Tag: SEO

Poshmark Ambassador II & New Search Functions

A small note: My mission has always been to empower and inform sellers so that everyone stands a fighting chance to have a successful small business. I share information freely and not for profit.

That being said, please do not steal my content. This is my intellectual property. If you want to share any of it outside this post please – just ask. Chances are I’ll be more than happy to share, all I ask is you give me credit and let me know. I really appreciate it. Back to regularly scheduled programming.

We received a lot of wonderful information from Poshmark regarding the changes since February but some are asking me, “Now what? How do we operate under these new changes?” Today, I’ll talk about the new search, how SEO has been affected and how Ambassador II fits into the picture.

Poshmark has done two major things since February:
1) Added new parameters to search, including simple search
2) Rolled-out Ambassador II

As a reminder, SEO is irrelevant WITHIN the Posh platform in the context of using true SEO, which optimizes listings for outside search engines and brings traffic for search engine sales such as Google. After all, SEO stands for “Search Engine Optimization” and is what we use to get ranked and get views on the Web. Using SEO + normal listing increases sales since you’re adding the element of guest buyers and hits to your closet from Web searches.

Posh has rewarding behaviors programmed into the platform, mostly related to listing, sharing and following. This has not changed. You should continue to list, follow and share as you always have. As with the original Ambassador program, Posh algorithms reward your closet activity by sending targeted users to your closet except now the Ambassador II closets are gaining even more “rewards,” notably enhanced traffic being driven to your closet. Per Nyzelle, the Ambassador II program is supposed to hustle for you; it will drive more traffic, more followers, more visibility so sales can be brought to our doorsteps and prevent us from being required to work so hard. More about the rewards system here.

Make sure you aren’t confusing the two new features(or other regards to sales slowing down) because they’re separate, they just happen to have been rolled out at the same time. The simple search functions within the platform are somewhat hurting the closets who have spent time on SEO’ing their closets. When we have very descriptive titles, sometimes it’s too descriptive and may miss a user who is simply looking for a “blue top.”

In order to combat the search function simplicity, it’s an extremely easy change. Listing titles should change from:


Louis Vuitton Petit Métis MM White Leather Satchel


To:
Louis Vuitton Leather Bag Satchel White Petit Métis MM

By simplifying the first few keywords it will satisfy the new search function and you’ll still have an SEO’d listing because you kept the main keywords needed for outside searches. If a user is searching for “blue top” on Poshmark it will return the listings that have the phrase “blue top”. It also looks for listings that are Just Shared and Relevant (two more filter factors that have been applied to Poshmark’s search features). This means that SEO’d titles will still work as well as they used to and we have the added benefit of having our listings show up for the user if “blue top” is found in your listing.

This brings up a really important point. I know what you’re thinking… You’re thinking, “OK! I’ll just put a lot of keywords and phrases in my listing description and I’m good!”

Nope.

That is called “keyword stuffing”. We’ve all seen the closets who put a huge paragraph of keywords at the bottom of their listings in the hopes they will cast a wider net, but this is actually counter-productive and kills the visibility of your listing. Posh specified that they are looking into putting in controls to deprioritize listings that do this, and search engines absolutely penalize listings that do this. Google (and other engines) have a lot of coding in place to fight spam – and keyword stuffing is spam. If there are tons of keywords in your listing, Google will actually de-rank your listing which hoses SEO.

If we’ve learned nothing else by being sellers on this platform it’s that we have to adapt with changes. This isn’t a change that’s going to kill your closet. In fact, it’s going to help you out a whole lot in the long run. Just remember, we are currently in the rebound period for Ambassador II. With the OG Ambassador program it took 3-6 months to see a full rebound in closet activity and PA2 is seemingly following the same trend. Poshmark is investigating these trends and will improve upon them if they can.

What does this all mean? Keep calm and carry on. I know your sales are suffering right now. So are everyone else’s. Poshmark is not in the business of losing money. If our sales are suffering so are Poshmark‘s. All we can do at this point in time is operate from past history, use the lessons we’ve learned over the years, and make smart, informed decisions. If there continues to be a large dip in sales, it’s a safe bet that Poshmark will course correct.

Just breathe!

XOXO,

Poshmark_Paige

0

Meeting with Poshmark – All the Deets!

I reached out late last week to see if I could get a meeting with Poshmark, as indicated in my last post. After reaching out to Manish he connected me to Nyzelle, Community Development Specialist. They acted within hours of me reaching out, which was wonderful!

Nyzelle and I met on Monday evening via Zoom and spoke for about 40 minutes. She was gracious and open and answered my questions directly and honestly. For everyone who feels you’re not being heard – you really are!!

Below is a summary of what we talked about.

Search: What changed and how do we pivot to accommodate?

