Etsy Closed My Shop Part 200

OK, that's an exaggeration, but apparently Etsy did another big Friday sweep and once again I received emails from sellers wanting to know what to do. So again I post my piece of mind.

Etsy TOU's or Terms of Use are so all encompassing that every seller is probably in violation of something. For instance, if you have collaborative work with any other Etsy seller and you don't have the link to that shop on you shop, If you say ANYTHING negative about Etsy on a public venue (believe me, they are watching), and of course if your items are in handmade and don't look handmade. One of the most common reason's for having a shop shut down is copyright infringement. If you want to sell on Etsy, only sell "fan art" that is "inspired by" the genre you are representing. The don't seem to understand the law on reconstructing materials either via the First Sale Doctrine. But that's another long story.

Point is, they can find a number of valid reason's to close your shop. Sometimes you can get it reopened, sometimes not. I think it depends on how penitent you are. Do you grovel, or are you snippy and snide? And I also think it helps to have had white backgrounds. The have a preference for shops that display works on white backgrounds. Look at the front page, right now, go.

Do they need your shop? No, not anymore, they have thousands of shops. Your 3.5% doesn't mean much to them anymore. Even if your sales mean food on the table for your family. That's what happened to my daughter, because she was supporting her family on the money she made on Etsy. Her 3.5% was about $90 a month, she was doing very well and they still didn't care.There is no Heart in Etsy.

The first thing I suggest to anyone selling online at any venue is to get a web page. You can get free ones. weebly.com has free sites. Buy your domain name someplace cheap and buy a site if you can. Put that address on your business cards and link your "shop" page directly to your selling site. That way if anything happens to your site, your buyers will ALWAYS know where to find you.

Don't think you're immune either. I've had friends who have had their images stolen by off shore factories and posted online. These are honest shops who have had their copyright infringed on, and Etsy forced them to prove that their merchandise was handmade. DO NOT think that a watermark will save you. They are easily removed with Photoshop. I've seen the images that prove it.

And remember, if you do get your shop closed, you can contact me through this blog. At least I can hold your hand and lend a shoulder.