How I Got Suspended From Etsy
Oh boy, For those of you that read my stuff often, you are probably rolling your eyes.
Amazon, Target, Ebay, Redbubble and now Etsy....
I swear I don't break the rules on purpose!
For some reason, I'm good at getting myself into trouble. It's one of the harder things about being self-employed. Your doing well, Your growing. And all the sudden you find out your banned Or suspended because you broke a rule. Back when I had a job, I was Miss. Goodie goodie two shoes who NEVER broke the rules.
What happened?
I'm so embarrassed. I had this stupid idea...
So someone told me that if you get more "favorites." You'll get more exposure on your Etsy listings. So naturally, I wanted to get more "favorites."
So I went to the shady site "Fiverr" to see what they could do for me!
I love Etsy! But I neglected to build it up Because I was focused on my other platforms. As a coloring book artist. I can offer digital coloring pages, Which is an effortless way for me to make money, So I decided that this was the year that I would push to build traction on my account.
JUST BECAUSE IT'S ON FIVERR DOESN'T MEAN IT'S OKAY!
JUST BECAUSE IT'S ON FIVERR DOESN'T MEAN IT'S OKAY!
JUST BECAUSE IT'S ON FIVERR DOESN'T MEAN IT'S OKAY!
I just REALLY need to drill that into my brain. I did another very bad thing when I started publishing books, Which I'll probably talk about later. Spoiler: DO NOT DO WHAT I DID!
Unless your goal is to get yourself in trouble!
Cough
So I went to Fiverr to get more "favorites" I figured I wasn't hurting anything. I'm not buying reviews, and I'm not forcing anyone to buy my products.
I purchased a 5.00 Gig. For 300 favorites, What a great deal I thought.
My Etsy account blew up with favorites, And I was excited...
"Maybe I'll get sales now," I thought.
Wrong!
Etsy suspended my account, After reviewing their guidelines, I Was still lost. I started to assume it was because I was posting sweary color pages and I forgot to add the "mature" tag.
I messaged customer service and let them know that I would add the "mature" tag immediately.
That's when they were super nice and told me it's because I made multiple accounts and was giving myself favorites.
I guess my account looked fishy all the sudden. I can't blame them.
Even though I wasn't making multiple accounts.
I know what I did.
They know somewhat what I did.
And I regret it!
They were kind enough to give me another chance, Which I am so grateful for. So this post is to let you know, DON'T MAKE STUPID CHOICE LIKE THAT!
Wow... I am educating people with all the silly mistakes I'm making! Lol
Make sure to read the rules of the site, even if you "think" you know. You may not know. I'm starting to realize I've gotten in trouble Sooooo many times for this. I need to just take ten minutes and look at the rules.
When In Doubt Ask.
Ask them, Most websites these days like it when you are upfront and honest. If you explain to them what you plan to do, And flat out ask if it's allowed. Often they'll tell you.
Be nice.
I feel like part of the reason I get extra chances is because I'm nice. Remember the people you talk to don't OWN the site. They are merely employees. They have their rules laid out where you can see them, And your expected to follow them. Your in the wrong! Not them. If they give you a second chance, Be grateful, because sometimes they probably don't even have to give it to you.
To Etsy If you don't like that I posted this, Please let me know! I'll remove it immediately. Thank you!
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How do we know now you told us that these 1000 followers aren't all fake? :P but seriously, paying people to upvote or favourite things is a shady business. You were right to question it, if you're willing to spend money on marketing you should do it legitimately through ads or some other form of promoted material so people can look you up. If you're on a popular platform you could well end up getting the exact same results rather than using somebodies' dodgy bot service.
The fuck were you thinking? lol :P Anyway, people on the internet aren't all that stupid, even I can read through an account history and easily figure out who the bots are, you should see the stuff people get up to on reddit.
Hahah! I agree with you completely. It was a very stupid move.
I should of done paid advertising, Or heck. Just listed more stuff.
Oh man... I'm sorry.
Etsy, especially, are sticklers on their no spam/no purchased followers rules. As a 20-year eBay veteran (not quite as long on Etsy) I've seen lots of people lose themselves to these things. Aside from which, Fiverr is a pit of shady and dodgy deals.
There's really no substitute for slow "organic" growth on these sites... there are no shortcuts, I'm afraid. I hope you got (or will get) it all sorted out so your accounts can be reinstated.
Agreed! I've been able to get myself back on Ebay too, And I've been extremely careful to do everything as I'm supposed to.
And Now with Etsy I'm going to make sure I'm very careful and yes, Grow organically. Which I have a lot of content I haven't added on it yet. So I feel that will help better than buying favorites ever will.
I have found Etsy to be really seller friendly and forgiving. I love how they are a platform for the individual! It's a great place for make a living for the creative entrepreneur! There is no easy way to success, just a lot of falling down and getting back up.
Glad you got your account back.
Me too! I had a mini heart attack. I really want to keep my account.
we all make mistakes :)
True :) Thats why It makes me sad when websites aren't whilling to give people a second chance.
Agreed. :)
:)
reminds me of my 2000+ upvote posts with 0 payout :D
Whaaaa O.o Did you opt for a 0 payout?
No, it's just the almighty power of bot-farms.
What!!! How did that happen.
Don't know. Must have catched a bot flu or something. If you scroll through my posts there are some with 2000+ upvotes.
Wow!!! That is a huge number :( Thats sad you didnt get your payout
etsy blows pretty much, they have odd team - i had friend suspended bcause they thought he doesnt know stuff with his hands.. which he does.
Ugh That sounds annoying. I'm surprised they are letting me sell digital versions of my coloring pages. I wont' say anything bad about Etsy though, I Heard you can get in trouble for that. I also haven't been on there long.
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Thank you
I know people always try this type of thing on YouTube also and it never ends well lol. Glad you learned your lesson and got to keep your account. YT isn't as forgiving from what I hear.
Yikes! thats good to know for future reference lol.