Relevance: Poshmark is working on how to return more relevant listings when users search within the app. The search algorithms are very complicated, especially when you have multiple filters being used as the default. While Just Shared is the default, they are also working on Relevance. We all know how frustrating it is when we search for something specific and there is a closet that hasn’t been active since 2019 pop-up. Their developers are working on ways to shove inactive closets way down in the search results in addition to looking at other ways of handling inactive closets.

One of the other items we’ve been seeing is, when we search for something very specific (such as if we’re searching for comps) the search returns some wonky stuff. At one point I did a search for “Anthropologie wide leg linen pants” and I got a few at the top of my search but it quickly devolved into tops, necklaces, etc. It makes it hard to find comps!

As a person who works in the software development world, I can tell you firsthand how difficult it is to work with data and search functions (data = closets & listings). You try one thing, another breaks, you try another and it breaks something else. This is an extremely complicated undertaking but they have heard us and are working on Relevance, specifically inactive closets. No word of deactivating old closets.

Simple Search: Poshmark has been open about the fact that they have changed search results to make the user experience easier to find items while they’re in the app, so they have implemented some simple search features to assist. This has complicated things with SEO and searching for comps. Nyzelle and I talked about strategies for working with this and I will post a new write-up by the end of the week about how to both retain SEO and satisfy simple search. This will not be going away however they will continue to tweak. This is our new normal, but there are ways to work around it that are actually quite simple and effective. The best news is this won’t be a drastic change or require tons of work to fix in your closets so everyone can relax a bit. There are admittedly also still some issues with search. I was assured this is the highest priority and they are working on fixing it.

One cool new feature that I wasn’t personally aware of is that the simple search phrasing works not just with the title but with your descriptions! So, if you have a title that’s fully SEO’d it shouldn’t be affected by simple search. If you have the search phrase in your listing description** the search engine will find it and send your listing to the searcher. For example, if you have a listing title that says, “David Yurman Citrine On Point Cable Silver Ring w/ Diamonds 20mm” you can add a different phrase in your description that says “Sterling Silver Citrine ring” and it will send your listing out if someone uses that phrase to search.

**Important Note: This does not mean that you should keyword stuff your listings!!! I’m sure you’ve all seen listings that have a ton of keywords at the bottom of the description; that’s “keyword stuffing”. Please do not do this. Keyword stuffing actually penalizes your closet in the SEO realm. Nyzelle and I spoke about this and she confirmed this is a practice that needs to stop. Search engines are programmed to ignore pages (our listings) that do this and it will not help you in the Poshmark search engine. It’s a pretty negative practice. If you SEO your listings and are descriptive of the item this is sufficient and your listings will be found.

Testing – Group A & Group B Clarification

While on the Fireside Chat, Tracy mentioned how they used two groups, Group A (control group) and Group B (test group). The community felt like there was some ambiguity and there was concern about whether they were testing these changes on live closets – myself included.

This was simply a misunderstanding and was not stated correctly in the Fireside Chat.

They did test on live closets however the people who were testers knew about it and had a mechanism to report any issues they were experiencing. Testing happened over a year ago!! Poshmark’s software development lifecycle (the way they program) is quite robust and they are doing things “the right way,” so we can all relax about that one.

This also means, for all of you stating, “I want to be taken out of the test group!” This isn’t a thing… Everyone has the changes already (since February) and no one is singled-out, they’re not in specific groups, there is no shadow banning, and there are no offline or shadow servers that people get stuck on. These are all conspiracy theories that have arisen in the community and in groups and it’s wildly incorrect. If anyone is interested in hearing how software platforms are set up and the infrastructure (servers) to run a platform let me know and I’ll be happy to do a post on it.

Ambassador 2: How has this Affected our Closets?

For some of my long-time followers and people who have been on the platform since the original Ambassador program rolled out, you may remember when we saw a similar slow-down at the beginning. (I explain it here.) It is my hypothesis that Ambassador 2 has resulted in a similar slow-down and that we should see basically the same trend as in 2017. Since we are three months in I will be closely tracking the next three to confirm.

The whole purpose of the PA2 program is to create sales for us, to drive traffic to our closets. There are a lot of people who are concerned their new followers are new users – but this means the algorithms are doing their job, not that you’re not getting quality followers. The whole idea behind it is to decrease our amount of hustle so that we can let the platform bring the sales to us.

Another community concern is the requirements for keeping PA2. Many of you are concerned about losing it since sales have been slow – the 50 sales benchmark is daunting for those who have decreased sales. Nyzelle told me that if you’re reaching the end of the quarter, have met all the other requirements but are missing on the number of sales you can reach out to PM support to get a manual review. Their goal is not to penalize people if they have a bad quarter – they want us to succeed, and they can manually override you losing it.

