There are some pretty common reasons sellers tell us they're leaving Etsy. They're all rooted in the same emotion though. They feel disappointed because expectations weren't met and someone led them to believe it's different on their own website.
Let's tackle these one by one...
There's no such thing as outgrowing Etsy. That's a misunderstanding in the value of Etsy. Etsy is just another marketplace to set up shop in. You'll find all sorts of bigger brands have a presence in multiple marketplaces. They'll be on Etsy, Amazon, standalone websites, and other marketplaces that allow their category. Each one has their benefits and drawbacks.
Etsy is working hard to be a household name. They already have more than 30 million shoppers that come to the marketplace to find something "special". Etsy says they own "special" and based on real life conversations I've had, this is true. I'm told by random people that Etsy is where they go to find something special.
This brings us to search. Tens of millions of shoppers are going to Etsy looking for that special something. They're using search to find it. Not just search, but Etsy search. You see these shoppers aren't necessarily searching in Amazon, Google, Yahoo, and Bing too. Yeah, if they were shopping for the best price on some mass produced product like headphones they'd be price shopping everywhere. They don't go to Etsy to find something special then start canvasing the internet to see if some cheaper version exists. If they do, they're going to be a terrible customer for you. The fact is that no matter how big you get, you're reaching customers on Etsy that you won't find anywhere else. At what point are you so big that you want to turn away those customers?
They also have trust built in. A lot of people want the Etsy Guarantee and just don't have the same level of trust if they're on your standalone website for the first time. It's hard to place a value on this, but it's big.
This is completely relative to value. Business has its expenses and there's no good way around that. When you have a shop on Etsy, they're handling all sorts of things for you like bringing an audience, web hosting that you never have to maintain, and transaction processing all in one.
Just like we talked about in the above "I've outgrown Etsy", they bring shoppers you wouldn't otherwise reach. That means you're getting sales you wouldn't otherwise get. Should they get a fee for that sale? Yes, of course they should! So is it expensive? We don't think so because they bring the value with them. Again, we just don't see being big enough to turn away those sales.
Let's anchor this one with the fact that Google makes 500-600 changes to their search algorithm each year. Most of those are minor changes. They also make a handful of major changes each year as well. Google has been known to make sweeping changes overnight that leave websites puzzled about what happened to their traffic. Oh and Google uses more than 200 ranking factors... and each factor might have over 50 variations! Are we talking 10,000 ranking factors!?!? This should have you questioning everything you've ever been told about Google SEO being simple. I trust very few people when it comes to Google SEO advice. I'm not an expert on it, but I know who the experts are.
Now that your head is spinning let's talk about Etsy. Etsy makes changes, yes. They have a totally different audience though. Etsy doesn't have a technical audience. They have an audience of artisans and vintage sellers that don't want to be quants messing with little details behind the scenes and measuring minutia in spreadsheets.
Etsy is trying to make SEO effective for shoppers (good for shops), and also easy for shops to apply. They know it can't be overly complicated or shops won't get it right. There's a problem on Etsy just like Google. There are so many people speculating and even more dangerous is how many people believe it!
Etsy is the right place to sell something "special" (See above in "I've outgrown Etsy for more on this). If what you sell is special whether it's handmade or vintage, I'm confident there's a place for you on Etsy. Usually this is because someone tells us they've been on Etsy a month and have only one sale. That's a great start actually. The internet is a huge place. Going from zero to online success is not a quick mission. There's a lot to figure out between photos that tell your story, descriptions that convert, and of course figuring out what keywords do and don't work for YOU. Some shops take off from the start. That's the exception, not the rule. It really depends on your background and preparation as well. There is a lot to learn in any new venture.
If others are successfully selling products like yours on Etsy, then there is a place for you too!