Well said, @SashaGarrett - same applies here - plenty of us Plus sellers come and chat on the forums and help put where we can. And yes, we list a lot if we are doing it for a living!
And if we make lots of sales, we are bringing people onto Folksy as a site - plenty of my customers have never heard of Folksy before I directed them to my shop, and from there they have gone on to browse other shops and spend their money in other shops too.
Lots of buyers don’t even look at the front page - many will land direct on an item they’ve found in a search, or will be directed to a specific shop by a seller who works damned hard on their marketing.
Agree with @SashaGarrett I don’t misuse the plus account and I’m certainly not a big seller! I do relist but only when I think of it and not my whole shop. I very rarely get on the front page, if so, then I’ve missed it! I do my own promotions as this isn’t what Folksy does, not sure if anyone really looks at the FP anyway? They probably go straight to search?
I was not referring to a particular seller (s) and I was not saying everyone does it. The comments were general. Some of you have agreed with these points before in this thread or others.
I came on the forums and ‘helped’ a lot but I now longer do this due to reasons I don’t want to go into with everyone on here.
I don’t think there will ever be a win/win situation and maybe the best thing would be to do away with the plus account then no one would feel cheated.
But why should the Plus account be done away with? It’s fair - everyone can pay for it. It’s no more cost than a couple of craft fair stalls for most people, but you get to sell from the comfort of your own home, every day of the year, worldwide. Folksy is a business - they need to make a profit to survive, they want us sellers to do well. The Plus account benefits sellers, and we all have the choice of whether to have a Plus account or not, it’s not just open to a favoured few.
I know, I have a plus account but there is so much negativity towards it. Personally i love it but feel like i am upsetting the majority of folksy for relisting some of my shop each day or spamming as it has been referred to.
I agree with you @LampworkbeadsbyJo once again the plus account holders are being criticised for listing too much. I also have a lot of items in my shop - that’s why I have the plus account. After reading some comments on this thread and previous ones on this subject, it makes you feel afraid to list too much and shouldn’t have to feel this way.
I like what folksy have done to the front page.
Cos if you do press see more you get to see everything that has been listed.
I have moaned in the past about people listing Thier whole shops in one go. But only when it was the whole shop. As I got so bored looking at one shop when I wanted to look at lots of different things for a gift but I love the idea of the plus account.
I don’t have one at the moment but I’m saving to get it.
As it would make life easier and if you do have a lot to list it would make life easier and cheaper.
I do think we (as sellers) sometimes lose sight of the fact that it’s important for the site as a whole - and especially the front page - to be attractive to buyers and potential buyers. We tend to think only of our own shop but, unless a buyer goes straight to our own shop, the front page is key to their first impression of the site. I’ve visited many sites and been put off by the first page, so haven’t bothered to look any further or go back to it. We can promote our own shops elsewhere and send buyers directly to them, but I do think the front page needs to show an attractive, carefully curated mix of products and sellers, so that visitors will stay, browse, hopefully buy and come back again. I don’t think it should be seen as a promotion opportunity for individual shops, but it should successfully promote Folksy as a site for buying wonderful handmade/designed products.
It’s always nice to get on the front page - why wouldn’t it be? - but we shouldn’t really build our chances of success on it. What goes on there is really up to Folksy to decide.
I like the Plus account, and I relist as often and as much as I choose - that’s my right as a Plus account holder and I don’t feel bad about it. It’s a level playing field - we all have the same choice.
My personal opinion. Others will disagree, I’m sure
I agree - if a business is dependant on being on the front page, then it’s probably not a very strong business.
And as the recently listed is way down at the bottom of the front page anyway, I’m sure I’m not the only person who never looks that far down, especially if they’re distracted by something interesting higher up the page.
