listings of clearance items but I can't think of any place where you can sell common cards for 99c as that is the minimum price allowed for Buy It Now. eBay sellers drop their business card or some sort of note all the time directing the buyer off eBay where the real profits and customer savings are.
I left ETSY (for a lot of the same reasons) last month and opened up my own shop through Shopify. I already love my new shop so much. Here's wishing you the best!
How are the orders coming in ?
@@Hayley-hb6vx for almost a month into it, I've made a little over 150 and that's great for me especially for Feb/Mar. I post everything in my Facebook and IG.
@@Hayley-hb6vx More than I thought it would do. I thought it was going to take longer to make sales but just for being with Shopify for a month, I've made a little over 150 and that's great for my small business. I post a lot in my Facebook and IG.
@@Hayley-hb6vx This is my third time trying to reply to you so I don't know where the other two have gone - I push reply and it shows up but then it disappears(?) 🤷🏻♀ Anyways, let's hope this time it stays. I've made about 25 sales since I opened up my own shop in February equaling to a little over $150. This is big for my very small shop. Two of my customers were returning customers and one was new. I posted my move in my social media including TH-cam. I then post my products through my Facebook and IG. My last item (Admin Gift Bundle) sold out withing 3 hours of posting it on FB and I have requests to make more. I was on ETSY since 2018 and sold a little over 1800 items so I believe alot of my followers come from already knowing me and my art. I'm currently using the starter plan on Shopify but if business keeps going the way it is, I'll be able to move to the next level.
they probably arent@@Hayley-hb6vx
And now Etsy’s latest news is that they will be charging SOME new store owners (didn’t say how those people are decided) $15 just to open a store. All well and good, that’s their right, HOWEVER, I have already been seeing stories where people have PAID their $15, opened a store and then Etsy has closed the store with no explanation and seemingly no recourse for the store owner to get their $15 back. Absolutely highway robbery.
yeah...I don't like having to give so much personal information like social security number, passport...whatever...it's scary. but it seems like you have to give that to start anything online. I don't like that. I understand why you have to give that... but it makes me uncomfortable.
If Etsy were honest they would say: "We're sorry, but the guy that wrote the Social Security Interface app is long gone and no one here knows how it works. Besides, we don't own the source code, so we couldn't fix it even if we wanted to. Have a nice day!!"
Closed mine. Please be warned with their fees and yes there’s no one to reach out to. Tried so many times to rectify what they put a hold on for and then just canceled them altogether. This is the best video. So true about about holding funds. Rubbish
Ridiculous! You are absolutely correct, and the only content channel advising others to have their own hosting (website). Not only did you share your horrible Etsy experience, but you made it clear that ANYONE can sell their goods outside of Etsy with a personal website. Absolutely, it is going to take work to bring traffic to your website if you’re on your own, but this is true whether you're on Etsy or eBay. Personally, I wouldn’t recommend starting with Etsy period. Why? Because too many newcomers to Etsy have also had their shops suspended or closed on day one for no apparent reason. It is not worth the chance to take the chance when Etsy’s platform is globally shutting down shops throughout their online website.
Also, if anyone is reading my comment and is deciding to sell on Etsy or eBay or has already done so, please STOP! The day you start to sell your handmade or other goods is the day you become a business owner! And in the business world, being self-employed or part-time (getting started) means never, never, never give your profits away. The first mistake a business owner can ever make is giving part of their profits away - the biggest no-no in the business world. Doing business on Etsy or eBay is just that, you're giving your profits away. Just like yourself, you go into business (small or big) to make money. And this is true for Etsy and eBay. They don’t care about you; it’s the profit margin at the end of the day. From listing fees, selling percentage, and other extra fees, your hard work is being taken, which is downright poor business practice.
As Adriana Avila stated, you can be successful outside of Etsy with your website. IT IS TRUE. Millions of private online storefronts are successfully selling their products. When you see those numbers of success, it goes to show it can be done. You’re in control of having your own website. You control the platform, setting your rules for how customers can purchase your goods, returns, shipping, and when items will ship. And the most significant benefit you will have with a personal storefront is that you keep 100% of the profit. The only time you would need to use a portion of your profit is the hosting cost per month or annually. The last cost is a percentage the credit card merchant gateway collects for each transaction; this fee is done everywhere, retailers (Walmart, Hobby Lobby, etc.) and everywhere credit cards are used; you can't escape from this. But that is it! You only have to pay for hosting and credit card transactions, nothing more if you open your own storefront.