The good news is that we are now on the upswing and everything is rebounding. People are seeing increases in sales and closet traffic, engagement from new people, lots of follows and shares. With OG Ambassador we saw sales rebounding around about month 3-4 and everyone was back in full swing around month 6, so I am hoping we see a similar trend. As a reminder, the Ambassador algorithms send traffic to your closet based on what you’re selling. When new users come on board PA2 will promote your closet to them if your items match their My Size & brand follows. PA2’s are also promoted to established closets the same way. We also benefit from extra perks. You can find details here on the PA2 program.

Listing: Pictures

One item confirmed is that Poshmark is recommending plain, white backgrounds for pictures. This makes a lot of sense because this is what search engines “like” also. Clear pictures of your item are like candy to a search engine so if you’re using SEO & implement this for your photos you should be a happy camper. This doesn’t mean you have to go change every listing in your closet, although you can if you want. You can phase this in with new listings if that’s a big challenge for existing listings. For all of you who spend tons of time editing, putting borders on and text of the brands, this is hurting you. Go back to the basics: well-lit, plain background, clean, crisp photos.

Just make sure your for sale items are…how do I say this?…relevant. Check the trend reports, see what’s selling and act accordingly. If you’re a person who has worked really hard and hasn’t had any luck be super honest with yourself. Are your items dated and are the styles those that people want to buy right now? Are your items of good quality? Are your photos great? Are you including measurements in your listings? If you have a whole lot of 10-year-old Maurices items, wrinkly, faded Old Navy, or mall brand items from 2010, chances are that’s a big part of your problem. Have a very clear vision of who your buyer is!

What does this all mean?

All of these feature rollouts along with Ambassador 2 have created somewhat of a perfect storm that’s slowed everyone’s sales (not to mention, we are still in a pandemic).

Summarized, here is what we’ve been dealing with since February:

  • Changes in search by adding simple search
  • Flip-flop in search from Relevance being the default to Just Shared being the default
  • Tweaks to include Relevance as a second filter
  • Ambassador 2 program rollout

That’s a lot! It’s no wonder sales have wigged-out!

Poshmark Visibility

We ended our conversation talking about the frustrations of the community, one of the most frustrating being that Poshmarkers don’t have any visibility into what’s happening or what’s coming, and that we have no time to prepare for changes. I explained to her how the lack of transparency, especially with major changes that we’ve had this year, is causing a lot of discord, creating mistrust, and leading to these wild rumors and conspiracy theories in the community – because we have nothing that’s telling us otherwise. Nyzelle agreed. They are hearing us and will try to give everyone a heads-up in the future when changes are happening.

Poshmark is also having internal discussions about ways to increase community engagement and has heard the community – truly. I cannot share with you specific plans, but they have some exciting things coming in the future that will ensure sellers have everything they need, will be doing more education, will implement more transparency, and are planning ways for more engagement between PMHQ and the community.

Final Thoughts

Long story short, while everyone is blaming search for their problems it’s actually the PA2 rollout that’s decreased sales. This doesn’t mean you should run to PM asking them to remove your PA2 status, because I can tell you from firsthand experience, when it kicks in you will get tons of traffic and increased sales. My sales have gone way up in the last couple of weeks which is a pleasant surprise and I’ve had many saying theirs are rebounding too. This will happen for you too!

I left the call feeling very encouraged. Nyzelle was open, honest, informed, and answered every, single question with full transparency. I really appreciated that! I’ve shared with you what I can but we left the call with plans to stay in touch and have future calls. I know it sounds like I’m drinking the Kool-Aid but, quite frankly, they are a robust company that is approaching these problems quite seriously and I’m super encouraged by what I was told. They realize how upset the community is and they are taking steps to solve these problems.

In the meantime, remember what I said above – you should start to see increased traffic if you haven’t already. If your closet is complete crickets you can reach out to PMHQ Support to see if anything is wrong, but if you stay active (share, follow, list, like, buy) you will see the same coming back to you – this is social commerce, after all! Don’t be afraid to change up your routine for a week or tweak the way you’re listing to see if you can stimulate new traffic, and if it works, keep it up. Remember: Poshmark is a social commerce platform, so the more active you are, the more active your closet will be! Feel free to message me with any questions by commenting below.

Hang in there Posh Fam! I know this has been hard but I’m extremely encouraged by what’s coming.

XO,

poshmark_paige

5

Hey Poshmark, Let’s Talk

I have worked in software development and e-commerce for over 15 years. I have an acute understanding of the software development lifecycle and how companies should develop and test platform changes because it is my job to do these things. 

One of the rules that is not broken, ever, is to test out platform changes on live data. When I refer to “live data” I am referring to users closets and real time activity. You can imagine my surprise when, listening to the fireside chat, I hear them speak about testing being performed on Group A and Group B, live closets on the Poshmark platform. The logical assumption is that the platform changes were tested out in the live, production system that is the Poshmark platform. I’ve never seen a company do this. It’s just not done. It’s not only unethical, it’s completely against everything developers KNOW to do. 

