This a bonus episode from the heart! I've been reading and listening to stories of sellers, both new and established, who have experienced both positive and negative effects of the recent TPT search algorithm changes. I share with you my thoughts on the matter, as well as 3 tips on what you can do.

Sometimes you gotta be real, and this is one of those episodes. Hope you're able to take something out of it! 

Chat with me on Instagram on your thoughts and/or experience! @thesouthernteach.designs

Kirsten 0:00

Hey, guys, I hope you're having a great week, I wanted to just hop on here and just chat with you about my thoughts of what's happening right now. It is Thursday, September 29. So this is in real time, I am actually in the middle of creating a product. And after I finish recording this and get my thoughts out, I'm gonna go right back to finishing and uploading it to TPT. But this is in regards to the rumblings you may or may not have seen on social media or Facebook groups or in the TPT forums about the search algorithm for TPT. And all the changes that have been happening in the last month.

And if you're not aware of what's going on, there's basically been some tests going on, on TPTs end testing the way teachers and even teacher sellers are searching for resources on TPT. And for whatever reason, results are coming up very differently, then, what typically has been the case, the views have been different. And this has resulted in for some sellers, drastic changes in earnings and sales for particularly this month. There are some you know, some sellers out there, or some stores out there who are you know, having increased views and increased sales, my store being one of them. So it's kind of a bittersweet thing to hear from a lot of perspectives, particularly experienced and established sellers that are seeing such drastic change. Whereas other sellers maybe who have smaller stores, or haven't been on TPT as long are not seeing much of an impact or are seeing a lot of impact. So it is so much going on. And I'm not even sure if it is like just the search algorithm what it is that is causing all of this, but I did want to just hop on here and share kind of my thoughts on the whole thing.

One of the main things I've noticed is when I do get into social media, usually when I go into the different Facebook groups that also involve TPT sellers, there's a lot of, you know, cordial correspondence, people are helping each other out giving advice, all of that stuff. But recently, there's just been a lot of negativity, I don't know how to describe it. But obviously frustration on what's going on, I can totally understand how this can be so frustrating for a lot of people. And I think it's so easy just like getting behind a computer or phone and you know, typing everything you feel. And you know Same with the forum like just going in and just going and things get heated and there's this back and forth happening. And it's kind of a little, you know, upsetting to see how divisive This is turning our community I know that we're not going to always agree with what the marketplace does and what decisions are made. But I feel like there's a way to go about it where it's not so I mean that we can be you know come to some type of compromise work together on this stand united against this or with this or you know with however you want to stand whether you're against it or for it or just neutral, just being kind and you know, knowing that every there's a person behind Every business, there's a person behind every TPT, store, and all of that stuff. So I'm not saying to never, you know, advocate for what you believe in. But just definitely keep in mind, like the tact, and just the way you go about it.

On my Instagram Stories last night, I was just also thinking about it, and I just kind of gave three things people can do as a TPT. Seller, if you choose to, one thing you can do is just just kind of stay the course focus on what you can control. You know, there's only so much we can do with the search algorithm and typing in a bunch of keywords all day and getting mad at what's happening. For me, I'm, you know, in my third trimester, that's not the type of energy I want to spend, I want to spend more energy, you know, working towards my goals, not necessarily on TPT. But with, you know, building my list, blogging, giving content to teachers, and TPT sellers planning for bigger things, not even in TPT. But outside of TPT, I have different projects that I would love to work on and focus my energy on. So I definitely encourage you to do that, if you're feeling overwhelmed with all the noise. Another thing you can do is just, you know, stand in solidarity, just be in support of those experiencing this issue. And because it is, you know, it affects lives, it affects family members. So maybe if you're not personally experiencing something like this, just, you know, just just stand in solidarity and support if you choose to. The next one would be to just advocate for what you believe in, you know, what you know, to be true, and just doing so in a way that is professional and tactful, and taking into consideration that we're all people, we're all humans, at the end of the day. You know, just just doing your best to advocate for what you believe in whether you believe that the search is just off the rails ridiculous. And, or if you're just like, you know, have no opinion. And you can do either of these you can you can, you know, be an advocate, you can be in support, and also focus on stuff, but just decide where you want to focus your energy on. And if you're feeling a little overwhelmed with what's going on in groups and forums and stuff, just maybe take a break, close your computer, do something outside of the online world. But yeah, those are my thoughts. I don't know, I just had to spew it out. Because that's just what I do. Well, I don't consider myself a an established seller, you know, somebody who's been on TPT, for 10 plus years, working full time, all of that kind of stuff. I've been on nine years, this will be nine years. But I really didn't take my store seriously until a couple of years ago. And I just now left the classroom working on this really still not full time I work on other things outside of my TPT business. But I still, you know, I'm proud of the progress I've made.

Almost matching what I've made in the classroom as a teacher each month. So that kind of thing. You know, in addition to what I learned outside of the TPT business world, and you know, my experience with branding, and how I have learned through trial and error, how to really perfect my product listings, and you know, my brand in general, I share all of this with you on my podcast, just because I love helping TPT sellers out. And you could range from you know, just starting out, you're just you know, like me, where you're just kind of growing your business alongside of me. Or maybe you're listening to this and you're established and it's so hard hearing from others, you know, the varying results of what's happening in the TPT space. So, you know, regardless, I am so happy that you you know if you've listened to me before, and you follow me on Instagram or whatever, and you do you take any of my advice that I share with you just based on my experience in this thing with you. I so appreciate it. I'm so glad that you entrust me to be one of those people that you tune into and listen to because I truly love what I do helping other TPT sellers out. I feel like everybody who does feel called or wants to share with others in different spaces. Absolutely has the ability to share their perspective if you're able to resonate with this awesome if not, then I totally understand, but hopefully you know, just A moral like something I truly believe in be kind. You know, everybody is human out there. And with that, there is going to be a resolution with this. It's hard knowing you know, the unknown what's going on, and how this is going to result. But I do think that, you know, just really focusing on what you can control can be the best stepping point to start from if you feel like you're unsure of what to do. So those are my two cents. I don't normally have anything other than Monday episodes, but I did want to just share this in real time. And just share with you my thoughts on this. If you want to chat with me or DM me, I'm at on Instagram at the southern teach dot designs. I do appreciate you for listening to me and, you know, taking into consideration my beliefs, my thoughts, I hope you're able to take something out of this. But yeah, that's all I have to say I'm going to get back to finishing my resource and posting it today. Because that's, that's what my main goal is. So have a wonderful day.