I highly recommend Wix to anyone wanting to start a small business selling online. AND NO, I’m not whatsoever affiliated or sponsored by Wix. As a TH-cam Content Creator myself having my own personal TH-cam channel (Lou Rao), I will only recommend Wix no matter what other content channels say or prefer to commend outside of Wix. Wix is the most advanced, easy-to-use website creator for getting started with. You can have a storefront up and running within one hour. Besides the robust way Wix works with the most outstanding templates than any other platforms, it has all the advantages for shop owners to utilize their advanced tools to help build their company. Wix has been around since 2006 and has more than 220 million users distributed across 190+ countries. Just a brief explanation on Wix, and you can see why I highly recommend them over other platforms.
I do believe most people that use eBay and Etsy do so because of fear. Fear in the sense that they're afraid to open a website for themselves. They may believe it is hard, don’t know how to draw traffic, set up a merchant account, etc. But this is a myth. As soon as fear has been let go and you take the first step, there is no returning to Etsy or eBay; it is really that easy. And to start or already a business owner, fear isn’t in the equation. If you have Etsy fear is already there, when will they suspend me? When will they close down my shop? When will they hold my earnings? Does it really make sense to have a life based on these fears? It is really worth going to sleep and never know the next morning you may be a Etsy victim? It is worth for Etsy or eBay take 30% of your income?
Yeah, it is ridiculous what many folks are still going through with their Etsy shops. Like I said earlier, you’re in control of your business, either continue with the punches and fears or free yourself from this madness. It’s your choice. I wish all those entrepreneurs the very best in all they do. 😎
Thank you so much for your advice! I wanted to start my business on Etsy and Shopify but I see more and more of these kind of stories about how crappy Etsy is treating sellers on their Platform, as you said I fear all the time that my shop could get suspended for the slightest error or any reason they think is legit to them without even explaining it.
I still was thinking about not only betting on one horse, I am looking for different platforms and I already found few and I'll keep on doing my research. Am starting to warm up to an idea to open my own website too!
Welcome👍. You're headed in the right direction by conducting research. Research, research, and more research are the first steps to free yourself from this madness. When considering platforms, make sure they don't charge for listings, fees after sales, or any type of percentages to sell your products. Consider this: what can Etsy or any other platform that charges fees do that you can't achieve with your own website? There is a signup process, setting up the look and profile of your store, adding products, providing product information, and ensuring your titles are SEO-ready. Consider these steps; there's no difference with a website. You're still doing the main legwork with Etsy as you would for your personal online store. The difference with Etsy is that they charge you to do the legwork.
I encourage you to take the leap with a website and nothing else. It doesn’t have to be Wix; GoDaddy is another excellent option to build your store. When setting up an online store, look for two payments and nothing else: hosting and credit card transactions. Start with a small budget website. As your business grows, you have the flexibility to upgrade with the hosting companies. I like Wix because it's the most user-friendly website to design and build your online store, and it provides additional 24/7 phone support. Plus, you can scale up when your business starts to grow with many rich features. GoDaddy also offers numerous business tools to help build your online store and attract traffic to it, along with 24/7 phone support. When looking for a website make sure to select e-commerce and not the basic, Wix or Godaddy.
That said, cease betting regardless of the number of horses you're betting on; the odds are never in your favor😅. I wish you all the success with your online store.😎
Wix E-Commerce:
www.wix.com/ecommerce/website
Wix Learn:
www.wix.com/learn/library/ecommerce/courses
www.wixtrainingacademy.com
Godaddy E-Commerce / Other Info:
www.godaddy.com/pricing?category=Online+Store
@@LouRao Thank you! That's a lot of very useful information! I did the research on Gelato and Shopify they almost take the half of your earnings just because you use their platform! If I sell a t-shirt for 15 dollars I will only earn 6,44 or something like that, this is ridiculousl!
