diff --git a/etsy/_core.py b/etsy/_core.py
index b28b588..fa3149b 100644
--- a/etsy/_core.py
+++ b/etsy/_core.py
@@ -309,7 +309,7 @@ def _get(self, http_method, url, **kwargs):
 
         if http_method == 'GET':
             url = '%s%s?%s' % (self.api_url, url, urlencode(kwargs))
-            body = None
+            body = ''
             content_type = None
         elif http_method == 'POST':
             url = '%s%s' % (self.api_url, url)