6 Steps To Create A Great Etsy Store Policy

Craft Maker Pro » 6 Steps To Create A Great Etsy Store Policy

Do you have an Etsy store policy section? If not, it could be costing you sales.

Why? Your store policies tell your customers what to expect from you. Customers look at your store policies to see what kind of customer service you will offer; if there is nothing there they can walk away.

Shop policies do not only help your customers but they also help YOU stay consistent and have actions in place for certain situations.

Read on for some great tips to update your Etsy Store Policies and download our FREE Etsy Store Policy Template at the end of this article for a copy and paste solution.

If you want to have a good Etsy store policy, first, you need to find the page to edit your policies by logging in to Etsy, click “your Etsy” and look for the “policies” link in the left hand column.

You will see 6 important sections where you need to enter your store policy.

Check this infographic for tips to help you create your Etsy policy section.

More Tips:

1. Welcome

You don’t need to put a lot of information here, any personal information you want to share can be put in your profile. A brief introduction is fine and you can encourage buyers to contact you if they have any questions.

2. Payment

Method: State what methods of payment you will take (PayPal, cheque etc)
PayPal: A brief description of how to pay with PayPal is useful. Lots of people don’t realize they can use this method to pay with their credit or debit card without having to sign up for a PayPal account.
State that you will not send packages until payments have cleared.
Non-payment: Tell your buyers what you will do in the event of non-payment. Non-payment is a common problem on Etsy, part of this is down to the way the system works there and it can be confusing to new buyers on Etsy, other times people are just messing you around.
Payment Plan: If you offer payment plans explain how this works to your customers.

3. Shipping

Describe how your items are packaged: Do you gift wrap? Are your items sent in boxes? Do you include a certificate of authenticity? If you use recycled packaging write that in here too.

Shipping company: Tell your buyers what shipping company you use.
What shipping do you offer? (priority, standard, first class, registered mail, online tracking?)
Other shipping features: Can customers request faster shipping or insurance for an additional charge? If yes, ask them to contact you for more information.
Shipping address policy: If the Etsy and PayPal shipping addresses you receive for an order are different, what will you do? Decide which you will do and state it here. If you will automatically ship to a certain address make sure you include info on this in your “message to buyer” box as well.
Shipping times: If you have already done a lot of shipping you will have a good idea of how long a package takes to arrive in certain parts of the world. If you have not done much shipping yet, ask at your post office, and then add a few days to their estimated times. Packages almost always take longer to arrive than the PO says they will.
Others: If you ship overseas, state that customs can delay packages by up to 6 weeks, say that this does not happen often but that it can happen. It is better to forewarn your buyers about this possible problem.

4. Refunds and Exchanges

Write it down if you don’t want to do refunds and exchanges. If you are going to offer refunds and/or exchanges then put your terms and conditions here.

Explain how long after receiving an item can people ask you for an exchange or refund. Specify if you will refund only the cost of the item or the shipping as well.

5. Additional Policies and FAQs

Custom Orders: Enter your other policies here especially if you are doing Custom Orders. You can discuss here your estimate of how long an order will take, if it varies a lot then ask buyers to contact you for more information. Explain here if you need a deposit first before you start working you crafts. Unforeseen things can happen that may mean your buyer cannot pay you by the time you have finished working.
FAQs: This won´t stop everyone as some people just don´t look hard enough for the answers, but it will help a few and you can just copy/paste them when you get asked about them.

Other tips for your policies.

Run your policies through a spell checker, and get someone else to proof-read them for you if you can. It looks unprofessional if you have spelling and grammar mistakes everywhere.
Keep a friendly and polite tone in your policies. Don´t get angry, confrontational or rude when you write them. Be clear and concise without being rude.
Re-read your policies as if they belonged to a shop you wanted to buy from. How would you feel as the customer when reading them? Make any changes you think you need.
Sometimes people will write to you with questions about your policies. When this happens take note and if necessary make adjustments to your policies if you think they need it.

If you are overwhelmed by our tips, you might want to check this video by Renae Christine about setting up Etsy store policies.

If you have your own website, you might also be interested to use this WordPress plugin for a nice and automated terms of service and privacy policy.

If you want a free template for your Etsy store policy just fill in your details below to get access to one that we have prepared just for you.

[optin_box style=”2″ alignment=”center” action=”https://www.aweber.com/scripts/addlead.pl” method=”post” email_field=”email” email_default=”Enter your email address” integration_type=”custom” double_optin=”Y” name_field=”name” name_required=”Y” name_default=”Enter your first name”][optin_box_hidden][/optin_box_hidden][optin_box_code]

[/optin_box_code][optin_box_field name=”headline”]Free Etsy Store Policy Template[/optin_box_field][optin_box_field name=”paragraph”]PHA+RW50ZXIgeW91ciBkZXRhaWxzIGJlbG93IGFuZCBnZXQgeW91ciAiRmlsbCBJbiBUaGUgQmxhbmtzIiBFdHN5IFN0b3JlIFBvbGljeSBUZW1wbGF0ZS48L3A+Cg==[/optin_box_field][optin_box_field name=”privacy”]We value your privacy and would never spam you[/optin_box_field][optin_box_field name=”top_color”]undefined[/optin_box_field][optin_box_button type=”0″ button_below=”Y”]Get Instant Access![/optin_box_button] [/optin_box]

Here’s an overview of what you’ll get:

Please like and share this template to your friends if you find it useful and let us know what you think about it. Good luck!

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Gary Capps

I live in the one of the most beautiful places in the world on the Sunshine Coast in Australia with my wife and our 2 dogs, Poppy and Mia. Since 2009 I have helped over 15,000 handmade business owners to grow their business with our software and free tools designed for todays entrepreneurial artisan.