Fake Sales on Etsy and Get Away with It

Of course, it’s possible to fake sales on Etsy and not get caught. But getting caught comes with a penalty, typically a permanent suspension—you may not want to risk it though.

While you have it in mind to fake the sales, understand that buyers also look out for signs to tell if you’re a genuine Etsy seller. Etsy’s review system is not perfect after all, so it won’t be so easy for potential buyers to easily know when something is not right.

Etsy review system: how it works

An Etsy buyer can leave a review depending on the delivery date or estimated delivery date of an order, which expires after 100 days from the delivery date.

If the Etsy item purchased is a digital item like feet pics, the review period will start once the buyer downloads the feet pictures—the same applies to all other digital items.

If the item has delivery tracking, the carrier marks the order as delivered on the delivery date. However, orders without delivery tracking are based on the estimated delivery date, which is the [purchase date] + [processing time] + [shipping days].

Read also: orders can be processed without Etsy shipping!

If you sell an item in person, a buyer can leave a review if they purchased an existing listing. The buyer just needs their email address associated with an Etsy account to make the review after signing into their account. Etsy makes it possible to leave a review immediately after a transaction. Obviously, only items sold through Etsy can be reviewed.

How to fake sales on Etsy

Etsy sales are typically faked by manipulating reviews to attract potential buyers who think the said item is really worth their money. Besides, buyers rely a lot on what other consumers say about a particular item. Also, the Etsy algorithm is more likely to favor items with lots of positive reviews. That said, below are the major ways sellers can fake sales on Etsy:

1. Self reviews with fake accounts

Any seller who is determined to fake those sales for the money can make faux reviews themselves. A seller simply creates multiple Etsy buyer accounts and uses them to order their own items, earn a verified purchase and leave a 5-star positive review that entices other potential, unsuspecting buyers.

Etsy shops get rated from 1 to 5 stars. The average is then displayed on the homepage of the specific store. However, Etsy’s algorithm factors in just the recent 12 months when calculating the average review.

Read also: it seems you can get away with fakes on eBay

If a seller has been selling low-quality items or has recorded lots of poor customer service practices, they can fake their reviews by writing positive ones themselves. A seller simply uses a VPN to create as many accounts as possible to write several 5-star reviews that boost the average star rating of their store.

2. Review buying online

An Etsy seller can buy fake reviews from Facebook groups or even sub Reddits where these services are offered.

It’s simple—a seller meets the said review agency, pays the fee, and the agency pumps in the reviews. Smart sellers will even share samples with the reviewers so that the fake reviews look real before potential buyers.

While some agencies use bots to deliver the reviews, some make them manually and naturally enough to attract sales. Of course, the said agency will have to order the items and get paid for them, so the seller only spends Etsy fees and the review commission.

3. Promise discounts

A seller can promise buyers discounts after buying their products. Usually, they post the links to items on niched groups where the participants are more likely to buy the product. Sometimes, free shipping could be exchanged for the service.

Indeed, the seller is at a loss but the essence of the whole investment is to boost the product and manipulate the Etsy algorithm to increase the item’s visibility to potential buyers.

4. Family members and friends

Family members and friends can be used to manipulate Etsy sales. Here, a seller just informs friends and family about their shop and encourages them to buy from the shop. Whether the item is excellent or not, friends and family will leave a 5-star, positive review that entices potential customers to order the item.

Well, it turns out even this method is not exactly illegal, and is difficult for Etsy to detect a family or friend’s purchase as long as their review follows Etsy review policy.

Conclusion

As mentioned earlier, fake sales on Etsy rely a lot on the reviews and overall rating on the seller’s homepage. Thus, for a profile to attract sales illegitimately, the seller needs to manipulate the review system by either buying, self-writing, exchanging positive reviews for discounts, or asking family and friends for reviews.