Etsy Just Suspended Another Shop
This week another member of the Pink Gorilla Collective had their Etsy shop suspended.
No warning. No explanation. Just suspended.
Now before everyone jumps on the "Etsy is awful" bandwagon, let's be fair. Etsy has helped thousands of creatives build amazing businesses and reach customers they would never have found on their own. I still think it's a brilliant platform.
But here's the bit we all need to remember.
It's their platform, not yours.
You don't own it. You don't make the rules. And if something unusual happens on your account, whether it's changing your bank details, bulk editing listings, connecting a new app or something else that AI decides looks suspicious, your shop can suddenly come under review.
That doesn't mean you've done anything wrong. It just means you're building your business on someone else's land.
Imagine if you had a physical shop and one morning you turned up to find the doors locked. You couldn't get in, you couldn't speak to your customers and you had no idea when you'd be back open. That's how it feels when your online shop disappears overnight.
This is why I bang on so much about having your own website.
Your website is yours. You own the customer journey. You own your branding. You own your email list. No algorithm can suddenly decide people can't find you anymore and no marketplace can stop you talking to your customers.
I'm not saying leave Etsy. Far from it. Use Etsy. Use Folksy. Use Shopify. Sell at markets. Sell on social media. Sell wherever your customers are.
Just don't put all your eggs in one basket.
If Etsy disappeared tomorrow, would your business survive?
If the answer is no, that's where I'd be putting my energy over the next few months.
The other thing I'd start doing today is building an email list. It's probably the most valuable thing you'll ever own in your business. Social media changes. Algorithms change. Marketplaces change. But if you've got a list of customers who have chosen to hear from you, you've always got a way of reaching them.
I know websites can feel overwhelming, especially if tech isn't your thing, but honestly, having your own little corner of the internet has never been more important than it is now.
Use Etsy for what it's brilliant at: getting found by new customers. Then give those customers somewhere that's yours to come back to.
Because at the end of the day, you're not just trying to make sales this week. You're trying to build a business that's still here in five, ten or twenty years' time.
Don't build your dream on borrowed ground.
Same person
New Chapter x