Quite often, clients and subscribers of the Western Bid UA channel, who are just starting to sell on Etsy, reach out with the same question: how to get the first reviews if there are no sales yet or very few? This question prompted me to prepare this material. Here, we will discuss reviews on Etsy in detail, their impact, how the first review appears, what to do to ensure it’s a five-star review, and how to handle if the review turns out to be negative.
Welcome to the Western Bid UA blog. My name is Victoria Zhydok. I work with Western Bid in Chernihiv and develop my small shop on Etsy at the same time. At Western Bid, we help entrepreneurs go beyond the local market daily: accepting payments from their websites, shipping goods to customers in different countries, and using pre-center and fulfillment services in the USA.
Briefly about the main point: For a new Etsy shop, reviews are a crucial ranking factor. To get the first “five,” experts recommend either waiting for a real order or using the help of acquaintances (with mandatory shipping and tracking number). The presence of reviews increases customer trust and allows you to achieve the Star Seller status (rating from 4.8), which directly affects sales through Etsy’s algorithms.
Why are reviews so important
I don’t know about you, but I still get a little anxious every time a new review appears. How many stars this time? These thoughts never go away, even after five years of working on Etsy.
On one hand, I always want more reviews. On the other hand — they should be good. Every five-star review really boosts morale. It adds confidence, gives an understanding that all efforts are worthwhile. When a buyer marks the product quality, service, and quick delivery as excellent, there’s an internal feeling: you’re doing everything right.
But sometimes it’s different. A bad review sticks in your mind for a long time. You keep replaying the situation over and over, mood drops, motivation fades. It’s hard both morally and emotionally.
How do reviews influence the Etsy search algorithm?
However, our emotions are only part of the picture. There are also objective reasons why positive reviews matter so much. A five-star review is a signal to Etsy that you are a professional and do your job well. It’s a kind of confirmation of your expertise.
Moreover, reviews directly affect Etsy’s algorithm. They are considered when ranking listings in search results. The important thing is not only the number of reviews but also the ratio of positive ratings to the number of sales. The more five-star reviews — the better your position in the search results.
Star Seller Program
Positive reviews are also key indicators for participating in the Star Seller program. To get this status, the shop’s average rating must be no lower than 4.8. The system simply sums all ratings and divides by the number of reviews.
How to get the first reviews
But all this begins to work once reviews are already there. What should new shops with zero sales and, accordingly, zero reviews do? Or when there have been several orders, but no customer has left a comment?
Moreover, most customers are not in a hurry to write reviews when everything is fine. But if something goes wrong, negative reviews appear very quickly.
My experience: a story with one star
I had a telling story with one of my shops. I just opened it, immediately received an organic order — and almost right away, Etsy blocked the shop. I couldn’t cancel the order because access to the shop was restricted.
Of course, the buyer left a one-star review: they didn’t receive the product, Etsy refunded the money — and that was the end of the story for them. I, however, fought for two months to unban that shop and finally succeeded. Imagine: an active shop, one sale, and one star.
After some time, another order appeared. The buyer received the product and, which was especially nice, changed the rating from one star to five. So this story ended happily.
Two ways to get your first review
Actually, there are only two options.
Path 1: A real buyer
The first option — wait for the first real buyer. This always carries some risk: you can get either a positive or negative review. But even with a negative one, you can work — my experience proves this.
Path 2: Acquaintances or relatives
The second way — contact friends or relatives. Many Ukrainians now live in different countries, so placing a real order with delivery is not a problem. The main thing is to send the product with tracking. After delivery, a familiar person leaves a review, and the shop no longer looks “empty”.
This is exactly how I received my first review in my first shop.
My review acquisition tactics
Next, to regularly receive reviews, I developed my own approach that still works today.
When there were few orders, I tracked each shipment. As soon as I saw that the parcel was delivered, I wrote a brief personal message to the buyer. I asked if everything arrived, if everything was okay with the product, if they liked the purchase, and very delicately asked to share impressions if they had time.
In many cases, this worked. Perhaps my experience will be helpful for you too.
Reviews from a buyer’s perspective
We often look at reviews through the eyes of the seller. But for the buyer, they are one of the main decision-making factors. It’s reviews and the average rating that form the first impression of the shop.
Reviews as a quality control tool
From my own experience, I can say: reviews are also a great quality control tool.
For example, in my shop, all wall-mounted products sold with fasteners — screws and dowels. And at some point, I started receiving reviews with four, and sometimes three stars. Buyers wrote that there were problems with installation, the brackets didn’t hold well.
This lasted for several months. No one at the production site saw a problem, and we even began to think that it was the customers’ fault. But one day, we compared dowels from different batches and found that the latest batch was defective. We didn’t notice this in time. And then I thought we were lucky — negative reviews could have been much more.
Reviews should not only be read but also analyzed. They are real feedback from buyers. If everything is fine — great. If not — it’s a sign that there’s a problem somewhere.
Building trust through reviews
Don’t forget about buyer behavior. We all, when purchasing online, read reviews and decide whether we can trust the seller. Positive ratings build trust and loyalty, and sometimes are a decisive factor in the purchase decision. Moreover, buyers who give five stars often return again.
How to respond to reviews
Do you respond to buyers’ reviews? I used to thank clients in private messages, but now Etsy allows you to do so directly under the review.
This is a really convenient feature. It shows that every buyer is important to you and confirms a high level of service. I use it constantly and sincerely recommend it to everyone.
What to do with negative reviews
I am confident that most of our clients receive positive reviews because we put our soul into our work. But sometimes, negative feedback happens. There is a separate article on the channel where I detailed how to work with negative reviews and how to turn them into a positive experience.”
Conclusion
Why are the first reviews on Etsy so important for a new shop?
Because reviews are not just stars. They influence both customer trust and Etsy’s algorithm. A shop without reviews raises doubts, even if the product is good. And five-star ratings help you appear higher in search results and bring you closer to Star Seller status.
How to get the first review if there are no sales or very few?
There are two real options: wait for an organic customer or ask acquaintances or relatives to place a real order with delivery and review. This helps to overcome initial distrust in the shop.
Should you ask buyers to leave reviews?
Yes, if you do it respectfully and without pressure. A short personal message after delivery, without pressure and in a friendly tone, usually works much better than complete silence. And if you carefully read even critical reviews, you can often find clues about where the real problems are — in the product, packaging, or service.