@@justynaschreuder8171Welcome! 👍 It is my pleasure giving advice when I can. I have another word instead of "ridiculous," but it would be inappropriate to say here 😆. Agree! Gelato and Shopify are no different than Etsy - fees. One way I’m glad you’re doing your research. But, on the other hand, stop the madness and take the plunge with no-fee websites I mentioned before. I would not recommend staying away from any hosting site that charges fees for listings, sales, or penalizes (eBay) with another fee if you don’t offer free shipping and use your own shipping methods. I have experienced them all in my 50 years of experience. Like many entrepreneurs, I've been there, from Arbonne to It Works, Agel, Rich Dad Poor Dad conferences, catering, and other entrepreneurial adventures, from selling my pasta sauce to helping others build their online stores. Between all those startups and investments, I was in IT for over 22 years. Using my IT background knowledge helped me assist others in building their entrepreneurial websites long ago when eBay or Amazon just got established. I was one of the first customers to join Wix in its beginning stages when their hosting was written in Flash and with just a few lines of HTML code. Many starts I had failed, and others succeeded. And failure is a good thing. Why am I sharing my somewhat experience with you? No other reason than to help folks like yourself not to get screwed or take the wrong path. It’s something I've done all my life, helping others to better themselves and succeed in whatever they may pursue. Regardless when I was young and now I always had a drive to lend a hand.
Yeah, I pretty much had used all the most popular hosting for myself and others. And it wasn’t until the day I woke up and realized how much of my investments were being taken by these hosting sites I had mentioned. The wake-up call came from one of Robert Kiyosaki's entrepreneur conferences and reading his book Rich Dad Poor Dad, still one of the best sellers to this day. I highly recommend his book for anyone starting or already an entrepreneur. Robert Kiyosaki summarized in his book that you shouldn't give your money away. And those who do give their money away because they don’t know the meaning of money. Etsy, Shopify, Squarespace, and even eBay feed on those who don’t know the meaning of money. No different than credit cards companies handing cards like candy, people are in debt for that reason because they don’t understand money. Let’s be real, the argument could be made that many Entrepreneurs are making lots of money with any of the hosting I mentioned like Etsy, and true to an extent. Although, in their stupidity, they still lack the meaning of the dollar bill; 29% to 39% of their investments are going to unnecessary fees, and that is not how one should do business. Would you take advice from a successful Etsy seller making thousands a month or someone else who is making the same with their own private website? Hard decision. But, who is bringing in more income?
On my TH-cam channel, I focused on product reviews. It wasn’t until I had some health concerns that I had to put the channel aside. Even though I will always reply to questions or comments, the channel was on hold for any new content. Now life is good, and I'm very blessed to be where I’m at; we’re coming up with a new format. There may still be some product reviews, but a lot of changes are taking place for our new content. One thing I will be doing is helping folks like yourself on how to start an online store. The pros and cons with Etsy and others. I really do believe there is a need for this type of information. Too many new or even already established entrepreneurs are just being led the wrong way. And too many TH-cam content Creators are promoting Etsy, Squarespace, or Webflow because 90% are sponsored. Dead wrong in my opinion. It doesn’t matter what is being sold; it is how the items are going about to sell and what is happening with their investments. And if this content I present can help just one person, I’ve done a good job.
So, take the leap and start a trial on the websites I provided earlier in my last comments. If I can advise you no more research. Use the time you have to learn the website of your choice and get your product known. If you sell T-shirts, you're in a better position with a private online store than, say, Etsy. Why? Etsy (others) are oversaturated in this market for T-shirts. Use your time to build the online store and get familiar with all the features it has to offer before opening. Set up goals with dates. Each goal must be accomplished on the date you scheduled for. And most importantly, brand your name! Get your name known.
1. Do a trial on both hosting, GoDaddy or Wix (Wix has a free version but limited, use that just to get to know the Hosting).
2. Commit to Hosting.
3. Learn the format of the hosting.
4. Learn SEO and how it works with the hosting you picked.
5. Set up goals.
6. Part of the goals is to set up and design the store also get a website name of your store through GoDaddy. Important; if you don’t have a domain name (name of your company for the online store), make sure it is not long. Try to make the name as small as possible for anyone to remember. People’s retention is short, so you want to have something catchy folks could remember. No numbers or dashes. It’s going to take a long time to find a domain name, but it can be done. If you can, start with your first and last name and go from there when doing a domain name search. And only use .com nothing else - no matter what.
7. Where I said (5) set up goals, make sure they are realistic. You want to include your daytime job, family, and other responsibilities you have when setting dates to complete each goal.
