One of the things I find so engaging about etsy is that it is such a microcosm. Everything that happens there seems to be an intensified version of something experienced in the real world. So many things that are taken for granted on a larger scale seem like life or death situations in the world according to etsy. My brief vacation allowed me to return to the forums with a fresh set of eyes and I saw a few new correlations to comment on.
My favorite thread was a rant about custom listings or listing that would only be made when ordered. The poster was upset that something she wanted to purchase was made to order and not actually available at the moment of order. Many people chimed in saying that they either did that themselves or that they had seen that practice a lot. This really spoke to the instant gratification of our society to me. I mean, this person was really upset about this. She could not understand why sellers would list something for sale that could not be shipped immediately. I of course have several made to order item listed in my store and I can tell you why I do it. Often it's because I have sold an item and I want to relist it right away and sometimes it's because I don't want to make a difficult piece unless someone buys it first.
I know that most sellers who do this do list all pertinent information in their listings ensuring that their customers know they will be waiting a short time for the item. I've actually not seen one who doesn't. I've also seen sellers that ship once a week or ones who make everything to order and all that is clearly explained in their stores. Etsy, as a handmade environment lends itself to crafts that require extra time to create and we have to adjust our instant Internet expectations accordingly, but what I don't get is why most people accept a long ship time for large companies, but are annoyed waiting a few extra days for a handmade item. It is definitely more important to be good than fast in my opinion and I think that a majority would agree if they really thought about it.
The modern world seems to be eating away at our ability to be patient. I know that I've said this before, but I keep being reminded of it. You don't need to know everything instantly. You probably don't need to get that necklace right now or that amazing scarf or piece of art this minute. Anything that is really worth having is worth waiting for. If you think you can't wait, you probably didn't really want it anyway.
Agreed! I went to see Wall-E this weekend and found it depressing. It depicts a society where earth has been garbaged to death, people live basically on a luxury liner and have gotten so fat and lazy 700 years into the future that when dumped out of their auto-chairs they flop around like slugs and have to be picked up by robots. In terms of instant gratification, they pretty much just called for everything they wanted and had robots deliver it to them instantly.
ReplyDeleteI've seen a lot of doom and gloom future movies, but this one was a) supposed to be cute!? and b) a little too close to where our society is headed.
/rant :) Hmm I think I must blog about this.
I'm with you, anything good is worth waiting for. But then, I'm nostalgic for the pre-industrial-age days when everything was made just for you, there was no mass manufacturing.
ReplyDeleteAnd that's another great reason to do made-to-order listings - if you're making things that are close-fitting - you can custom tailor them for the wearer.
Sounds like a dream to me!
It amazes me that someone would complain about that - I've never seen a listing for a custom item that didn't specify that it would require a wait, and usually they're for things that can come in a variety of colors, patterns or styles. Does that buyer think someone selling on Etsy has the space to store dozens of off-the-rack corsets or something?
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