Etsy is testing a new navigation bar, and vintage sellers who often feel overlooked can breathe a sigh of relief, as Vintage is one of the eight categories highlighted. Etsy explained the new nav bar “helps shoppers more immediately understand the vast array of items on Etsy.”
Not everyone will see the white bar underneath the search bar on Etsy pages. Those who are part of the test will see eight main shopping sections displayed in the navigation bar: Clothing & Accessories, Jewelry, Home & Living, Entertainment, Kids & Baby, Weddings, Craft Supplies, and Vintage.
“When a shopper clicks on a category in the navigation bar, a list of related categories and subcategories will open for their perusal,” Etsy explained. “Each of these subcategories will link to category pages featuring items listed within these corresponding categories.”
Etsy is hoping the new feature will have a positive impact on SEO (Search Engine Optimization), and that it will encourage deeper exploration of its marketplace. Sellers should not change the way they tag and title their listings, Etsy said.
The test is not to be confused with a change Etsy rolled out to search late last month in which broad searches (such as “shoes”) now bring back results with a new section at the top containing what Etsy’s algorithms find to be the top five categories most relevant to the query.
As far as the test of the new nav bar, Etsy said, “We’ll test this navigation experience in the coming weeks and be back with updates as this is released to all buyers and sellers.”
The full announcement can be found on the Etsy website.