I hope this helps. Please do keep me informed. I would love to see what options you made and see your store when it is up and running. And if you ever need help, don’t hesitate to ask; I will be more than happy to assist. You can always contact me by email. You will find my email contact on my TH-cam channel.😎
@lourao Thanks for your advice. I have been struggling with Shopify myself. I find it to be not user-friendly for sure. I just discovered wix yesterday as a matter of fact and decided to start with them once I watched one of their how-to videos and saw how simple it was to use. I'll watch for your new content. I'm looking forward to it.
Not only handmade. We are a vintage shop on Etsy. Thanks for the video. Very educational
Everybody should leave Etsy. It is like being in an abusive relationship.
Etsy's stock is gonna start tanking soon, mark my words! Their reputation is going down the drain day by day.
3 years and you only managed 100-200 sales, you seem lovely but that not the best is it, I’m sure you could get way more than that, if you can get at least 100 sales, you can’t be doing much wrong. How was your conversation rate? That will be thumbnails, SEO not fully optimised, optimising price and running daily daily’s ect
Even finding smaller projects that are easy to make to get small consistent sales.
I closed my shop over 5 years ago because of fees for off-site marketing and not being able to opt out. It’s much worse now and while I feel sad about how Etsy has evolved, I don’t regret leaving.
Hi yes totally agree l have had a shop for 9yrs on etsy very successful then two payment reserves. Finished my business overnight, currently waiting for the balance of a sale then lam closing my store for good.
Good luck 👍 with your business
how do i get my own website? i have no funds to start one, can you help me know ? how to start a website of my own,i have been thinking about it,and have just been thinking,i run an animals sanctuary of senior dogs and cats, my youtube thingy is not helping either, what does one do if they dont have much funds? thank you for your time, are you going to do a video about this?
Feels like Etsy is doing some shady stuff with peoples money behind their backs. Like money laundering or secretly investing to somewhere.
Thank you for this video. You've helped me decide to stay away from Etsy. I feel they have completely overreached and my multiple negative experiences with them and wariness of the platform is now confirmed. Over and over with other stories like yours. I'm just not going to go there or give them my business. Feels good to finally just shut the door. Wishing you the best!
I'm small potatoes on Etsy but I find them shady and am looking for an alternative. This helped, thank you
I am getting ready to start selling my jewelry and ì just want to thank you for your video!
You're so welcome! I really do hope they can go back to what they used to be one day. I will say, if Etsy is something that fits your situation best, and you don't want a website, I never want to discourage someone from starting their business. I think as long as you know what CAN happen and prepare for that, it still could be worth it for some as some folks are very very successful on the platform. I wish you all of the best! ❤
@MiteraMade I made my decision after watching your video. In the last two weeks, I have watched 3 videos on the very same subject, from 3 different jewelry makers. I can't afford to have my money held back for that long. The prospect of having my money held for that long is scary and wrong. You're right about using your money for their selves. Thank you!
Good information to keep in mind. Sellers should also keep in mind that even people using services like Shopify have experienced similar issues with them holding funds for months and suspending stores.
Right! Good to hear from this as well.
It is better to have diverce sources of income and places to have your shop. None of the platforms seem to be stable.
I've never heard of Shopify suspending stores before. Wow!
@@dougdoug9223 it happens. Sometimes Google seems to show only or mostly results directly from Shopify help if you search for "shopify suspends store." You may need to try to reword it to something like "Shopify suspended my store." if you're looking to read about it.
I’m sorry they did this to you! Specially after they allow actual human trafficking to happen on Etsy. Actual sellers are selling paintings of children for $50k, Etsy explain this? And you hold actual business owners money???
Each entrepreneur on Etsy, Amazon, and Shopify is building riches for these platforms, and they can get kicked out any day despite their hard work. We are doing the heavy lifting for them via our creativity and social media marketing to grow them. They give us crumbles as an exchange, and we're vulnerable to them. They have our clients' e-mail addresses, so we can't create a community, which is fundamental to online business. So why would anyone want to help these platforms become rich from our creativity and hard work when we can do it for ourselves without them?
Maybe the sellers need to file complaints with the FTC for the unethical business practices with the sellers.
I had the exact same thing happen to me and my shop on Etsy late last year. They held a significant amount of money from me in the lead up to Christmas. And Trying to deal with their customer support, was an extremely frustrating process. It was another Etsy seller on an Etsy forum that was able to offer a solution that worked and helped me unlock the funds they were holding.
