Today we want to share with you some of the most common questions we see Etsy customers ask and how you can best answer them! Providing excellent customer service to your loyal customers is a great way to get repeat orders over and over and help you grow your business in the long run. Still it can be tricky to decide how to best respond to some customers' questions, so we hope you find these ideas helpful and feel free to steal them!
You can listen to the episode here, or keep reading below!
#1 “Can I get a custom product?”
FYI: You can say no!
It’s totally okay for you to intentionally decline custom order requests because they:
Take extra time
Aren’t your focus
Aren’t your style
Don’t feel guilty about saying, “Thank you but I don’t do custom work at this time.”
But if it’s a YES...
You need to charge MORE for custom work than your regular work.
Custom work often takes extra time away from the other day-to-day tasks you have & you’re producing a piece of your art that now exclusively belongs to the customer.
Also...The customer SHOULD pay before you make the product. Here's a quick workflow of how you should sell custom work on Etsy:
Create a custom order Etsy listing
Send it to the client
Once they order, THEN you begin working on it
One more thing...Custom/Personalized Etsy orders should be nonrefundable. You can’t resell the item to anyone else, even if the customer changes their mind. Do not offer refunds or returns on custom work!
#2 “Where’s my package?”
Things to Remember
Customers are used to 1-2 day shipping on Amazon. We know it takes longer, but they might not.
You OWE it to your business to put tracking on your Etsy packages if you want to be successful. This is for your own happiness as much as the customer’s to have proof of shipping and tracking.
Pro tip: Write a message about how customers can find their shipping info and how long they should estimate for shipping and save it as an Etsy message template, that way you can just send them the message directly from your templates without having to type it out each time.
Be kind, but firm. You are not the postal service. Once it’s shipped, it’s out of your hands.
#3 “Do you offer a discount?”
You are not obligated to offer a discount just because someone asks.
Ask yourself these questions when a customer asks for a discount:
Would offering a discount to this customer be of high value to my business?
Can I ask for a trade of services/products instead?
Can I still make a profit if a discount feels right to me?
Overall, we don’t advise that you offer discounts just because someone thought “it doesn’t hurt to ask.”
Put this into perspective - Amazon doesn't give discounts just because someone thought "it doesn't hurt to ask." Neither will Walmart, Target, or any other large corporation. You should not feel bad about staying firm with your prices.
Ways to politely say no:
“I’m not able to offer any discounts at this time, but I really appreciate your support of my small business. I do offer free shipping on orders over $35 if that’s helpful to you!” [deflect to a good offer you have]
“I’m not offering discounts right now, but I will be running a holiday sale later this month!”
“I really appreciate that you like my products! While I can’t offer you a discount on this product, I do sell X, which is a more affordable option and similar. Thank you!” [suggest a lower cost product]
#4 “Can I get a rush order?”
FYI: You can say no!
It’s totally okay for you to intentionally decline rush requests because they:
Are stressful!
Disrupt your workflow
Don’t feel guilty if you choose to say, “Thank you but I don’t do rush orders right now.”
But if it’s a YES...you need to charge 30-50% MORE for expedited/rush orders!
When you accept a rush order, it means you move that customer’s order to the front of the shipping and production line. It adds more working time to your day.
Also...Make sure your customer understands that rush orders mean faster production, not faster shipping.
You are not USPS. Even if you rush the order, there is no arrival guarantee if there is an issue with the postal service.
One more thing...Rush Etsy orders should be nonrefundable. You can’t get back the time you added to your work day to produce that order, even if the customer feels that the order did not arrive on time due to a shipping issue or changes their mind in some way.
We hope you've found these tips helpful! Ready for the next step in your handmade biz?? Learn the basics of Etsy SEO with our free worksheet!