Etsy's Handmade Blog
Tech Update: New Checkout Updates
Story by bschwab, ericds, nicholascook, TechUpdates
Published on September 24, 2009 in Etsy News 		Photo by

gretchenmist

As we mentioned in the previous Checkout Update, we're working to make Checkout a simpler, smoother process for shoppers, and we are rolling changes out gradually to make sure they improve buyer conversion. ("Conversion" is the percentage of shoppers who complete Checkout.) Improving buyer conversion helps more shoppers get a taste of Etsy and leads to more orders for Etsy sellers. In short, more happy Etsy members!

Today we're rolling out a change to a small percentage of Etsy traffic that removes non-essential elements from the header of Checkout pages, to make the process clearer and faster. Simplifying the page header in the Checkout process is an e-commerce practice used by many great shopping sites, such as Amazon and Apple.

Here's a preview of the shipping information page with a simplified header:

We're going to see if this change makes it easier for shoppers to complete Checkout, and we'll make adjustments as we learn more. If we're certain the changes improve the Checkout experience for shoppers, we'll roll the changes out to all of Etsy's traffic.

We'll update this post as we learn more.

P.S. If you want to get the breaking, vital Etsy news as it happens — delivered straight to your email inbox, then sign up for Etsy News Alerts emails. Read more about it here.  Expect this as an Etsy Alert email in your inbox if you already subscribe to the list.

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Tags buyer conversion, buying, checkout, check out, ecommerce, enclosed checkout, Etsy News, ETSY NEWS, sellers, selling, site features, Tech Update, transactions
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118 comments     Login to add your own!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 7:23 p.m. beadinbythesea

Great news! Thanks for all your work to make this site even better!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 7:27 p.m. asundrynotion

Your efforts are appreciated! Now please integrate the Google Checkout secure online payment option to the Etsy checkout. I'd appreciate that even more!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 7:28 p.m. asundrynotion

I should have said 'integrate secure Google Checkout into the Etsy checkout' above. You know what I meant. Thanks again!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 7:33 p.m. LuminousDreamDesigns

Thank you for all your hard work!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 7:33 p.m. pamwares

always working hard for us!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 7:38 p.m. worksandfinds

My gosh. You guys are working hard. Thank you :)

Sept. 24, 2009 at 7:39 p.m. crazyforcollars

Thank you for making it easier for newcomers to checkout smoothly, quickly, and properly!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 7:40 p.m. girltuesdayjewelry

Right on!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 7:42 p.m. SeaFindDesigns

Thanks!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 7:45 p.m. BizzieLizzie

Fantastic! Thanks for keeping on top of these things! Much appreciated!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 7:46 p.m. bytheway

Thank you so much! I really appreciate that you listen to the concerns of the sellers and try to make things easier for our buyers!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 7:46 p.m. maddyandme

looks great - hope you find it makes a difference.

Sept. 24, 2009 at 7:48 p.m. sucree

thanks for addressing the checkout issues

Sept. 24, 2009 at 7:54 p.m. LeelaBijou

great news! thank you!! :)

Sept. 24, 2009 at 7:56 p.m. Xenotees

Yay! Gotta love simple! Thanks!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 7:56 p.m. ccvalenzo

I hope with the new checkout you will maki it possible for the payment type to be changed. A lot of people mark the wrong type of payment and then can't change it without cancelling the whole sale.

Sept. 24, 2009 at 8:01 p.m. VixVintage

Thank you techies!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 8:02 p.m. BlueGremlin

thanks for always keeping etsy on the move! gogogogogo!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 8:02 p.m. VixVintage

The apricot butter looks so yummy.

Sept. 24, 2009 at 8:03 p.m. AmberLeaf

Yay!!!! I love the new checkout option!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 8:04 p.m. ChloesRuffleButt

Thanks!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 8:06 p.m. vivikas

Cool, thanks!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 8:11 p.m. MiasMunchies

Thank you Etsy! :)

Sept. 24, 2009 at 8:11 p.m. DivaBabyDesigns

That is so great! The easier the better!! Thank you!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 8:14 p.m. RawBoneStudio

Can't wait to try them out. Thanks!!!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 8:16 p.m. mamapainter

Can't wait to see how it goes. So far, the SEO changes have been fabulous!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 8:31 p.m. firelilyjewelrygems

great idea!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 8:34 p.m. VintageEyeFashion

the simpler the better...thanks!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 8:35 p.m. peacefrogdesigns

Thanks to everyone at Etsy trying to make everything easier for us, sellers an buyers alike! It is appreciated! :)

Sept. 24, 2009 at 8:37 p.m. hellobrowneyes

You guys are my bffs

Sept. 24, 2009 at 8:37 p.m. JoannasPhotography

great news!
thank you :)

Sept. 24, 2009 at 8:43 p.m. MetalheartDesign

thanks for all the improvement tweaks lately!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 8:47 p.m. marypearlsvintage

thanks for making it easier to sell old treasures in a new way!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 8:49 p.m. goodlookin

Very good news. I've been through the buying process, at it seems clear, but wow, it really trips up some people! Thanks for your efforts.