How can Poshmark explain away using these groups as test subjects when answering a question about why sales drastically decreased, why the search algorithms were not working correctly, why users were not given the opportunity to opt in or opt out of being in a beta test group?

Is Poshmark really saying they’re the direct cause of sales decreases / lost revenue for these two groups of real time, live closets? Is there really to be no mention of reparations that need to be made to the sellers who lost a lot of money during this undisclosed testing phase? A testing phase that was neither communicated nor truthfully represented in the following months when users were begging for answers?

I’m really disturbed. 

We are the First Poshers, who have been here since the very beginning. This platform was built on our blood, sweat & tears. We have developed the SEO Method, educated people about how software algorithms work, navigated not just one, but two Ambassador programs, and learned how to create a sustainable business working within the vague and unknowns. We figured it out. Poshmark has learned from us and has gone public on our backs.

We deserve truthful answers from developers who know what they’re talking about. I am offering to speak directly with the developers and can translate the meaning to the Poshers I’ve educated for years. 

It’s time we had some real talk. Y’all know where to find me.

Poshmark Paige

4

Poshmark Rolls Out New Bulk Features

I’ve been thinking a lot about the new bulk features Poshmark has rolled out to most users. This is a real game-changer for everyone. The normal activity of sharing your closet seems a little lost now that the feed is flooded with listings from people bulk sharing their closets, doesn’t it? People are reporting slower sales, which normally happens in the summer months, but this year, it feels a lot slower all around. There are ways to combat the summer slow-down. With this new roll-out we have to strategize what we do on a day to day basis.

First, let’s review the changes:

If you look at the top of your closet you’ll see a gear/tool icon:

The bulk sharing feature is here:

To bulk share, select the listings, then click on “Share to Followers”:

Poshmark will start sharing from the bottom items up, retaining your closet order.

Sounds great, right? It really is and it combats the bots (huge!), however it does create a new problem: an insanely flooded, fast-moving sharing feed. What does this mean for us? TIME TO USE STRATEGY. It’s time to go back to some fundamentals that we know work:

1) SEO

I’ve been spending the last two weeks testing my theory. I already have SEO in my closet, and I’m still seeing the same amount of guest buyers so this hasn’t changed in the slightest and still remains the most important activity we can do! Some have pointed out that this is old info from a few years back. Yes, yes it is, but guess what? Everything on this blog is still relevant! Search engine optimization remains the gold standard for closet strategy, so if you haven’t implemented this into your listings, now is the time to do it.

2) Following

Many people don’t believe that following others makes a difference. Let me tell you – it does! I stopped following for about a month just to see what would happen. I wanted to test the theory. My closet came to a screeching halt, especially with these new features. It felt like someone had tied cement blocks to my closet and dropped it to the bottom of the ocean. Four days ago I started following again. On the first day, within an hour, I received a high offer on an item. Within the next two hours I had a full-ask purchase and two more offers.

Want to know why? Visibility!

If you think about your News feed you can see when someone shares your item and you can see when someone follows you (but not all the noise from shares in the feed). This is the activity that is going to become key right now. I have been following ~1000 to 3000 users per day and my News feed has blown up with shares and follows. It feels to me like people are going back to the basic fundamentals of the News feed. They are responding more to the direct activity in their closet and less about what they are seeing in the sharing feed so we have to act in kind.

Want to help research? I’d really love it if some of my followers would help me test this activity! If you follow this blog and are so inclined, spend a few days and do what I have and report back in the comments. I’d love to hear your findings!

0

Need Help? Ask Me About SEO Services!

I’ve had a lot of people reach out to me for help, whether it’s simple questions or full closet consultations. As Poshmark becomes more and more competitive there’s a bigger need than ever for people to be at the top of their game and have A-Level closets and listings. I’ve decided to start offering paid services:

• SEO listings – I’ll log into your closet and edit your listings so you have the perfect SEO game. This will amplify sales as you’ll be hitting inside Posh and, especially, outside Posh. Hint: Google search- generated sales are almost always full asking price!

• Closet consultations – I’ll work with you and make recommendations for leveling-up your closet.

• Name your Service – If you have a need just ask and we’ll come up with a plan together.

No ask is too small. Contact me through the blog or on my Instagram @poshmark_paige. Looking forward to working with you!