Wow, I’m so glad you found a solution! Hopefully they never do that to you again 😭🙏🏻
Thanks for your honesty and for sharing
Absolutely! 🙏🏻💜
I was seriously getting ready to open an Etsy shop. Your video changed my mind. I
agree. When Etsy started out, they were great. I will be checking out shopify. Thank you.
Sheree N. Barber
I think it stinks what happened to you. I think these companies that don’t provide ways to call them, for a start it’s completely one sided and not at all set up for the seller. I know some other companies big companies, that have no phone contact too. I find it’s the height of rudeness. Plus all the ways in which they were not transparent to you too, is just unacceptable.
Whoever a company wants to rip people off in any way it’s called salary theft. That’s basically what they are doing and using lame excuses to not do the most basic action in which they could help you. I don’t understand how they sleep well at night when they know that a portion of the profit they accrue is other peoples money. It’s not up to them to partition it and make it hard for the creative to be paid.
Etsy closed my wife's account without notice or reason.
whoa...That is rough, I am so sorry. 😭
Thanks for being honest about the scam that is Etsy. I am SOOOO sick of the TH-camrs telling people they can set up a shop in 10 minutes and earn hundreds of thousands $$$ easy peasy!
Etsy allows and dare I say I feel encourages the opposite of what they claim-drop and mass shipping vs handmade/secondhand/unique items. Their dishonesty with shipping and so many other things mean I don't use them anymore.
It’s so sad 😞 maybe someone will creat another platform to provide what that can’t.
Thanks so much for sharing that experience! I was having nothing but problems with Etsy and now I know it's just them not me.
Etsy has totally destroyed the livelihoods of many handmade sellers! They go on about "you should follow our house," but they don't realize that this house was actually built by the sellers they're treating like nothing. Suspending without any support, giving no reach to new shops-Etsy is just over, done!
Thank you for sharing your experience with Etsy!! I’ll avoid them!!! Good luck with your other sites!
I just started working with clay and starting an art business, and I was thinking of beginning with Etsy, because at first, I probably wouldn’t make enough to even cover the monthly cost of Shopify. But.. now I’m not so sure. Thanks a lot for this info. I’m glad you’re holding them accountable where other small businesses can see. 💚
Thank goodness for your video. Now it’s going to save me a lot of time!
Really thank you so much! 🙌
Yep! Just got the notice Etsy is going to hold my funds for 90 days!!! WTH!? THIS IS INSANE! That's my money. 😡
I’m so sorry 😭
My shop was erased for no reason other than they said there were too many fraudulent transactions (which is not my fault)?! I had over 480 sales and had invested over $11,000 on my shop. I have appealed and they still won't give the shop or my data back. They also kept a week of my sales revenue. Just so wrong. I'll never do Etsy ever again.
Oh no. So many sales, I’m so sorry. 😭😭 have you tried Shopify and having your own website?
Could you tell me what do you use in material you use and what soldering you use.
Sounds like Etsy is going through a slow death... at the hands of cheap industry. I feel like I've joined at the end of the Etsy experience...
The early Etsy was definitely nice! 😭
Folks we can't rely on anyone else. Stay diversified and independent with multiple avenues to sell your products
Thank you for sharing! Amazon now has a handmade section on their website. The rules may be better than Etsy, but you still don't have full control either.
Holding the funds... that messed up screw etsy
I think Etsy is great to start with. I've been on there for 10 years and sell as a hobbyist maker. I don't put too much into social media so I can't drive my own traffic to my website. I'm wishing you so much success with your stand alone website.
It can be FOR SURE! I’m really glad it’s worked out for you, it does for many of people in the same situation! 💜💜💜
Thank you for your good wishes! 🥹💜
It’s not good for starting out either. I made one sale in 6 months and then got suspended when adding my EIN. Everyone should just steer clear.
they shut down my store accusing me of racism, meanwhile I was producing pillow cases with princess prints for kids. Etsy is a pack of scammers.
Are the pillow cases -- diversified? If not they have a right to close it? Build a website to sell that garbage.
@@jw8503 garbage? what is your problem. Im out of here, bad vibes this channel.
@@jasminirauch4322 are you really that dam sensitive? I asked you a question about that stuff you are selling. It sounds like horrible. People need food not pillow cases.
@@jw8503 lol food on etsy... you are clearly a troll.