Sept. 24, 2009 at 8:56 p.m. heatherfuture

Lovely!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 8:56 p.m. art4friends

YAY for gretchenmist (AUSTRALIAN ARTIST) for having her work as the feature image!

And super work etsy too ;) x

Sept. 24, 2009 at 8:59 p.m. 2TrickPony

Peace, love, and easy checkout♥

Sept. 24, 2009 at 9:05 p.m. gretchenmist

great to have this fine tuning happening behind the scenes.

and thanks so much for using my print up the top :)

Sept. 24, 2009 at 9:08 p.m. 1AEON

sweet pictures!!!!! you already made an esty member happier:)

Sept. 24, 2009 at 9:32 p.m. creativeminds2009

thank you!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 9:37 p.m. tamar

Great news! I am still hoping to eliminate all the uncompleted sales because lots of new buyers don't understand the process....I send at least 2 emails a day to buyers...:)

Sept. 24, 2009 at 10:33 p.m. stubbornwoman

Sorry, but you are a day late and a dollar short. I sold a hat this afternoon and have yet to get paid. Boo Hoo.

Sept. 24, 2009 at 10:52 p.m. ladaworks

You are the hardest working people. I love you all. Fantastic improvement. Thank you.

Sept. 24, 2009 at 11:01 p.m. kittybblove

Thank you etsy! Hopefully this will all work out and checkout will become easier for buyers. We get a good amount of first time buyers who need help paying and hopefully this will help resolve issues that they have. Looking forward to more updates on this in the future :D

Sept. 24, 2009 at 11:11 p.m. ApplewoodHandwovens

You've made great strides just since I've opened my shop and you continue.... Thank You

Sept. 24, 2009 at 11:20 p.m. pinkytoeclothing

Thanks for all you do!!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 11:53 p.m. ArtDecoDame

fun picks love those shoes!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 11:57 p.m. jazzygeminis

thanks

Sept. 24, 2009 at 11:58 p.m. HoneyBoo

Thanks for the improvements!

Sept. 25, 2009 at 12:09 a.m. Owlishly

This looks great, I'm really hoping that it works out well! I typically have at least one or two sales a week where the customer doesn't pay because they've thought that they've completed the transaction. This'll be a fantastic improvement!

Sept. 25, 2009 at 12:18 a.m. HelenesDreams

Hey Etsy..thanks for improving. It is greatly appreciated!

Do you think you can add the discount codes for weekend deals and free shipping? This would greatly enhance the user friendliness of offering a sale and not dealing with refunds and things like this. After all, if your going to promote a sale..it should sell for the sale price.

Sept. 25, 2009 at 12:21 a.m. ShesaGem

Awesome, simple is better!!

Sept. 25, 2009 at 12:28 a.m. Talula

Anything you can do to make check-out easier for our buyers is soooooo very much appreciated!

Easy check-out "hopefully" = buyers that actually pay!!!

Yay!!!

Sept. 25, 2009 at 12:43 a.m. MyMoms

Thanks for the improvements, love the picks!

Sept. 25, 2009 at 12:53 a.m. FibroFibers

Hmm, interesting. It's a simple change, but I think it will make a significant difference. Thanks!

Sept. 25, 2009 at 1:06 a.m. HempPatch

Cool, thanks Etsy!

Sept. 25, 2009 at 1:13 a.m. LavenderField

Thanks guys for working so hard, these improvements are always welcomed!

Sept. 25, 2009 at 2:09 a.m. suldrun

great news

but can you have a different shop name then your user name?

Sept. 25, 2009 at 2:09 a.m. KatDesignsNYC

That sounds terrific! Thanks for the improvements.

Sept. 25, 2009 at 2:55 a.m. GlamRockEmporium

Yay! Increased buyer conversion makes the GlamRockEmporium happy :)

Sept. 25, 2009 at 3:31 a.m. underoakstudios

Thanks keep it up! I've bought a ton on etsy and every time I have to figure it out again. The more user friendly the better!

Sept. 25, 2009 at 7:54 a.m. fantasybeader

UUUGGGGGGGGG SPAM!!!!

Ok sorry got side tracked. I cant wait till checkout is a little easier to use for first time shoppers :-)

Sept. 25, 2009 at 7:57 a.m. spacejam

sounds great!