0

How One Little Word, “Authentic”, Can Be a Game-Changer For The SEO Method & Poshmark

I’ve written a few times about the SEO Method and how to use keywords to drive sales to your Poshmark closet. A couple of months ago I was talking with some Poshers about SEO & keywords for the Luxury market and I had a giant “AH HA!” moment. These Poshers were talking about having higher-end items in their closets and how tough it can be to sell them, both because of the high price tags but also fighting against serial listing reporters, aka The Posh Police. Their authentic Louis Vuitton, Gucci (especially belts!!) and Chanel bags (and similar items) were being reported as not authentic and removed due to other Poshers reporting them. They were also talking about the struggle to get sales on items such as these when there are soooo many on Posh – both authentic and replicas (sadly) – because, let’s face it, for every authentic bag there are an exponentially higher number of replicas that aren’t being caught.

If you carry luxury items this is a battle you’re always going to have to fight, and there’s always going to be someone out there who is reporting Neverfulls and Boy Bags like a mad-Posher who, lets be honest, may not know as much as they think they do and are reporting authentic bags.

So, I sat back and thought about it for a minute… and realized that one little word can not only solve some listing problems, but also have the benefit of driving outside sales to your closet via the SEO Method!

💡 “Authentic”! 💡

Let’s say I’m someone who is on Google searching for a new-to-me (used) Neverfull. I sit down to search and type in “Louis Vuitton Neverfull”. I’m going to get hits from the LV website, naturally, and other high-end department stores. I’ll see some Poshmark or The Real Real in the shopping section, but as I scroll I’m also going to see sites selling replicas. There are a LOT of them out there and they’re not going away. By adding one little word, I’m narrowing my search, because most of those replica sites will never use the word “authentic”. These are fly-by-night pages who rank fast & high but that also don’t stick around long due to Google taking them down with their own algorithm Gods.

By searching “Louis Vuitton Authentic Neverfull” a whole new search engine world opens! It’s going to show more listing hits than junk – and if you’re the one selling that bag you want to be high-up in that search result (ranked)!

How do you do it? Add the keyword “authentic” to your Poshmark listing in the:

  1. Title,
  2. First ten words,
  3. Last ten words
  • That’s it! (If you don’t understand this please read the SEO Method post, learn how to SEO your listings and this will make sense.)
  • Also, remember to share your listing to Pinterest and Tumblr, and add Instagram for good measure if you’re active there. This gets your images out there which is the second most important piece to getting a high SEO ranking for your listing. Original images rank the best! If you’re dead set on using a stock image make sure it’s not the first one but remember that there are thousands of them out there already. Using them doesn’t help you stand out. (Again, I talk about these items in much more detail on the other SEO posts so go check them out!)

    • One other piece of advice that goes along with this – if you’re going to start revamping existing listings consider a fresh re-listing of the item altogether. This will accomplish a few things; you’ll:

    • Hit Fresh Closets
    • Hit Just In for that brand and be at the top
    • Make the algorithm Gods happy by getting rid of a stale listing
    • Have a listing that is starting outside search engine optimization ranking fresh & clean
  • Sure, it’s tough to lose likers if you have a lot of them but, if you’re honest with yourself, you’ll realize that those buyers probably would have pulled the trigger a long time ago if they were really gonna. The benefits far outweigh the loss of some likers and you’ll gain a ton of new ones plus run a very high likelihood of getting a full-price sale from an online shopper new to Posh (isn’t that the BEST?!)!

    • The SEO Method continues to be one of the most powerful tools in our arsenal as sellers and by adding this one little tip, one little “Authentic” keyword, I am hoping Luxury Market sellers’ lives will become just a little bit easier and a whole lot more profitable!

    I will continue to improve the SEO Method as I learn more about Poshmark & keyword triggers but I think this new discovery is really going to be a Poshmark SEO social commerce game-changer!

    Happy Poshing, y’all!

    ♥️ Poshmark_Paige

    2

    What is “The Algorithm” & How Does it Affect Me on Poshmark?

    First of all, I want to say that it’s FANTASTIC that people are trying to learn more about the inner workings of Poshmark. Kudos! That’s what’s going to set you apart. Today, I want to focus specifically on what a software algorithm is and consider how the algorithms affect you in your everyday Poshmark business model.

    By its very definition, an algorithm is a formula that is coded to take a very specific action in a software program. Poshmark (the program) as a whole is a huuuuuuge, elaborate & beautiful puzzle of many, many algorithms all set to make Poshmark work. Every algorithm solves a problem, takes an action, triggers an action from another algorithm, helps gather data….it’s all quite complicated, really. You don’t have to be a software programmer to understand the basics of algorithms and why you should consider how your Poshmark closet actions are being affected by them.

    I get a lot of questions such as:

    “Did The Algorithm change? My closet slowed down a lot this week!”

    “If I block this person will The Algorithm see that as bad or slow me down?”

    “Everyone is always talking about ‘The Algorithm’ but I just don’t think it’s real. Is it real?” <—- my favorite question because it just makes me laugh. YEEEES, it’s real!! Algorithms are the very basis of software programming, ding dong!

