Etsy sellers launch a week-long strike over increased fees was written by Jaclyn Diaz and reported today at NPR.org. Many sellers have launched a week-long protest by closing their shops and other actions. This is in response to the recent in a long line of fee increases announced by CEO Josh Silverman. Seems like 59,000+ shop owners have signed the petition. A quick web search will show results for strikes during each of the past few years.
I don't feel that Etsy morale will improve for disenchanted handmades sellers. Somewhere along the way, during the past 12-15 years, Etsy management felt that to stay afloat they had to expand away from pure handmade support. They added a complicated fee system and have raised prices so often and by such a high percentage that it has crushed not only the bottom lines but the spirits of many handmade sellers. I closed my shops at Etsy a couple of years ago but not because of changes at the site. Sometimes I miss being there. It's at times like this that I'm glad I left though, which makes me feel sad. It was exciting to be a part of Etsy, back then.
Dwanda,
Artfire and others folded and it seems like Etsy is having to take drastic steps
every year to remain viable. These decisions have invited in questionable resellers and consistently driven away Etsy creatives. I was at Zibbet when years ago there was a mass exodus of
Etsy sellers to that selling venue in response to insufferable changes.
Most of them returned to Etsy when Zibbet did not deliver what they were
expecting. Sellers need to seriously ask themselves if any selling website will fulfill their expectations. If not, what is the best course of action for their brands?
While
the popularity of Etsy seems bleak for many, others are
realizing what I had begun to feel some time ago. The best business
practice for the future of creating and making is to learn how to market
and sell from your own web spaces. There are still a few venues left
where the income of the creative is not gouged. One of them is Payhip. Another is Meylah. Find Meylah store setup info here.
Learning
to self-promote and sell from our own blogs and online shops will
provide peace of mind to start, which will go a long way in generating
income. It is difficult to focus on creating good products and
effectively marketing them when there is misery about the selling
platform and constant fear of what will come next. It can be bad for the creative psyche to be in an atmosphere that has become increasingly riddled with controversy.