Sept. 25, 2009 at 8:10 a.m. skydreamslight

would you please allow us to pay to all sellers at once?
it is pain to log onto paypal with each sellers when i bought from many different sellers at once.

and i really appreciate the new change!

thank you!

Sept. 25, 2009 at 8:10 a.m. RobinMariaPedrero

Thank you! I have had to walk some of my clients through the process, they thought they had paid and could not get to the next step of going to pay pal.

Sept. 25, 2009 at 8:17 a.m. ovgilliesdesigns

Great to see you guys making the site better!

Sept. 25, 2009 at 8:35 a.m. Morado

Thank you! Hope it works :o) A little tired and sad about non paying buyers (sniff!)

http://twitter.com/MoradoShop
http://www.facebook.com/MoradoShop

Sept. 25, 2009 at 8:45 a.m. stitchntyme

Thank you Etsy for this improvement, very appreciated. Hope it is available soon to all of the Etsy community.

Sept. 25, 2009 at 9:01 a.m. lovelygifts

As always, thank you for the updates : )

Sept. 25, 2009 at 9:03 a.m. woodponddesigns

Thank you. These changes sound great.

Sept. 25, 2009 at 9:09 a.m. ManoCelebrates

Thanks a lot,means more customers.

Sept. 25, 2009 at 9:12 a.m. smallstakes

Excellent news!

Sept. 25, 2009 at 9:22 a.m. wristcandycreations

YAY! Can't wait to see how this improvement does! Hopefully our customers will enjoy an easier check out now! Thank you.

Sept. 25, 2009 at 9:36 a.m. FatBatShop

Thanks for always looking for new ways to make Etsy easier and better! Do appreciate it! :)

Sept. 25, 2009 at 9:38 a.m. SquierDesign

An easier to read and simplified check out is a great idea ... hope it does well.

Sept. 25, 2009 at 10:33 a.m. AntiGenre

Will this also eliminate buyers who claim that they "didn't mean to click" or "didn't realize they clicked" the Commit to Purchase button? Twice today this has happened. Grrrr.

Hoepfully these changes will smooth the process out a bit.

Sept. 25, 2009 at 10:35 a.m. DoodlebugAccessories

Fantastic as always. Appreciate it very much.

Sept. 25, 2009 at 10:47 a.m. birdie1

Thank you so much. I regularly get first time buyers who never end up paying. This is MUCH needed.

Sept. 25, 2009 at 10:57 a.m. recycledwares

Thanks for trying out new ideas and concepts to make the etsy shopping experience better for everyone. i appreciate your hard work.

Sept. 25, 2009 at 11 a.m. wristielove

many many thanks!

Sept. 25, 2009 at 11:06 a.m. philosophi

Great - I have to be careful not to buy too much now it's even easier! :)

Sept. 25, 2009 at 11:06 a.m. smilingbluedog

Sounds like etsy's working hard to make things easier.
Thankyou!

Sept. 25, 2009 at 11:06 a.m. konkokto

I think it´s already rad enough as it is.

Sept. 25, 2009 at 11:33 a.m. FeralGlass

A step in the right direction, however... getting a bad shipping address has never been a problem that I can recall. Having non-paying buyers who think they have opaid because the checkout process leads them to think they are done..that is aproblem reported every day in the forums.
Please fix the payment hand-off. Without that, having a valid address is moot.

Sept. 25, 2009 at 11:36 a.m. KnitStorm

Hope it helps! Have had a few nonpayments lately...

Sept. 25, 2009 at 12:10 p.m. michon

even small changes are probably good, let us know how it works out!

Sept. 25, 2009 at 12:48 p.m. HeyChica

Thanks, looking forward to a simplified checkout process!

Sept. 25, 2009 at 12:55 p.m. cocomo

will there be a "send invoice" or "payment reminder" option for sellers - when buyers dont pay right away?

Sept. 25, 2009 at 1:03 p.m. OhFaro

Thanks etsy.

I agree with CoCo- we need reminders and a way to re-send the invoice.

Sept. 25, 2009 at 1:38 p.m. DalkullanJewelry

Thank you Etsy!
The Delicate Fern stamp is really lovely!

Sept. 25, 2009 at 1:46 p.m. katieblue

Thanks for the improvements, Etsy!

Sept. 25, 2009 at 4:21 p.m. Slowshirts

I love it!
And next you'll add a size/color choice option for the customer during checkout?????

PLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEASE!
It's everything we have EVER WANTED!

Sept. 25, 2009 at 5:53 p.m. SimpleJoysPaperie

Thank you for working to make checkout faster and easier.

