Reading time: 3 minutes
IMPORTANT: Etsy has shut down the feedback service that eRank, KarenCheck, and other sites used to power this extremely useful feature. We have no easy way to protect you from scammers anymore. If you want this feature to return, we recommend you contact Etsy directly via Twitter and LinkedIn and ask them to protect sellers from scammers by restoring the feedback API.
We are keeping the original page content below so you understand what you are missing out on.
There’s a new feature on your eRank Dashboard: the Bad Buyer Check! This gives you a handy way to check a buyer’s feedback history on Etsy. Ever encounter a shopper that gave you a bad feeling in your gut? Has it made you worry about how difficult a customer they might be?
Now you can just type the shopper’s Etsy user name into the box on your Dashboard and hit submit. eRank will go find all* this buyer’s Etsy feedback, and produce a report. It’s broken down by positive, neutral or negative, alongside any comments the buyer submitted.
* Note: if the customer has opted to keep their Etsy feedback private, you will not be able to see it.
Those comments can be really helpful. For example, this one (below) when the buyer didn’t hear from the seller for two weeks. The buyer ended up having to file a case with Etsy against the shop.
It’s up to you to decide whether this was fair, or just their side of the story. Either way, when you see a comment like this, you might want to be extra sure to reply to this customer extra quickly!
Even with positive feedback like the one below (all the way at the end, dated 2020-07-31), you can read between the lines. “… I purchased 4 different masks and love them all except the lining inside sticks to your nose and mouth …” (italics added). You can see this buyer is quite particular but when they’re satisfied, they might end up becoming a return customer. And you can see this customer is the type who enjoys receiving “bonus” gifts added to their parcel. (A surprising number don’t!) So, you can glean truly valuable insights into what your customer likes and does not.
Or it could be that the bad feeling you got in your gut was correct, and you might want to politely decline the sale.
We hope you love this new feature and it helps set your mind at ease for your customers. We’d love to hear how this helps you. Join us in our private eRank community on Facebook!
Some Q&As we’ve collected from our users so far
Q: Why can’t I access the Bad Buyer Check anymore?
Etsy removed the feedback API that sites like eRank and KarenCheck used to help protect you from scammers. We strongly recommend you contact Etsy directly on Twitter and LinkedIn to ask them to restore the feedback service that eRank and KarenCheck used to protect you.
Q: I’ve tried to check a few customers’ feedback who previously rated my shop but it says “no data available in table.”
A: If the buyers have their feedback set to private, their feedback won’t show.
Q: Only one out of three of the names I searched came up with data. I also searched my own name, the data came up wasn’t from me.
A: Be sure you are using the customer’s Etsy member ID. You can find that at the bottom of their Etsy order in the Questions section. Their Etsy member ID will be right above the orange “send them a convo” area.
Or you can visit a customer’s profile and look in the URL address. Their Etsy member ID will be right after “people/”. Copy what you see after https://www.etsy.com/people/
Q: Where in eRank can I find this tool? I looked and it wasn’t on my Dashboard.
A: Good news! This feature was initially rolled out as a paid-plan exclusive. We are pleased to announce that it is now available for all eRank members (yay).
RESOURCES
This article is based on a video on eRank’s YouTube channel. The video is called: “Is Your Etsy Customer Trying to SCAM You?”