@Cuteglamshopper
9 days ago
I’m sensing a class action lawsuit is going to happen with Etsy. 👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾
Absolutely, or all sellers that know they are being unfair and shady need to deactivate all their items for 3 days at least. That will get their attention enough is enough the don’t care with all their pushy suggestions that make them money and leave us with profit margins of 20 - 30% if not less is so inconsiderate and greedy. I believe they use manipulation. Tactics like limit our exposure to get us to buy ads. There are so many little suspicious stuff i’ve noticed that i can’t pin point there intentions. What i do know is that they seem to be pushing sellers out, its become clear to me after listening to all these stories which iv experience myself that SELLERS HAVE TO DO SOMETHING! The platform has become a big mess.
This is incredibly useful information. Thank you for such a concise explanation of the issues. Looks like Etsy is having some severe internal issues with their platform.
Been watching your content for a while now and your work and process are excellent. I hope you are very successful with your enterprise.
By the way are you in a brick and mortar shops? Galleries and other stores?
Thank you so much! 💜 I have not looked into brick and mortar stores 🤔 I don’t think it’s a bad idea at all, I’ll need to do some research on some shops that I think would be a good fit 💜 I wonder if it would be lucrative and how much I’d have to charge as a wholesale price and still survive🙈😂 hmmmmmm.
@@MiteraMade It's worth looking into ! Bricks & mortar stores are having a hard time with spiralling costs and crime, so are nervous of using cashflow on unknowns. But at the same time, they're an ideal venue for one-off products where the customer can get sold on them by seeing how amazing they are "in the flesh".
If I could offer some humble advice, it's to avoid providing stock on consignment. It'll lead to disputes over who bears the cost if anything goes wrong. Instead, consider offering sale or return (but with payment up front or on delivery - some shops are notoriously bad at paying invoices !). That way, the shop doesn't risk cashflow if the items turn out not to be right for them, but you don't lose out if they fail to secure them properly.
It's worth talking to them about safely displaying the products, leaflets, signage etc (all the marketing things that'll help their staff sell them !) With what you are making being one-offs or short production runs, it's worth photographing each item before delivery, and have you considered numbering them and adding certificates of authenticity ?
As someone planning on starting a handmade business in the near future I'm glad I came across your advice. And I'm sorry you had to go through that with Etsy.
I was permanently suspended immediately after signing up and paying the fee (it's not $0.60 anymore!) 6 weeks ago. No product was uploaded yet (it was a few hours old). I didn't even get an email. It was just a notice on my dashboard. I appealed and that was rejected within hours. Of course, they cannot explain why I was suspended nor why my appeal was rejected. It is top secret, apparently. So cool! Thank you Etsy.
I had my shop for 4 years, 5 stars, 18,886 sales, the customer service is a bot now. They closed my shop and I can’t talk to or email a human.
You're dealing with outsourced customer support and a computer algorithm is probably responsible for suspending your account. I doubt an actual person from Etsy even looked into it. Its probably for the better as you can now just focus on your own store.
This is true AI is now firing people and randomly manipulating peoples livelihoods
Cannot wait to see the video about shopify selling ❤
Hopefully it will be soon! 😊
Not that this would help if you already shut down your etsy. I was watching a vid of another successful etsy seller, 100k a months sells was just shut down and couldn't figure what, why, or anything for months. Turns out he had an old etsy store that wasn't active that owed a $7 outstanding fee that shutdown all of his stores. Didn't notify him about it or anything. Wild. Keep up the great work, I wish more success in your future.
166 sales in three years? That's an average of 4.6 sales per month. Yet you claim there were days where you had multiple sales.
She also has a website that she receives orders from. Some people will find her on Etsy but buy through her website so she didn’t lose fees to Etsy.
I’m tired of Etsy trying to be Amazon!
Building a brand and owning your work through a personal website is key. I totally agree. Thank you for sharing and i am sorry you had this experience with Etsy. All for the best!
Thank u for sharing. I will pray for you as well ❤
Great Video , I've just started an etsy store , I think this Video just saved me a torturous journey , Thanks
I hope they start a movement where everyone leaves ! ❤
I completely agree with you 100%. Etsy started out as a handmade platform and now they sell everything....even athletic shoes! WTF? You would think with word spreading about their bad customer service for sellers, that they would pay attention. But I don't think they care about handmade sellers anymore. Sadly, Ebay has the same problems and that platform is now favoring their high performing sellers over their others. I hate that many selling platforms push you to do free shipping, on top of paying seller fees and also push you to discount your product. Its all about money in this world for sure, and it goes into big business's pockets.
