One can often find Loosewirestudio in the forums. Friday, December 14th marked her "10,000th Forum Thread Posted In."

This milestone has made her reflect on the Forums and Etsy in general. "Most of what I love about Etsy is its community. The people here have been kind and helpful. There are so many Etsians that are willing to answer questions. Sometimes it seems a contest to see who can answer first!"

So we asked her to share some tried and true knowledge for Etsy newbies here in a Storque article.

Three most prevalent Forum questions I like to answer:

1) Questions that I like to field are when someone is panicking about something. This will tend to be a newer Etsian. It's a pleasure putting someone at ease and letting them know it's OK. Usually it's something many of us have run into, such as:
— "Where has my listing gone? It's disappeared!"
Typically it's Inactive or Expired, but sometimes it's Sold. The Sold ones are the most fun. For example: http://www.etsy.com/forums_thread.php?thread_id=5357454
— "Why is Paypal charging different shipping costs than Etsy?"
There is a checkbox in Paypal that needs to be checked so that Paypal doesn't override Etsy. More here: http://www.etsy.com/forums_thread.php?thread_id=5369590
— And I like to assure people there is no stupid question — ever. Etsy at first seems very large, but it does get smaller and easier. Really. :)

Most answers can be found under the Help link in the Header of any page or in the Storque How-to section or News section, but I understand that, since this is our art and our business on the line, it can feel personal and we can easily worry. Sometimes searching the Forums can be successful, but when it's not, there are many Etsians ready to help out in the Forums. It's a great community!

2) I love questions about the Treasury, because I love the Treasury. It's a fun and popular feature. Etsy is lucky to have Jared, the developer.
— "How do I snag a Treasury?"
I have accumulated a list of "Tricks." See this forum post: http://www.etsy.com/forums_thread.php?thread_id=5364937 Some of these things are my own wisdom, much garnered from others. Good luck! [NOTE: Jared recently upped the total count of lists to 333]
— "How do I know if I'm in a Treasury?"
It's as easy as looking for a Gold or Silver (not gray) star! See this forum post for a link to a picture: http://www.etsy.com/forums_thread.php?thread_id=5358886
I enjoy the "ah ha!" nature of this topic.
— "Do Sold items remain in a Treasury?"
Well, they do in regular Treasuries, but if your Treasury makes it to the front page, then sold items move out and alternates or items from the previous Treasury slide in. More here:
http://www.etsy.com/forums_thread.php?thread_id=5364795

3) Gathering and charting statistics has been fascinating in the Forums. A more recent Poll has more than pleased me. Why? Because I've read a few newbies say it puts them at ease about their first sale or it is very encouraging.

The question? "What is the average number of days to your first sale?"

With the data gathered so far, it's 23 days. For me it was 12 days. It's fun waiting, but also nerve-wracking! Ah... but that "First Sale Happy Dance" — there's nothing quite like it! :)
Here's the Forums thread: http://www.etsy.com/forums_thread.php?thread_id=5347020
If you haven't yet entered your data, please do!
Here's the most recent chart, updated periodically: [from loosewirestudio's flickr]

Thanks to all participants!