Etsy letter from CEO 2-24-22. Merged threads Etsy Fees go up.

[TallTayl]

Bottom line to us, fee increase from 5% to 6.5% beginning 4-11-2022

 

https://www.etsy.com/seller-handbook/article/our-continuing-investment-in-etsys/1074014040185

 

At Etsy, we’re focused on building a marketplace that allows sellers like you to turn your creativity and passions into real, money-making businesses. Last year, active sellers increased their sales by 23% on average compared to 2019*, and in 2021 alone, we showed more than 90 million active buyers worldwide that there’s an alternative to big-box, automated shopping. 

Together, we’ve made Etsy the global marketplace for unique and creative goods. 

What’s changing

We plan to make significant investments in marketing, seller tools, and creating a world-class customer experience so we can continue this tremendous growth. To support this goal, on April 11 we will increase our current 5% transaction fee to 6.5%. 

This change will allow us to make improvements in three key areas: 

• Bringing more buyers to Etsy: Last year, we spent nearly $600 million on marketing. This year we’ll be investing even more, including the TV commercials, influencers and tastemakers, billboards, podcast advertising, and email marketing that bring new buyers to Etsy.

• The support you need: We’ll grow our support team by more than 20% this year so you can get help more quickly and easily, including faster email responses, expanded access to live chat, and prioritization of your most urgent requests. 

• Keeping Etsy unique: We’ll build on last year’s roughly $40 million investment in the teams and technology that help make our marketplace a safe and secure destination for handmade, vintage, and special items. This year we’ll expand our efforts to remove listings that don't meet our policies and help you resolve issues with buyers. 

We’ll also make significant investments in services and tools that will make it easier and smoother to grow your business. For instance, we’ll be launching a new seller app with enhanced features that make it easy for you to manage your orders, connect with buyers, and understand how your business is doing.

These are some of the great things we’ll invest in to keep Etsy a beloved, trusted, and growing marketplace. We don’t take fee changes lightly, and we believe that these investments will enable Etsy, and our seller community, to continue to grow.

Thank you for making Etsy a one-of-a-kind marketplace.

Josh Silverman 

CEO, Etsy

Have questions? We’ve got answers.

Why are you increasing the transaction fee?

We believe this change will help us make big investments toward bringing even more buyers to Etsy, building the tools and services that help our sellers manage and grow their shops, and expanding the technology and teams that keep Etsy a safe and secure destination for handmade, vintage, and special items.

How does Etsy’s transaction fee work?

When you make a sale on Etsy, you pay a transaction fee that’s applied to the total order amount. This applies to the total cost of the item, including shipping and gift wrap (if you charge your customers for those). Learn more about fees on Etsy here and see our updated Fees and Payments policy here. 

Is there anything I need to do to my shop or listings following this change?

No, you don’t need to take any action. This change will happen automatically on April 11, 2022. 

Where can I stay up to date about changes at Etsy?

We’ll always make sure to keep you up to date about important changes that could affect your business. Check out the Site Updates section in the Seller Handbook for important news and announcements about new features and tools.

You can find ongoing education, like top trends and marketplace insights, in our Seller Handbook and by following our Etsy Success programming in the Forums and via our podcast. 

How can I share my feedback on these updates?

We’d love to hear your thoughts on ways we can continue to invest in your shop’s success. Please share your ideas in this survey. 

*Based on internal analysis of sales data of active sellers over a 12 month period, as of 12/31/19 and 12/31/2021.

 

[NightLight]

Investing in Etsy’s growth

We plan to make significant investments in marketing, seller tools, and creating a world-class customer experience so we can continue our tremendous growth. To support this goal, on April 11 we will increase our current 5% transaction fee to 6.5%.

Learn moreDismiss

[SageSlowdive]

Oh for gods sake...they have made this SO HARD to continue with them.

[asr]

I am going to have to raise my prices.

 

I am not sure how more marketing really is needed...and very skeptical they really want to go after listings that don't meet the vintage or handmade criteria. 

[TallTayl]

As angry as everyone is, Etsy can still be a very effective marketing tool. Ebay and Amazon fees are still higher by comparison, with often worse rules for sellers. 
 

I’m annoyed, but turning that into strategy to grow in 2022. etsy has tens of millions of cultivated loyal buyers built in to the platform. that assembly would be much more expensive for us to attract on our own. Keeping a presence on Etsy is a must for my shop since I don’t do in-person events any more. Etsy reaches millions of people that would never have walked into “all” in-person events in the first place. 
 

Many people have announced they will dump Etsy in favor of Shopify. Remember, Shopify is just a blank slate seller tool - a host for individual web sites - not a “marketplace” for customers. It costs time and money to market individual sites since buyers don’t, “ go to shopify” to purchase gifts. They go to Etsy like they see on tv  commercials. typing Shopify.com does not lead to a cute kitschy place to search for wax melts, or whatever your enterprise offers. Opening a Shopify site is a great idea, sure, but comes with its own set of costs to compete with Etsy shops.

others have announced moving to Facebook marketplace. Or Instagram. Super. both will require tailoring marketing to reach your particular set of ideal customers. All are good strategies combined to cast that net far and wide. All take time to nurture and can pay off in excellent ways.
 