This is exactly why i dont mess with Etsy they LOVE suspending accts....smh
It is really sad 😭
I had the same issue with eBay years ago. Forced me to do free shipping on bulky items, forced me to use PayPal for transactions where they took a larger and larger percentage of payments. Froze funds when I sold multiple high value items even though I had been selling for years and had over a thousand positive feedback ratings. I could contact people there but they did nothing, in the end it was too unreliable and with increasingly marginal profitability I was struggling to pay costs of doing business on a platform where I had no control. Like you I just walked away and left it to the cheap Chinese knockoffs.
I am contemplating doing the same!! I've sold 1000K+ items and constantly getting the "Funds Hold" notification which conveniently happened right before the holidays for 2 years in a row now. I've had to foot the bill for numerous items to ship and before the holiday was a complete hardship. Etsy does NOT help or care for the ones making their $$. It's been very disappointing being that I have hundreds of items listed with them.
Hello. I've been on Etsy since 2006. Everything you said is true. Etsy started as a warm and fuzzy place until the shareholders got their hands on it. Each year my income increased until 2015. After that year, my yearly sales income gradually decreased each year including today when I crunched the numbers for tax time. Your right. Thank you for this video.
Plus Etsy have opened their doors wider to China, so it really bad naw.
@@chicfini yes Etsy is really hurting for their shareholders.
exactly, it’s an apocalyptic hell scape now i am happy they are circling the drain they deserve it
AT 6:45 do wear a breathing device the fumes are very toxic over years it will affect your health.
I left Etsy before they started shutting down shops. I was new to Etsy and hadn't found much success when I gave up and pulled the plug. Literally a few weeks after doing so, all this started to happen. At first I felt conflict from shutting down my shop, thinking I should have toughed it out, but after watching quite a few similar videos about the problems with Etsy right now, I am so glad I did. I haven't started up another shop yet and I am still exploring that and making new art items while I figure it out. Thanks for sharing.
I had a random 3 mnth hold by Etsy. I wonder if they just have bots doing this for audit reasons? The only useful info I've ever obtained is from the community boards, trying to contact them is pointless. Luckily I just have a hobby business. It's turning into aliexpress/dropship central
That’s a good point, it may be an audit thing but it just has such crazy consequences 😭 and to do that for established sellers is so confusing. Wouldn’t you want to audit new sellers? 😭 and yes to the Ali express comparison 💔 there are so many good sellers on there with quality stuff and they’re being overshadowed, it’s sad. 😭
Etsy, Amazon and many other platforms do nothing else than stealing other people's work.
Etsy is just a bad bad joke!
Glad you left Etsy
My shop name had my actual name “Zhane “ in it my name is based on a Russian name but there’s also a hip hop group named Zhané. So Etsy barred my shop after years of having one for copyright infringement .
Noooo I’m so sorry 😭
I close my shop as well. Experience the same thing in December 2023. As a star seller with 5 star reviews & excellent customer reviews. Truly disappointed.
Yeah....their customer service is non-existent and all they do is direct you to the help center. I'm gonna get my own website going and drop them like a bad habit. FU Etsy!
I wish you the best of luck! 🙏
I'm focusing on my own brand on Shopify
Couldn't agree more! I am so sorry to hear about your issues!!! Having a hold like that put on your account could easily drive a small business under! I have had MANY issues with them. And it makes me incredibly upset that they don't stay out of my business! All of their rules and regulations for handmade are truly ridiculous! I don't make product but I do have unique and exclusive candle making and soap supplies that take me a ton of time and effort to have created for me. My biggest issue is losing money with their "off-site" advertising! For some of my products it would cost me more to sell the products that I would make! Who in the world would want to lose money by being forced to do "off-site" advertising. Which you can't opt-out! And anyone saying "just leave", it isn't that easy as it takes HOURS and hours to set up the store. I would never relay on ETSY alone!
Etsy is hot garbage
Even yt threatened me to delete my account over comments- I’ve learned a big lesson lately: if it’s not your land, don’t farm it.
I learned a long time ago that you can not control what you do not own.