Etsy announced this week that they are offering a Free Shipping Guarantee on orders $35 and over for U.S. customers. If you opt-in, your listings will appear higher in search results. The reasoning behind this is that customers expect free shipping and more customers will shop on Etsy if free shipping is available. There’s a lot of passionate feelings over this topic. A lot of Etsy sellers feel they are being punished if they are unable to or don’t want to offer free shipping.

My first reaction was anger because I don’t like Etsy telling me how to run my shop. I don’t feel like Etsy can be run like Amazon or other big box stores. Etsy provides a platform for millions of people who might not otherwise be able to own a business. It also provides customers with millions of products that can’t be found anywhere else. Each of those sellers has a unique setup, product, location, and obstacles to overcome. That makes buying from an Etsy seller its own unique experience. You’re not ordering something mass produced from a warehouse, you’re ordering something special from an individual who poured their heart and soul into it. I love it!

For those sellers who are hurt or have to close shop over this, I’m sorry. I hate that for you. I think it’s unfair that free shipping items are placed higher in search results. Customers can use the filter to select free shipping, so there’s no need to lower a shop’s search results. I also think it’s unfair to the customer. Some customers are ok paying extra in shipping costs to get exactly what they want. Their selection is limited when Etsy sets these types of filters.

At the same time, Etsy is its own business. As Etsy grows, it needs to provide uniformity across shops so that customers know what to expect. When you own a business, you don’t let your employees do whatever they want. You may like and care about your employees as the wonderful people they are, but ultimately you need to hire and fire based on business operations. It’s not personal, it’s necessary for survival. Etsy can’t and shouldn’t give special care to every shop owner. Etsy doesn’t exist just for shop owners. It exists to make money providing a service to others, including the customers. If you don’t like that, that’s fine, but don’t kid yourself that it’s anything else. This is how all businesses operate.

Businesses constantly need to make changes to adapt to shifting market trends. This is true whether you are an Etsy seller, an online retailer, or a brick and mortar shop. Right now, customer demand is for free shipping. Shipping is seen more and more like an annoying extra fee. I’ve abandoned carts because of shipping costs, so I know other people do it as well. No one likes surprise costs. I get it. Etsy made a choice. Is it the right one? I don’t know, but now as your own personal business owner, it’s your choice how to respond to the demand for free shipping. You can continue to build your brand with Etsy with or without free shipping, build your brand elsewhere, or close shop.

As an Etsy seller, what is good for Etsy is generally good for me. I don’t agree with every decision or change Etsy has made, but overall Etsy has worked out well. I’m staying loyal, and I’ll go along with this choice to see how this plays out. If free shipping brings in more customers as promised, I can make up any shipping losses with an increase in volume. This could potentially be a great thing. If it fails, then I hope Etsy learns from its mistakes and keeps working to improve.

Cari
www.etsy.com/shop/embervalley
embervalley@hotmail.com