Ecommerce news: Etsy ads and EU data protection

In the news this week Etsy has changed how it measures the success of promoted listings, and new EU data protection regulations are coming into effect.

Etsy changes how promoted listings are measured

From 4 October, Etsy has updated the way that it measures when Google Shopping ads or Promoted Listings ads result in a sale.

Previously, sales were attributed to an ad if a buyer clicked the ad for an item and purchased it within 30 days, or they clicked an ad for an item and then purchase any item from your Etsy shop within 24 hours.

Now Etsy will attribute sales to an ad when the buyer clicks on it and purchases any item from your shop within 30 days. This change aims to more accurately reflect the impact of ads on your business. A new ‘orders from ads’ tab will also appear in the Etsy marketing dashboard showing which orders were the result of a Google Shopping ad.

Budget and bidding settings for your Promoted LIstings and Google Shopping will stay the same. And, past Google Shopping and Promoted Listings data will be updated to display the way sales are attributed to ads now.

This broader definition of when an ad has been successful may mean that more of your Google Shopping daily budget is being spent. Etsy will bid more on your ads when they lead to sales - but, an increase in spending could also be because of increased competition.

Find out more about changes to promoted listings on Etsy here. 

New EU General Data Protection Regulation

Next May, a new EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) comes into effect, that will impact any business that stores or processes the data of EU citizens. If you have customers in Europe then you probably have access to their personal data including email addresses and contact details, so you will need to comply with the GDP.

There are three main changes that may apply to ecommerce businesses in the UK:

• Extended jurisdiction: The new GDPR will apply to all companies that process the personal data of EU residents, regardless of the company’s location. Processing personal data related to offering goods or services to EU citizens will have to meet these regulations, even if the processing takes place outside of the EU or the business is not established in the EU. Non-EU businesses processing the data of EU citizens will have to appoint a representative to the EU.
  
• Increased penalties: Organisations that breach GDPR can be fined up to a maximum of 4% of their annual global turnover or  €20 million (whichever is the biggest amount). 
  
• Consent: The request for consent must be given in an intelligible and easily accessible form, with no long and complicated terms and conditions. The purpose of data processing needs to be given in the consent form and it must be as easy to withdraw consent as it is to give it. 
  

Read more about the new EU GDPR here.