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...no really. Because my customers frequently ask me questions about items by item/listing number, because they think they're being articulate/helpful when they do that. So then, to answer their damn question I have to click on each item in my shop to compare numbers to figure out which item they're talking about. It's great. Especially during the busiest seasons of the year, when I barely have enough time to check and respond to convos and emails, nevermind click on each item to try to figure out which one they're talking about. And I relist frequently, so it's not like I can just make a master reference list for myself.
Forgive me, perhaps there's some obvious solution to this issue I haven't found yet...if not...then let's consider this my BITCH for the day. Now pardon me as I go back to my shop and click through items to match the item numbers up to the convos I have to answer...
Hear hear! A worthy bitch indeed! Brilliant!
I have always pondered myself was we can't have buyer email addresses linked on the receipt page, and the the fact it is not linked is a massive oversight. I find I have to go to four pages and do a convo search to fully double check every order in addition to a paypal buyer notes check. Ridiculous. It takes sometimes 10 minutes to just check over one order thoroughly.
20 Comments:
This is an EXCELLENT point--I ask myself why we can't search by this pretty much daily. Sometimes I am completely defeated and have to email the buyer for more information, which is just embarrassing, since they've given me the damn number already. I don't blame them for thinking I'm a flake.
I feel similarly about the lack of ability to search my transactions. It drives me absolutely nuts.
There is a workaround for this problem, it's not a search but it is a way to find any item by number. Just use the url
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=xxxxxxx
and replace the x's with the listing number supplied by the buyer.
paste that url into your browser and click "go".
It's more work than a search but less work than clicking all your items to find a matching number.
for sold items the url is
http://www.etsy.com/view_transaction.php?transaction_id=xxxxxxx
replace x's with transaction ID number.
I am not saying a search by item number is not needed, and in fact it would be super easy to program, so I don't know why they don't do it... But there is a workaround for now.
Thanks for the workaround eclipse, I've wondered about this...and while I'd love an actual solution, you've at least addressed the immediate issue of saving people's sanity, lol...
the workaround is very nice, but it's shouldn't be needed. It should have been included in the "better" search :(
Exactly, kittenspawn. Providing a workaround just makes it easier for Admin to point and say "See? There's a way to do it!" and end up not making it more efficient for ALL of the users.
I just never understood what the point of the item numbers were except for that cute little thing in the chatrooms where you can display items on the right hand side of the window.
I keep track of my items in a completely different way..
This blog is strange.
You don't HAVE to sell on Etsy.
If you hate it so much, leave.
There are plenty other things you could be doing with your time.
Yes! This blog IS strange--and I love it!
What's even sillier is that each listing has an item number, then when it's sold BOOM item number is gone and it is replaced by a totall different "transaction number."
There is one time when a number is useful. When buyer doesn't pay, and I have to send a Paypal invoice, it's good to use a reference number (because item titles are sometimes similar).
"This blog is strange.
You don't HAVE to sell on Etsy.
If you hate it so much, leave.
There are plenty other things you could be doing with your time."
-------------------
If this blog is so strange why are YOU wasting YOUR time on it. You should take your own advice. I guess you don't have anything better to do with your time either huh.
Oops, I didn't realize that was a little garbage can, and accidentally erasde my own post!
To the first poster with the moniker anonymous: I don't think anyone reading or posting in this blog is oblivious to the fact that selling on Etsy is a choice. Personally I love the opportunity that Etsy provides to handcrafters, and there's no other venue like it. That doesn't mean it's perfect or that some features etc couldn't be improved. Constructive criticism makes the world a better place :)
Well said, and thanks eclipse for posting the workaround.
Why is there always someone complaining about us complaining about Etsy.
I think it is our right to get frustrated with the way things work, and since we (well I can't speak for all of us) don't need to get our proverbial heads chopped off on Etsy, we should have a place to vent frustrations. If you don't like it then don't read this blog.
Dear Anon #1 - Obviously your comprehension skills are less than stellar, since you didn't read the manifesto, which points at everything wrong with Etsy.
And you didn't read our mission statement.
Why are YOU here if you hate US so?
Wow--thanks for that workaround, eclipse. I honestly never thought of that!
LOL wow...when someone invests time, energy, and money into a place they are supposed to just leave it when things go south. Anon #1 must be one of those people that got divorced over the trash not being taken out and the dishes not getting done instead of working to make the chores more equal.
And thanks for the tip eclipse.
Anon #1
No we don't HAVE to sell on Etsy. But Etsy is a great place to sell.
However, Etsy has something known as PROBLEMS. Here at Etsy Bitch, we like to bring those PROBLEMS to everyone's attention witchout having certain vindictive and childish members of Etsy Admin coming after us because we're seen as being "grumpy haters".
That's why you don't see our actual identities. Having your shop brickwalled because you're not perceived as a Etsy Cheerleader and because you have (GASP!) a dissenting opinion is reason enough.
The listing numbers are chronological and are used in the display of items in the search results, time machine, categories, etc. So they are used by backend Etsy features, they are just not much use to us as sellers.
The transaction numbers are also chronological so they determine placement in time machine just sold and in pounce.
It would actually be pretty easy for a third party like bestysearch or majaba to make a little widget that "searches" by listing or transaction number. It's not really a search it's just a script for plugging the variable number into the url. It could easily be done from an off-etsy website, without accessing any API feeds like etsytools did.
(when I say "easy", I mean easier than the tools Dingo and Juln have already made, but not easy enough for me to do. LOL)
Complaining about where you work is as American as apple pie (substitute appropriate metaphor for your own country). Without this god-given right, we'd all go home and kill our spouses.
Like eclipse, I have a ridiculous amount of shortcuts and workarounds because Etsy can't (or chooses not to) provide the most basic tools for their sellers.
Every programmer at Etsy should be required to run a high-volume selling shop on their site for a week. Perhaps then they'll see how badly the boring, unexciting, flashless features are desperately needed. Although, who wants to work on features that are boring, unexciting & without flash?
Apparently it's beneath them --- or maybe they just don't know how?
Workarounds, silly shortcuts are to be expected --- when a site is 6 months old or in beta. Etsy should be out of diapers by now and wearing big boy pants.
A seller should be able to Search by item numbers, customer names on receipts, titles of sold items and the full shipping charge should be tallied on the receipt, not just itemized.
Aren't these basic?
Thanks for posting that workaround, eclipse. That's the one I use, myself, when I need to check a listing by item number.
But it's odd, isn't it, that we're still relying so much on workarounds when this site is no longer (presumably) in beta. Although frankly, given the problems with buggy code, I think we ARE still in beta, but Etsy just won't admit it.
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