Maybe consider keeping your flagship items on Etsy so they appear in a Google search.  Along with Etsy, manage your own slick site with a blog, and snazzy pics to give confidence to, and entice your customers to purchase directly from you.  I see loads of bigger sellers using Amazon to the same end. It helps you get found in an endless sea of other shops.
 

definitely raise prices. We need to in order to remain profitable enough to continue. It is a marketing expense.

[karinz40]

I was  just looking into the Etsy fees and they seem a little higher than Ebay.

[NightLight]

Multiple streams of income. Not one of these marketplaces is perfect. If one website goes down, you have backup.

ask me how I know.

[Laura C]

On 2/25/2022 at 10:10 AM, TallTayl said:

Many people have announced they will dump Etsy in favor of Shopify. Remember, Shopify is just a blank slate seller tool - a host for individual web sites - not a “marketplace” for customers. It costs time and money to market individual sites since buyers don’t, “ go to shopify” to purchase gifts. They go to Etsy like they see on tv  commercials. typing Shopify.com does not lead to a cute kitschy place to search for wax melts, or whatever your enterprise offers. Opening a Shopify site is a great idea, sure, but comes with its own set of costs to compete with Etsy shops.

others have announced moving to Facebook marketplace. Or Instagram. Super. both will require tailoring marketing to reach your particular set of ideal customers. All are good strategies combined to cast that net far and wide. All take time to nurture and can pay off in excellent ways.

 

Exactly, Etsy and Shopify are not alike. Like you said Shopify is not a marketplace but a website host with lots of bells and whistles I guess. I've never really looked into Shopify. For me, I don't want anything to do with Facebook or Instagram and will seek other alternatives. I hate dealing with Amazon but they also have built-in traffic that is ready to make purchases. I hate monopolies. 😒

Edited February 27, 2022 by Laura C

[TallTayl]

On 2/25/2022 at 8:30 PM, karinz40 said:

I was  just looking into the Etsy fees and they seem a little higher than Ebay.

When I last sold on eBay, the base commission was 11.5% for candles. Have not looked lately.

[TallTayl]

1 hour ago, Laura C said:

 

Exactly, Etsy and Shopify are not alike. Like you said Shopify is not a marketplace but a website host with lots of bells and whistles I guess. I've never really looked into Shopify. For me, I don't want anything to do with Facebook or Instagram and will seek other alternatives. I hate dealing with Amazon but they also have built-in traffic that is ready to make purchases. I hate monopolies. 😒

I’m with you. Facebook does not seem to attract my target market. Instagram has possibilities. YouTube has been  pretty far out of my comfort zone.

 

for the little work I do on Etsy fees don’t really bother me any more.  It’s cheaper than Google ads in the long run, and much cheaper/easier than craft shows and fairs. My summer Faire required prepayment of 10% commission of a set sales figure before you could get your contract, then additional weekly commission payments once your sales exceeded that first amount. plus they demanded tens of thousands of $ investment in buildings, etc to come back if you liked having a shop there - in addition to time requirements where shop owners HAD to be there.

 

I chose big commerce over Shopify and really like it.  The SEO is comparable to what Etsy can do. BC just costs my time and effort, both of which are expensive to me. time is my most limited and valuable resource. I tend to be stingy with it these days, preferring to spend it on things I truly enjoy.
 

I definitely keep listings of my most popular items on Etsy so I show up in both places.  Etsy shops with some history legitimize our own sites. Seems to give confidence to new customers to see us on etsy with all of the related sales and reviews. Amazon would be comparable, but I want nothing to do with Amazon. 

 

[SageSlowdive]

On 2/27/2022 at 3:04 PM, TallTayl said:

I’m with you. Facebook does not seem to attract my target market. Instagram has possibilities. YouTube has been  pretty far out of my comfort zone.

 

for the little work I do on Etsy fees don’t really bother me any more.  It’s cheaper than Google ads in the long run, and much cheaper/easier than craft shows and fairs. My summer Faire required prepayment of 10% commission of a set sales figure before you could get your contract, then additional weekly commission payments once your sales exceeded that first amount. plus they demanded tens of thousands of $ investment in buildings, etc to come back if you liked having a shop there - in addition to time requirements where shop owners HAD to be there.

 

I chose big commerce over Shopify and really like it.  The SEO is comparable to what Etsy can do. BC just costs my time and effort, both of which are expensive to me. time is my most limited and valuable resource. I tend to be stingy with it these days, preferring to spend it on things I truly enjoy.
 

I definitely keep listings of my most popular items on Etsy so I show up in both places.  Etsy shops with some history legitimize our own sites. Seems to give confidence to new customers to see us on etsy with all of the related sales and reviews. Amazon would be comparable, but I want nothing to do with Amazon. 

 

Hi TallTayl, just curious what is your Etsy shop? 

[TallTayl]

11 hours ago, SageSlowdive said:

Hi TallTayl, just curious what is your Etsy shop? 

I’ll pm to you. 

[SageSlowdive]

On 3/6/2022 at 9:39 AM, TallTayl said:

I’ll pm to you. 

Thank you! I'm trying to round out the edges of mine so I need help from a professional lol.

[TallTayl]

8 hours ago, SageSlowdive said:

Thank you! I'm trying to round out the edges of mine so I need help from a professional lol.

I’m sure your shop is wonderful.  Mine is pretty bare right now. Trying to decide what to continue with for 2022, then photographing all new sets of listings…. Man it takes so much time. I get burned out quickly.