Sept. 25, 2009 at 6:31 p.m. fibrevolution

w00t!

Sept. 25, 2009 at 8:19 p.m. cavebaby

As both, buyer and seller, I'd love one more improvement added: pay to all sellers at once. If you buy 5 items from 5 different sellers, you have to log in PayPal 5 times and make 5 payments. eBay has a nice feature: Pay One Seller At a Time or Pay All Sellers At Once. Thank you for working on it though!

Sept. 25, 2009 at 10:41 p.m. bhangtiez

Sounds great...thanks 4 the update!

Sept. 25, 2009 at 11:51 p.m. Giftbearer

Thanks! This should reduce errors, especially for first-time buyers.

Sept. 26, 2009 at 6:36 a.m. metalRomance

The only thing about Checkout that I thought was very confusing was when you want to pay with a credit card and 'Paypal' login page would come up.

I didn't understand that the 'Continue without logging into Paypal' selection actually meant to 'continue payment just using your credit card.

I avoided making purchases a few times because of this confusing message.

Sept. 26, 2009 at 7:38 a.m. Squier

Simplicity is the key!

Sept. 26, 2009 at 9:38 a.m. VintageStarrBeads

I can't wait for that addition to check for buyers. As A seller i have had to cancel so many sales of First time buyers at etsy. They logon for the first time, add to cart, and then either have trouble obtaining paypal or they just never return and the so called SALE is NEVER PAID and I have to cancel it!
So annoying!
Maybe this will be easier for new buyers.
For DEADBEAT non-payers well.. there's always KARMA!!!

-Rachelle Starr A.K.A Vintagestarrbeads and Starrbeads

Sept. 26, 2009 at 10:43 a.m. Momyzmunymakerz

I agree with Squier... Simplicity is the key!

Sept. 26, 2009 at 11:48 a.m. Iammie

Ooh, nice!

Sept. 26, 2009 at 12:29 p.m. samsstuff

Thanks for the updates & keeping us informed! This should help make it easier on buyers (& sellers).

Sept. 27, 2009 at 3:26 a.m. ScrapHappieAZ

Hope this reduces the number of none paid purchases.

Sept. 27, 2009 at 8:15 a.m. lostmitten

Thanks for all of the hard work! Hopefully this results in fewer non-paying buyers!

Sept. 27, 2009 at 9:01 a.m. mazedasastoat

You guys are awesome! :-) Always thinking up new ways of making Etsy even better for us all & the best thing is... you actually LISTEN to what we say! Thank you so much for all your hard work.

Sept. 27, 2009 at 11:48 a.m. SimplySassySupplies

Thanks for making things easier for us and the buyer. In my short time w/Etsy, I have seen alot of improvements!!

Sept. 27, 2009 at 6:05 p.m. JANETLILY

Thank you so much! for making it easier for the buyer :) My shop is doing really well, with your hard work. It will be even better!

Sept. 27, 2009 at 11:17 p.m. expressyourself

Cool!

Sept. 29, 2009 at 12:31 p.m. kittycrossbones

I'm kind of confused as a buyer just said it says contact seller for payment? No more automatic payments?? That's going to be a pain to have to invoice every one of my customers...

Sept. 29, 2009 at 11:09 p.m. AdornMeJewelry

Does this mean that the buyer will automatically be taken to PayPal so they can check out? Just had another customer recently who thought they had paid when they hadn't, and I had to instruct them to go into their purchases, click the green button and so forth.

Sept. 30, 2009 at 7:56 a.m. cassidycay

Thanks for the update about checkout! Very good to know. I also love all the highlighted Etsy things, especially the man with the mustache.

Sept. 30, 2009 at 5:26 p.m. WhiteEarthStudio

Thank you for all of the updates

Oct. 1, 2009 at 3:57 a.m. lindabutterfly

Over the past two years many of my 1st time buyers have had to be taken step by step through the checkout process. Maybe reducing the checkout pages header like this will reduce overload in peoples' minds and make them concentrate on following the steps and eventually paying.
I first voiced this as a possible solution about 17 months ago. Good to see it finally happening.

Oct. 16, 2009 at 3:24 a.m. jewelrybyamor

Million thanks for all th information you provided. I will try to follow them.

Oct. 18, 2009 at 1:25 a.m. thehippiecouple

integrating google checkout also would be cool.

Oct. 29, 2009 at 7:45 p.m. terrabellaaccents

Hope this helps bring in more customers! YAY!

Nov. 7, 2009 at 6:06 p.m. Carley50

I am new here and need some help getting my site up and running. I am having problems viewing my logo and can't seem to get it together (help) ? Thanks Carol H.

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