    The answer to all these questions is, “Yes,” but it’s a lot more complicated than just….yes. If Poshmark rolls out a new feature, that’s both new algorithms and changes to existing ones. Sure, it affects you. It can cause a temporary rhythm change in your closet. That’s normal; that’s software programming and releases. Want new features & bug fixes? Posh will be rolling out new programming (algorithms) to do that.

    I’d like everyone, essentially, to stop obsessing about “the algorithm” and concentrate on how to leverage the Poshmark software platform to run your business.

    But, back to the blocking question because this is one I get a LOT and I’m constantly counseling Poshers to hold back on the block button.

    Blocking one person won’t hurt you – but blocking excessively will have a negative impact on your closet as its anti-community as well as unnecessary.

    Why isn’t blocking necessary?

    Because Posh has a ton of algorithms to handle the behaviors that make you want to block them in the first place!

    Is the person you want to block spamming your listings? Flag their comments as spam and the algorithms written to solve that problem will remove the comment(s).

    Are they a perv? Report them for harassment and flag their comments and let the software (algorithms) handle it. Even if you block them they can still see your closet so…what’s the point?

    Ever notice how the spam accounts/comments where people are asking you to call them or email them just magically disappear without you reporting it? Algorithm!

    Are they lowballing you? So what?? Counter with your lowest and let the Algorithm Gods get happy because you have positive activity happening in your closet (the act of receiving an offer and countering is “positive”). And I’ll reiterate what I always say – Always counter, never decline! Now, if you’ve countered them several times and they just seem to want to play games it’s completely fine to let a counter expire. That’s not negative.

    I’m not saying there’s never a reason to block. Sometimes you just have to – and that’s ok! Just don’t be a block-happy person who automatically blocks every person that someone else has had a problem with because it’s completely unnecessary.

    Everything we do has cause and effect and is monitored by the algorithms. We’ve talked about positive and negative behaviors before:

    Positive

    • Following
    • Sharing (both self-shares & from the Feed)
    • Listing
    • Re-listing stale listings
    • Welcoming/sharing new Poshers
    • Purchasing & leaving Love Notes
    • Reviewing reported listings when Posh asks (in your Comments feed)
    • Fast ship time
    • Sharing to social media
    • Responding to offers (even at full ask!)

    Negative

    • Excessive blocking
    • Using bots
    • Spamming listings
    • Making harassing comments
    • Non-compliant listings
    • Stale or old listings
    • Canceling orders
    • Slow ship time
    • Multiple cases opened against you
    • Excessive opening of cases against others
    • Outright declining of offers (always counter!)

    The moral of this story is that you don’t really need to obsess too much about the elusive Algorithm (duh duh duhnnnnn!). Posh has this; it’s what they do. But you do need to focus on what is seen as positive and negative and making sure you’re doing those things.

    I’ve recommended before to research how to optimize your closet activity such as using Lyn McLaughlin Cromar’s “30 Minute Method”, using my SEO method, finding what works for you. If listing and sharing in the wee hours of the morning is working for you – keep doing it! If you see a drop in activity that seems to have no explanation, ask yourself why – and be honest. Did you get into it with another Posher? Did you have a case opened against you? Did you drastically change what you normally do? Did you start using a bot?

    The great thing is – you’ll bounce back. If you got throttled (closet slowed down) because you were being a Bad Little Posher, concentrate on doing all the positive activities and things will get back to normal. The algorithms don’t hold a grudge y’all. They’re a few million steps down the road by the time you’ve figured out anything even happened.

    Remember: Posh is all about #PoshLove. If you succeed, Posh succeeds. They don’t want to intentionally slow down your business but they aren’t going to give you a boost if you’re not a positive member of the community either! Now, get back to work. That death pile isn’t going to list itself! 😊

    Happy Poshing!

    Poshmark_Paige

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    SEO & Poshmark: How Search Engines Within & Outside of Poshmark Actually Work

    Many seem a bit…confused…about how search engines, both inside of and outside of Poshmark actually work, so I wanted to explain in a little more detail how searching brings shoppers to your closets.

    Searching Within Poshmark

    As you know, when you list items you tag lots of things: brand, size, condition. When you’re searching inside Poshmark you have the ability to filter on these tags. For example, if I want to find a Womens Black Ralph Lauren Oxford Tote I will use Poshmark’s search feature under the Women’s category, filter on the brand & color and just use the search words “Oxford Tote”.

    Notice how the search engine brought me exactly what I was looking for? I’m using an example from my own closet to show how the keywording of “Oxford Tote” and the combination of the filters can work within the app.

