Let the Seller Beware!

If you are lucky, you will never be targeted by a scam artist online. But many of us will and have.

I was last week.

Imagine my excitement when, shortly after listing a high end item in one of my shops ($750.00), I was contacted by a customer interested in buying the item as a gift for her mother's birthday. She informed me that she was an oceanographer at sea and had limited access and ability for correspondence so would I contact her via her direct email with the information about the item she requested~ i.e. condition, full cost, etc.

Tiny red flag waving.    








But since it seemed a reasonable request, despite my concerns, I complied.

But next came this: I would like to complete the transaction on PayPal since I am not familiar with Etsy.

     Large Red Flag Waving.












And then she added "Could I also send enough money to you to cover the shipping agent's fees and then you can pay them via Western Union Money Gram directly. I will have them pickup the item so you will not have to worry about shipping information. I would greatly appreciate this, since as I told you I am out to sea and would have a problem paying them directly."

Excuse me?

Tons of HUGE Red Flags Waving!!!

Okay, seriously, I may not be the brightest crayon in the box, but I'm no fool (well, maybe a bit of a fool, read on*)! But sadly, in the excitement of wanting the sale, many of us would want to believe this was sincere, and might even take the chance. It happens all the time, especially to inexperienced internet users, newbie sellers and even worse, the elderly. In the end, I sent her an email and informed her that I regret any inconvenience or difficulty for her but if she wishes to purchase the item she must do so through Etsy and I will ship the item directly to her mother.

Her account has since been closed. 

*In hindsight, I was a fool for sending her an email and not writing her from Etsy. But since my email account for that store is only for that and nothing else, fortunately I was not compromised.

So, lessons to learn:

Never do business off site! If you are selling on Etsy, stay on Etsy. All correspondence and transactions should be done through your shop. This holds true for any venue, Artfire, Bonanza, etc. Do not use your personal email address for your shop. All banking, bill paying, or other secure accounts should be kept separate from your shop's email. You should also use a separate account for your PayPal account if you are linked to a bank account. Keep only the minimum amount necessary in your PayPal account and your linked bank account, and make regular withdrawals. Working capital can be kept in another account if it is a substantial amount.

If anyone requests a pickup for the item, do so at a local UPS or FedEX store after the item is securely sold and paid for through your shop. Never give your personal address. If you are shipping from your home, I highly recommend you acquire a post office box for return shipping information and receiving goods. It may not always be possible but it is safer.

Don't ever co-mingle payments for your goods with any other fees except shipping from you. Do not use Western Union Money Grams for any transactions! The best methods for payment are PayPal and credit cards, I do not even recommend money orders, but they are acceptable and sometimes necessary for some customers. Never accept a check!

No matter how sad their story sounds~ DON'T FALL FOR IT!

If the hair on the back of your neck is standing up, your gut is telling you something or a red flag is waving~ Pay attention to it! Don't ignore your instincts and let your emotions get carried away. We all love a sale, but if someone really wants your product, they will go through the proper procedure to purchase it. (Now that's a lot of p's, lol!) But, all joking aside, please be careful out there, the scams are becoming more and more intricate and elaborate. If you have high end items, you are especially vulnerable.

I am not an expert and some of you may have some more advice to add~ I hope you will comment if you do.

Have a great week!
;) Cat

*Please note: I am in the process of finding out if they can hack your other email accounts if your mail is forwarded to another central account as mine are. I will keep you posted~ if anyone out there knows the answer let me know. Honestly, I wouldn't doubt that they can do it! I did disable forwarding on the address I used, just in case!

To Pin or Not to Pin?

Do you use Pinterest? Millions do, and not just to pin items of interest~ the original concept behind the site. Companies and organizations are using Pinterest for marketing, including us! We have not been on Pinterest long and already have over 200 followers~ but some of our boards have twice that many followers! Etsy jumped on board (no pun intended) by adding a pin button to all listings~ and most bloggers have a pin button as well. You can also install a Pin It button to your toolbar enabling you to pin any image from the page you're on to a board.

There's a bit of finesse and courtesy involved with Pinterest, as with any social networking media. You don't want to spam or over promote your own products, and you shouldn't mass follow~ Pinterest won't let you anyway, it's against their Terms of Use policies. But used wisely, it is now one of the most effective marketing tools currently available! Here are a few infographics, ironically found on Pinterest, that will shed a little light on the statistics and impact it can have.

So there you have a small sample of the infographics out there about Pinterest~ believe me there are many more, as well as tutorials, guides and statistical analyses. If you're on Pinterest, I hope this encourages you to utilize the network for more than its addictive fun. If you're not~ here's a couple more links (look closely, this article already has several!) that will help get you started! But be careful, what you've heard is true~ it's highly addictive!

Pinterest 101- A Tutorial

Getting Likes & Comments on Your Pinterest Boards

One last note~ if you need an invite, just send us an email to teamupcyclers@gmail.com and we'll invite you!

I'm off to Pin!

;) Cat

The 2011 Web Analytics Review~ How Do You Compare??

