I have decided not to visit the Talk Folksy forums any more. I find it a toxic environment and not a pleasant place to be, despite being touted as friendly and supportive. The majority of posters are lovely but there is an element who are not and I’m sick of the negativity they promote. I would have reported the issue to the Mods instead of making this post but I can’t find a way to do so, other than “flag a toxic post and if enough others do the same it might get looked at” (in the FAQs).
I am keeping my shop open and restocking it but will treat it as if it is my website - I will promote my shop and the platform on social media but will not take part in the forums in any way. Life is too short for nasty people who put others down to build themselves up.
I wish everyone success with their shops and hope sales pick up for everyone very soon. There are some very talented and clever people on this platform, please don’t let anyone try to tell you otherwise.
We’re so sorry you feel that way about our forum, but understand your feelings and this is something we’re currently looking into as a team.
I’ve privately replied to you, but just to confirm to everyone else, the Folksy team will review all posts that have been flagged, rather than just those that have got a certain number of flags. The flagging system will allow you to give more detail if you select the option for something else, but if you find this isn’t enough (or you want to report something more generally than one specific post) you can email the support team (support@folksy.co.uk) or send a message to me on here to make sure we’re aware of the issue.
Good luck with your shop Heather and we hope we can return the forum back to the pleasant place we know it can be.
I am sad you have been made to feel like this Heather @RiverfallJewellery and it should remind us all to be mindful during our discussions. This forum is usually such a nice place to come for information and support, but sometimes the element of negativity is quite draining. If ever I start thinking ‘oh here we go again, same old moans and groans’ or feel reluctant to post a reply because of the way the conversation is going, I’ll go away until it settles down. I hope you will pop back now and then to keep an eye on what’s going on .
I’m sorry you’re going. I enjoyed reading your posts in several threads, you always gave a good debate and had very valid points. I do hope you return.
I absolutely agree with Amanda @plumporridge, I too am sad you’re leaving. I have read a few threads and felt that they’ve taken a bad turn and become very negative and aimed very personally at individuals. If this happens I stop reading and move on. We should all be mindful of the impact of what we say here as everyone is coming from different places with different life experiences.
I hope that you will come back and join us when you’re ready x
It’s a shame you are leaving Heather. I do sometimes think with text things can be read as they maybe wern’t intended, it’s not always easy to know how someone is feeling when writing replies to threads and often things can be misinterpreted and come across negative when perhaps they arn’t meant to be.
Sometimes there are negativities, but there’s also good advice on here and we can choose which threads we want to be part of. Some sellers just use the showcases for new items etc, could you just pop over for those as it’s nice to see what other people have listed and a shame to leave altogether.
Personally I think ‘toxic’ is a little strong, I like to think people offer their opinions and advice as well as they can and with good intentions, It’s sad to think you feel this strongly as I’m sure nobody would intentionally mean to upset anyone else on here. Hope to see you back again.
So sorry you are leaving the forums - I know it can be difficult sometimes and I hope you can put it behind you and that we see you again in the future. x
I feel the same and don’t engage in the forums anymore, I come on from time to time but mostly avoid. I’m sad you were made to feel this way but completely agree.
I wish you well Heather, @RiverfallJewellery
Speaking as a battle scarred veteran of the forum on the other side, Folksy’s forum is a comparatively wonderful, friendly place.
I do agree with @Bearlescent that written words can sometimes be misconstrued, for example the sentence,
“She said she stole some sugar.”
can have many different meanings depending on which word you put emphasis on.
That’s why they came up with emoticons.
I agree with some of the other comments on this thread. There’s a background radiation of drama and negativity here that can make the forum stressful and unpleasant at times. It’s unnecessary and also unprofessional behaviour.
I have to commend the Folksy team on the professionalism they show dealing with it, I’m sure it can’t be easy. Most of us already have issues in our life we’re dealing with, this kind of thing just grinds people down over time.
Well said about how Folksy deal with such situations, they are only human too so you’re right it can’t be easy. We have a great admin team, another reason to love Folksy.
I lived in the daily lister’s thread bubble for quite a while where everyone is so nice and helpful that it is sometimes noticeable on other threads that things are put a little more directly.
On the whole though, I still find Folksy forums a dream compared to many others!
I’m sorry you’ve had a bad experience but honestly it would be great if you stuck around and gave it another chance x
When I first joined the Folksy forums many years ago there were a couple of posters that I thought of as The Queen Bees - they were very direct in their responses and quite acerbic at times. Sometimes it felt like they were a bit contrary just for the sake of it. As I got to know their writing style, I realised that usually their responses weren’t really personally offensive but more that they were just very directly to the point. I almost left the forums but then I thought the good outweighed the bad (which it did) and it was actually a really useful tool - so I gave it another go - I’m so glad I did as I’ve made some really great friends and can always guarantee that someone will know the answer to any questions I post.
Yes, I think I understand why Heather (Riverfall Jewellery) personally I really think you should stick around and don’t allow a few to spoil it for the majority of very kind and helpful people and that includes you Folksy are keeping an eye on things which is good news
That’s very sad to hear. I’m newish here and have found others to be helpful and friendly, but if I had negative experiences, I wouldn’t hesitate to resign from the forum as I take things to heart, so I fully understand. I suppose you could always stay in touch by writing to individuals who have been supportive so you wouldn’t feel so cut off. Wish you every success with your shop. Best wishes and happy sales.
Sorry you feel like that Heather. Have to say I’ve had nothing but friendly help on the forums so feel very lucky I’ve not witnessed the negativity you’ve experienced.
Maybe just keep a quiet eye on what’s happening and hopefully you will feel things have changed after a while and can come back with your own contributions.
Meanwhile, I hope you have lots of successful selling months
.
Folksy are keeping an eye on things which is good news