This Storque article briefly outlines the changes.
Today, we launched some exciting changes to Etsy’s search engine. These changes were requested by the community and we think they help improve the shopping experience on Etsy.
We’ve separated item search into three new searches: Handmade, Vintage, and Supplies. The default is Handmade, with Vintage and Supplies available in the drop-down. You can also select “All items” to search Handmade, Supplies, and Vintage all at once.
Consequently, it is critical that sellers categorize and tag their items correctly in order to place them within the proper search. Last week, we posted some information that will help you with that process. You can read the initial heads up here — Tech Updates: Upcoming Changes to Search and Categories — and its companion, follow-up article here — Upcoming Changes to Search: Your Questions Answered.
Just to clarify, category bleed is addressed when searching via specific top-level categories, rather than via the search bar at the top of each page. The drop-down menu does default to handmade, and includes the other search options, both new and old, but searches the entire database, not within specific categories.
HeyMichelle says here:
I mean- the “no bleed” is for categories. By categories, I mean the category browser. Search does not search just within that category…
If you would like to search *just* the art category, type in your additional search terms from the Art category, a subcategory, or subsubcategory from the Categories pages.
There are numerous threads following this change, in several forum sections. There is also some speculation that the change has affected the ability to list new items in at least some categories. See this thread in Bugs.
update by JB:
The bug linked above appears to be resolved and was not a true bug, but a problem on one user’s computer.
May 5th, 2008 at 4:47 pm
There are some reports that there is still a bit of bleedthrough going on, and tagging mistakes now really stand out. But searching just got a whole lot earier, and more relevant.
Overall, this is a huge - and very welcome - change.
Way to go, Etsy!
May 5th, 2008 at 5:26 pm
I think the subcategories will still continue to bleed together- like print and originals in the art category.
When etsy says “no bleed” they are only referring to the top level categories, as I understand it.
It’s a start, and helpful.
May 5th, 2008 at 5:38 pm
Should we start a count of how many complaint threads there are? I’ve seen 2 so far.
May 5th, 2008 at 6:18 pm
The “no bleed” means that items won’t bleed from one category to another like they used to. (i.e. from patterns to clothing) If prints and originals are both inside the art category, then they will continue to bleed if the items have both tags. An item can be placed in multiple subcategories but basically this change means the subcategories are TRUE subcategories, i.e. subsets of the main category, entirely contained in the main category.
Hmm I just noticed that now we cannot search by tags only. The options are:
tags & titles
Tags, titles & description
materials
There used to be a tags only option, didn’t there?
May 5th, 2008 at 6:37 pm
some comparison from old system to new system
on April 29, WITH category bleed:
Today, May 5, without category bleed, those exact same searches yield these results:
http://www.etsy.com/category_sub.php?tags=children.clothing
27921 items, all inside the children category
http://www.etsy.com/category_sub.php?tags=clothing.children
7548 items, all inside the clothing category
there are none of the same items in these two links now, on April 29 the results were identical.
as for search results there are multiple ways to do it.
1. handmade only (default search) 38967 items
http://www.etsy.com/search_results_tags.php?search_type=tags&search_query=children+clothing
2. all items (handmade, vintage and supplies) 48090 items
http://www.etsy.com/search_results.php?search_type=tag_title_all&search_query=children+clothing
this is closest to the results that all 3 links gave on April 29, but there have been 10,000 new items listed with these tags since April 29
3. supplies only- 1029 items, mostly patterns but also some mistagging, since a piece of fabric or a ribbon should not be tagged “clothing”. We are not supposed to tag with “possible use”.
http://www.etsy.com/search_results.php?search_type=tag_title_supplies&search_query=children+clothing
4. vintage only -324 items
http://www.etsy.com/search_results.php?search_type=tag_title_vintage&search_query=children+clothing
May 12th, 2008 at 6:43 pm
Update:
This week’s Chat with Matt will be about the vintage and supplies search changes
Date: Friday May 16
Location: treehouse room of the virtual labs
Topic:
Commercial Supplies and Vintage after the Search changes.
After the separation of handmade items, supplies and vintage in the search bar, commercial supply and vintage sellers are worried about exposure for their items. We’ll share stats on the effects of the separation, as well as brainstorm ideas for promoting commercial supplies and vintage on Etsy.
Agenda:
Matt shares some Statts (er, stats, sorry) on commercial supplies and vintage pre- and post-separation.
Polls about your sales, views, and hearts. Up, down, or about the same?
Share your ideas about the supplies marketplace on Etsy.
Share your ideas about the vintage marketplace on Etsy.
Do you have any ideas about how Etsy could promote commercial supplies and vintage?
May 12th, 2008 at 6:50 pm
Also note that in last week’s chat, Rokali said point blank:
source= meeting minutes: http://team.etsy.com/minutesEmploy.html
So, certain things are already decided, apparently. Asking for the default to be “all items” may not be productive if Rokali has already decided they won’t do that.
I do like the idea of setting my own default, because their search can’t remember what I prefer and i have to keep re-selecting from the drop down menu every time I add a new tag word to my search string. That is highly annoying to a buyer.
May 13th, 2008 at 9:50 am
Rokali: and create special homepages for vintage & supplies
I hope they are also considering special homepages for the other 28 categories listed on Etsy, Supplies and vintage being only 2 out of 30. Jewelry outweighs most of the categories, why not give it it’s own special search option and homepage?
I foresee in the effort to make things more ‘equitable’ they are going to actually create more of an advantage. V/S already have more than any of the other categories, I don’t see art or accessories with their own section in the search drop down box.
I don’t get why those 2 categories need such elevation above all others. That, in my estimation, is truly where the inequities lie.
May 13th, 2008 at 1:42 pm
But art and accessories are included in the default search, which is what most people use. (just out of habit or laziness or not knowing default isn’t “all items”)
At this point most supplies and vintage sellers say their sales are way down. Supplies probably not as bad, because their regular customers might access their shop thru favorites, but vintage is WAY down. I wish etsytools was still around to see some solid stats before and after the search change.
Special homepages for those 2 categories also probably means being EXcluded from the main homepage. Segregation isn’t giving an advantage to the segregated groups. Usually “separate but equal” ends up being not very equal.
May 13th, 2008 at 2:30 pm
Yes art and accessories are lumped together along with jewelry and woodworking. and 28 other categories, People listing in those categories do not get their own search in the drop down menu, where is the equity in that?
I guess what I really wish is that Etsy would have had a better idea of what it was they wanted from the start and stopped playing games.with people’s livelihoods.
I truly believe that they really do want to get back on track with the niche they created, but unfortunately there is going to be fallout along the way, I feel badly for that, but the signs were there since a year ago, it’s not really a surprise to anyone save those who have signed up recently..
Having a supply shop, I do have to make one observation, anecdotal, but an observatioh nonetheless. I have done more business in the time I’ve had my supply shop as compared to the same amount of time I’ve had my handmade shop. I have promoted my handmade shop and done absolutely nothing but list in my supply shop. As a matter of fact, my supply shop has been neglected for long periods of time. Yet I still manage to sell. If I devoted more time and effort to it, I might actually be successful at it.
But my point is, I think supplies and vintage have had an advantage of ‘list it and they will come’ for so long that now they actually might have to work at it like the rest of us. Whether you are not in an inclusive search or you are buried on page 5000 of an inclusive search, the results are pretty much the same. You have to work to get your exposure. That has actually been the single-most commonly given advice I have ever seen given.