Addressing issue with old products

[iCraft Admin]

Some of you may have noticed a message on some our products, just below "Add to Bag" button, urging users to check with the Seller before purchasing that product. See image below.



This feature has been implemented to protect buyers on the site, who sometimes run into a problem of purchasing a product that is no longer available or from the seller that we can't locate.

The image will appear only on the product listings that have not been updated in more than 6 months. Unfortunately, some sellers don't visit their stores even after we send them numerous notifications about product updates. This is a temporary solution until we decide what we should do to resolve this.

Your suggestions are welcome. Thanks!

[PetiteTuques]

I think that is fair- I usually try to update my products when I get that notice. I think now though that I'll have to put more on hold, because of my yarn issues...
Do you put people's shop on hold if they don't login after 6 months? It definitely doesn't look good for iCraft if people just list and leave...

[Fairy Cardmaker]

I agree - it's not fair to flag products so.  You should be flagging sellers.  I get those notices (still getting them for things that have sold though too) and I can't get to all of them.  I have almost 100 products, half of which need to be rephotographed and I will only update them then.

However, you can clearly tell that I am here, regularly online, and active.  Yet, my shop will be half-flagged.

The product is not the issue.  The seller is.  You need to put a warning on the shop face (or under their avatar in their shop) that the seller has not logged in over X days and advise the buyer to contact the seller first to inquire about availability before ordering any products.

[iCraft Admin]

Hi Fairy Cardmaker,

You have a point. We might have to revisit this idea. We placed that message close to the "Add to Bag" button on product pages, because we thought that buyers would notice that message for sure. There is no guarantee that buyer will actually check the Exhibit (storefront) page before buying the product. Though I think now maybe that same message should appear only on product pages for people that have not logged in on iCraft for more than 6 months, as you suggested.

One other things we might do is to allow people to update all their product listings with one click without actually updating the product itself.

Thanks for the feedback! 

[Northern Girl Jewelry]

Sorry, haven't been to the forum in a while.

I agree with Fairy Cardmaker - those types of warnings should only happen in shops where the seller hasn't been active at all.  If there is a product that hasn't been updated in more than 6 months in my shop, it doesn't mean there is anything wrong.  I have many one of a kind items, and some just take longer than others to find a new home. I know where my items are, I check my email associated to this account daily and I put my shop on hold when I'm doing craft shows.  I get those notices too, but they are sometimes a bit of a pain because sometimes they are items that I don't want to update at that time because I don't want that item at the top of my shop.  Yet that's what happens when I update and I get repeated notices about the item if I don't.

I wish I didn't get those notices at all.  I think it's shop owners that aren't checking in that are problematic, not certain items not being updated in 6 months.  And for an absentee shop owner, I think 6 months is actually a long time before it gets flagged to buyers.  I personally wouldn't buy from a shop that hadn't checked in in more than a month, as I would think it was an abandonned shop.  Maybe it should be 3 months that triggers the flag for absentee owners?