++ Click Image to Enlarge ++

Source: The 2011 Google Web Analytics Review Infographic

How~ Tuesday: Guest Blog from TrashN2Tees!

How I Did Nothing & Landed on Etsy's Front Page

hankandhunt on etsy

I don't remember wishing on a shooting star or meeting at a cross roads. However the planets aligned and TrashN2Tees landed itself on the coveted Etsy Front Page not just once, but twice in the same day.

(If you're unfamiliar with Etsy and its front page allow me to put it in a nutshell. Collections of items called treasuries are curated by members of Etsy (sellers or buyers) and then the powers that be at Etsy select the chosen treasuries to be featured on the front page for all the world to see. Treasuries change hourly. What it boils down to is this: FREE promotion to a captive audience.)
 

Now the title of this post is misleading a little bit, maybe it should say something like "How I did nothing (new) and landed on Etsy's front page" because I've retraced my steps a few times now and I don't recall doing much different than any other day. I do work hard to stay active and engaging both within the Etsy community and outside of it. Joining teams, participating in the forums, commenting- promoting- creating treasuries (whether I curated them or included) and viva la chat- RIP. I know for a fact that this has at least had a hand in my front page treasury love because a fellow team member, FrickandFrackScraps, from The Treasury Tree created one of the collections. 

I also work very hard to create interesting photos. I'll even admit that I sometimes spend more time perfecting a shot or picture than it takes to make the darn thing. It pays off though, Candy from The Party Bakery  went out of her way to send me a convo after seeing my reusable produce bags on the front page to say that she thought the smiling fruit was the bomb diggity. (my words- not hers) Just another reason why I love the community at Etsy. I don't want to forget my friends and teammates from the Bluegrass Etsy Street Team who took the time to celebrate with me as well.    
Landing on the Front Page does not equate to a successful shop, heck it even doesn't always get you a single sale. I'm going to share a few ways that will help improve your shop & get noticed, so that you too can do nothing (new) and land on Etsy's front page.

Improve your photographs.

 Big List of Product Photography Tips from Handmadeology 

 Photography Hints and Tips from {kid} independent

manjar

Write a catchy profile.

my profile (on the blog, website, and etsy) are all top viewed pages- this is a great way to pique interest in your products and allows the buyer to 'get to know you'

Crafting a Profile Page from The Etsy Blog 

 

  

Want more ideas? Head over to my blog~

trashn2tees blog

 

 

 

Understanding Green Branding

I recently wrote to you about my continued quest to become an ethical consumer, by discussing ways to Greener Your Shopping List. It was also important to understand green brands & their marketing verbiage while on this sustainable shopping mission.

"Green brands are those brands that consumers associate with environmental conservation and sustainable business practices." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green brands

We all know what a recycle symbol looks like & what the three R’s mean. I understood what organic & natural meant, or did I? When I started looking closer at the green items I was purchasing the labels started to get a little confusing. This one said all natural but not organic, that one was organic but made with only 70% organic ingredients. I could buy eggs that are organic but not cage free, but could I buy eggs that are cage free & not organic? To clear things up, it was important to stop & understand the verbiage of the green branding universe.

Here are some basics terms needed for understanding green product claims. You may already know them, but do you know what they mean on the products you buy?

Natural: is very broad term when it comes to food products available in our grocery stores. In fact, the FDA has not even established a formal definition of the word natural. It is used on packaging to attract health conscious consumers but doesn’t mean all the products ingredients will be natural. Best thing to do, read the ingredients list on the label. Vague terms like natural are not allowed on the ingredients list, with the exception natural flavorings.

 
Certified Organic: It is important to know that each country regulates their food certifications differently. In the US & Canada, they have passed organic legislation making it so the term “organic” may be only used by certified producers. Anyone involved in the food production process can be certified organic. That’s everyone from seed suppliers and farmers to retailers and restaurants.

In the US, the federal legislation defines three levels of organic. A company can use “100% organic” on their product label if the product is entirely made with organic ingredients & methods. Products with at least 95% organic ingredients can use the word “organic.” Both these levels may also display the same USDA organic seal. The third level is for products who ingredient lists contains at least 70% organic ingredients and they may use “made with organic ingredients” on their packaging.


 
Fair Trade: Consumer product packaging from other countries can be labeled with this eco term. Fair Trade Certification is an organized movement aimed at helping developing countries improve their trading conditions & promote sustainability. The Fairtrade Certification system covers a growing range of products, including bananas, honey, coffee, oranges, cocoa, cotton, dried and fresh fruits and vegetables, juices, and even wine. Fairtrade International (FLO), along with many others, helps to head up this international certification & reports in 2008 that an estimated 7.5 million producers and their families were benefiting from fair trade funded infrastructure, assistance and community development projects.

This movement has its critics & many see this label as a marketing ploy that does not challenge the world’s trading system. The best thing to do is research the specific products & companies you are buying from. There are a number of fair trade labels that can appear on packaging.

Besides understanding consumer products & their environmental impacts, knowledge of green branding gives us a way we can vote with our dollars for sustainable changes in our communities & world!