    Searching Outside Poshmark

    Lets say we want to find the same tote online. In my post I’ve used my SEO keyword rules to give myself optimal search engine optimization. If I want to find a “Ralph Lauren Oxford Black Leather Studded Tote” that’s exactly what I’m going to search for in Google. Here’s what happens when I do that…notice a couple of cool things.

    First, my listing comes up as the first image.

    Secondly, I’m in the top 10 of search results but it’s coming from Pinterest!

    That’s right. Linking my account to Pinterest, Twitter, Tumblr and Facebook and sharing to those sites when I list and ENL increases the odds of hitting the top ten! It’s tough to beat out the heavy hitters like large department stores (Macy’s, Nordstrom, etc.) and eBay, but I managed to make the top ten by following the rules and linking social media.

    Here’s the thing about searching outside of Poshmark though… those tags you use within the app? When you’re setting the size, brand, etc.? They don’t count in the outside search engines! Your keywords in the title and description are equally as important in this regard. If I had only put “leather studded tote” in my listing title I wouldn’t have a snowball’s chance in Hades to make it to the top of the search results. Being specific to what buyers are searching for is the key to hitting the market outside of Poshmark.

    Using a combination of targeted style keywords and generic keywords doubles your chances of hitting your customer’s search. It’s really as simple as that.

    Remember that the search rules inside the app aren’t the same outside the app and keep up with the SEO methods and you’ll do great!

    Happy Poshing!

    Kim aka @poshmark_paige

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    PoshmarkTurns6 & What We’ve Learned about SEO, Algorithms & the Poshmark Styling Feature

    From the mouth of Manish Chandra himself, we are on the right track with SEO methods and working the algorithms. Many people I know were fortunate enough to attend the #PoshmarkTurns6 party in San Francisco last week and one of the best things that came out of that event is validation from Manish of exactly what’s been discussed in previous posts.

    1. Algorithms run the platform & bring people to our closets
    2. Data and keywording are vital
    3. Closet activity will make or break you
    4. Poshmark is consistently working on improving the algorithms & how they interact with our closets
    5. New features are headed our way soon!

    I’ve been seeing lots of positive feedback about how using these methods are making closets come back to normal & increased sales, which is fantastic! The platform is starting to settle back into itself. I’ve given the working-out analogy before and it still holds true. If you stay active most days and follow the activity guidelines, even if you have to take a day or two off, the work you put in prior to those break days is still going to work for you and your closet.

    Confession time: I’ve been completely slacking off for over a week. Guess what? My sales have plummeted! It’s my own fault and I’ll take it. The thing is…I’m also confident that, when I get off my butt, it’s going to rebound right back up because what I’ve been talking about in my posts works!!

    There is another new feature that has been rolled out for Poshmark Ambassadors – the styling feature – where Poshmark matches you with people who have brands and sizes similar to your closet and you style them by direct sharing some items to their closets. (No word yet on exactly when it’s going to be at 100% for all people, unfortunately.)

    Admittedly, this is a feature that still needs some work. Some are complaining they’re getting styling requests from people who have nothing listed in their style card or that the style card doesn’t match anything in their closet. That’s ok! They’re working on it and it will get better. The most important thing to remember is to not ignore these in your feed and, for goodness sake, don’t turn it off! This is another activity type that really makes the algorithms happy. Here are some tips for making the styling feature work for you:

    • Always check the style card for the potential buyer’s listed sizes & brands. If there is nothing listed…
    • Check their Love Notes for items they have purchased. This will give you an idea of their style and sizes. If there are no love notes…
    • Do your best! If you have nothing to go on, just share a few things that could work for everyone.

    The key is in the direct shares** and not ignoring the styling requests. I know these feel overwhelming at times but work through them as you can. It’s activity.

    Activity = Happy algorithms

    Ignoring requests/decreased activity = Unhappy algorithms

    Unhappy algorithms mean you’re getting skipped over while Betty Sue who is working her little fingers off styling people will “trend” and get the sales you’re not.

    **Side note: Do not direct share your whole closet to people! Four or five items is plenty; anything over that is just downright obnoxious. (Direct sharing is when you take an item from your closet and share it to a specific user’s closet. If you’re unsure how to do this, ask me or check out Poshmark FAQs.)

    Make sure what you’re sharing makes sense. Put an outfit together. Provide an accessory if you have one. Make it affordable as a bundle. If a professional stylist was trying to get Jennifer Lawrence ready for an event do you think they’re going to throw three tops and a well-worn pair of Uggs at her? UmmmmNO. They’re going to put together a well-thought-out group of items that make sense together. This is what being a stylist is all about. If you’re fortunate enough to have your buyer bundle some items – send them a bundle offer! This is more happy algorithm activity!

    The jury is still out if these styling requests lead to sales. So far, some have said they’re getting some sales but for the most part, a lot of these direct shares will be ignored. That’s fine! You’re still making happy little algorithms work for your closet and that is the benefit.

    Now is not the time to get complacent! This is the busy season. People are buying gifts and spending money so keep at it! Follow as many people per day as you can. Share back all activity (and more), and don’t forget direct sharing! Share your closet multiple times/day. Keep adding new listings every day. Make Poshmark work for you by using the Poshmark SEO method, giving Posh great data to work with and staying active every day!

    Happy Poshing!

    Kim aka @poshmark_paige

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    “Poshmark Ambassador Has Killed My Sales!”

    Many have expressed concern about the recent changes to the Poshmark platform, the Ambassador program and even proclaiming plummeting sales as a result. As a software architect and someone who works in eCommerce (online retail), I thought I’d help explain what happens when a major retail platform undergoes an overhaul, what to expect and how you can adapt to bring your sales back to normal.

    Poshmark has lots and lots of mathematical code that runs in the background called algorithms. Think of those algorithms as the blood that runs through your body. It keeps the heart beating, notifies you when something is wrong, and works with your organs to keep you healthy. The algorithms collect data every millisecond and Poshmark uses that data to do *everything*. Data tells them when things are trending, when something is failing or is broken, finds the spammers and removes them automatically, everything you can imagine (times 1,000,000,000). In short, the two most important things the Poshmark app has to work with are the ALGORITHMS and DATA.

    1. Why did all the closets go to crickets when they made these changes? Everything has been reset and it takes time to build back up. The algorithms have had to start from scratch which means the DATA has to start from scratch too. It’s like going from being in a coma to running a marathon. Think that can happen overnight? Nope. Lots and lots of data has to be collected, lots of physical therapy (fixing what’s not working, tweaking, analyzing the data) and building back up to what it once was. As the data builds back up, the app gets stronger and stronger & will eventually be back in the Boston Marathon…but we aren’t quite there yet.

    2. The Poshmark Ambassador program is another set of algorithms, an engine that is collecting data from your closets to bring people to you. It’s sweeping through all of your closets, checking brands, sizes and activity and then using that data to target other Poshers. That engine then displays us in their feeds, under the “Find People” section and shows our items when people are searching for things. This is a BIG DEAL. It’s free advertising!

    How to leverage the Poshmark Ambassador program.

    First and foremost, you have to spend time on your listings in your titles & descriptions. When the app is searching for brands, colors, sizes, condition…it’s searching the words you use (keywords). If you want to find a large, black Tory Burch Kensington Tote are you going to search for “black bag” or are you going to get more specific? If your title says “Black Bag” and mine says “Tory Burch Black Large Kensington Tote” who do you think is going to come up in search results first? Furthermore, if I find several of those totes and I see a listing that has “excellent condition” and not much else vs. all of the measurements, condition, even disclosing any tiny flaws, who do you think I’m going to buy from? All that being said, the algorithms are also looking at those keywords (data) and storing it up to make the program better. Only by collecting lots and lots and LOTS of data is Poshmark going to be be able to send people our way. Ever heard the expression “garbage in/garbage out”? If you feed Posh garbage that’s exactly what you’re going to get back.

    Secondly, you MUST be active, but in a way that makes the algorithms happy. You have to follow, share, welcome new Poshers, create no less than three listings every day (even if it’s relisting something old) and following & sharing back the activity you get in return. Making the algorithms happy is like doing a workout everyday. The more you do it, the better shape you get in and the stronger you are. Poshmark recognizes this activity and rewards you by sending you buyers, putting you high up in the “trending” results and basically giving you a giant chocolate eclair with zero calories.

    So, for those who feel like the Ambassador program has crashed your closet you’re only partly correct. Sure, it slowed things down for a bit but you can “work out” and get back into shape by keeping at it. If you refuse to change and adapt to the way things are now you cannot expect to be successful. You also need to be patient. This is not going to happen overnight and they have lots of kinks to work out, lots of data to gather, lots of physical therapy. You can be sure that YOU not making sales is not doing them any favors. Poshmark made these changes in order to make the platform super “in shape” and running like a top. It WILL work for you if you put the effort in now and KEEP making the effort.

    If you have done all the things I have mentioned above and are not seeing your sales back to where they were, don’t give up yet. Before you argue that you’ve already done all of that, remember we are still in that settling-in time. Poshmark has to build up the data and keep tweaking before it will fully bounce back. It takes time! The more active you are, the faster the platform will get better.

    For those who are considering opting out of the program I would strongly recommend you think long and hard about that decision. Opting out is permanent and when Poshmark is back in shape you’ll be left in the dust while everyone else who has put in the work will sail across the finish line. So, buck up, Buttercup! Buckle down and get to work. Revamp your listings, focus on quality, and stay active!

    Kim aka @poshmark_paige

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