Dancer Archive

Before I start I just want people to know that I don't Cybersex at all PERIOD! I have been working on my master dance title for a about two months with a lot of good results, I have just one box left to fill with about 100,000 dance exp needed to finish it and then I have the master dancer rank. The true key to this profession....TALK TO THE CUSTOMERS!!!!!!!! that's it, that is the true secret to success. Also remember AFK is a no no but then again going back to my first rule you can't AFK if you are talking the people. I have never AFK at all, not once... I talk to the customers, asking them how they are doing, how the day is going, what mission their doing and so on. I have many different outfits and I change them on a regular basis while I dance for the customer, You needto THINK!!!! put in your mine how would I like to be treaded if I walked into a cantina, then do it to the customers coming in. Always be polite, if one of the customers is saying things to you that you don't like, tell me to stop and be a gentleman that always works for me. Just let you know I don't have money problems I have two small houses given to me as a tip a droid that can protect me, a pet that can pretty much kill anything that movies and a ton of clothes all as tips, just TALK to the people that's all and you not be disappointed.

Thank you for reading this :-)

Thank you for posting this! I have to tell you that I find being a fulltime dancer a very entertaining and rewarding career!!! In these boards I hear a lot of negative talk, and a lot of complaints, it is so nice to hear from someone that enjoys their job as much as I do. You've hit the nail on the head!! Just because you're in the Cantina shaking your booty doesn't mean that people owe you a tip. There is a lot of work involved in being good at this job.

If you find a cantina that you like, you should stick there and make yourself a regular fixture. That gives you an opportunity to get to know your customers, and to get to know their likes, dislikes, learn about them as people and not just as pixels. If you do that, your rewards will be great! People like to be liked, and they like to see a familiar face!!!

If you entertain them....they will come!

Signed,

A satisfied Dancer with a Promising Career!

I don't make a "great" living at it but you can get by just dancing, if you talk to people. So I agree.

Last night a Master CH was in the cantina I dance in getting healed. I chatted with him a little. He did some action heals on me. As he left, he tipped me 500 cr or something. So I sent him a tell (as I always do in these cases) saying that if you heal action, there's no need to also tip. He said he has plenty of money and he feels the need to make up for all the cheapskate players who refuse to tip.

A goodly while later, a novice CH walked in whom I know a bit. He asked if anyone in the room could teach one of the lower CH skills. Nobody could, but I said, "Hm... a Master CH was in here about an hour ago." He asked the name, and I couldn't remember off the top of my head. He was about to leave but I said, "Wait, I sent him a /tell, let me look." I went to my "tells" window (where I send tells) and scrolled up and up... and sure enough, there was the name. So I told the novice CH. He thanked me and gave me a nice fat 1000 cr tip.

Dancers are in a position to really "ply their trade" if they want to. Keep track of who comes in and out. Talk to them. Ask them how things are going. And pay attention to who they are and what they do for a living... so when that novice artisan comes in looking for some training in Domestic Arts III, you can tell him you just saw a Master Tailor walk out and he said he was going to hunt Krayt Dragons in the dune sea (or whatever). In other words, we are in a great position to be purveyors of information -- information which may be even more valuable than the healing we give.

But of course, you have to be AT KEYBOARD and paying attention, to do any of that....

C

As another satisfied full time dancer I agree with everything that has been said here. And like everyone else, I am at my keyboard full time, interacting with customers as I dance, joking with the other dancers and the band, just doing my best to put on an entertaining show.

I dance in the Dearic cantina in the Kettemoor galaxy, not the busiest spot in the galaxy, but not bad most times either. Two things I've found interesting, the first is that I sometimes do better with tips if there is only one or two customers around at a time, I think many really appreciate the individual attention that comes with a slow night at the cantina. The other has to do with one evening when I was talking with two other dancers about clothes of all things, and for a long time, about a half hour. I guess that just the fact we proved we were there by holding a conversation was all many people needed because the tips rolled in on that occasion, even though all of the dancers (non-afk dancers) were absorbed in their own conversation.

I think there is no magic formula for making a living as a dancer, different things seem to work at different times, but I know the key is staying at the keyboard and interacting.

Iwen

I think it's interesting that in a roleplaying game, a dancer gets most tips if he/she actively does NOT roleplay. Since when do realdancers chat with customers as they're dancing?

By the way, if we're being tipped for our social skills rather than for our skill as a dancer, whyshould we bother learning the skill in the first place? Surely a newbie can socialize just as well as a Master Dancer. So why bother working for it if all that matters is our demeanour and a chatty disposition?

Tips should be given for a fast heal (which is what we spend weeks developing). Tips are a reward for quality of service. Theyshould not be given merely for a smile and a few friendly words.

Beery, you are being tipped for healing.

If a person likes you, they will tip more...that's natural. You aren't going to convince anyone to like you more if you aren't chatty with them.

"You aren't going to convince anyone to like you more if you aren't chatty with them."

I don't need them to like me. I require them to respect the top qualityservice I'm giving them and tip based on that. If I'm roleplayingam not going to chat with them because dancers simply do not chat while they're performing. If youknow ofany of the dancers in any of theStar Wars movies or books who chatted with their clients, then please tell me. The only dancers I know of who interact with customers are pole dancers, and I don't think we should reinforce that particular stereotype. The dancing profession is toopoorly regarded as it is.

Well, people do tip just because your a master sometimes. A lot of people don't tip at all. Most people will tip you more if you are friendly with them. It's not a matter of realism or RPing...it's just making the patron feel welcome and helping them enjoy their downtime. You aren't blowing a horn, so I don't really see talking to the patrons while dancing as too immersion breaking.

The fact is, without being chatty you are no different than any other master dancer. The skills are the same for all who reach that point.

Also, a lot of people aren't going to tip you...regardless of what you do.

(out of character)

I think really every post on this thread has a very valid point :-)

My personal experience is that if you go to a mostly empty cantina you do get tipped some credits for just healing, while in a crowded cantina you usually don't earn a single credit for just being there and dancing.

However, if you interact with people, put effort in your performance, then you can greatly increase your tips, not to become rich, but to do well enough. What MatLee and others posted here I fully agree with.

But Beery has a point. That point is not that entertainers can't make a living, but that the skills of the entertainer character, beyond the ability to wear a fleshwrap and shake Basic, are pretty irrelevant when it comes to earning tips.

I agree 100% on this post. I make more than enough to get whatever I want from dancing alone. They key is to get return customers. As for the "They should respect me for my superior healing abilities" deal.... come on... Dancer is a social profession. People come into the cantina for 2 reasons. To heal or socialize, heh sometimes a little bit of both. Dont expect people to respect you for healing them better than someone else as it is your profession.... its what you do. They should respect you because you are a valued member of the community. (Aside from the general respect not to harass us of course

I find a lot of dancers expect to be treated specially because they are masters, but honestly I treat a noob I dont know and a master I dont know the same. Its the person they are, their personality that changes the way I treat them. I would never treat a master any better than anyone else, period. I wouldnt expect anyone to do it for me because its silly. Anyone can get master in any class in this game, its only an amount of time.

Anyways, thats my rant People complain far too much about the profession and its nice seeing a positive HONEST post for once

This is a perfect example of the rude attitude I see in the cantina from some of the dancers.

"Tips should be given for a fast heal (which is what we spend weeks developing). Tips are a reward for quality of service. Theyshould not be given merely for a smile and a few friendly words."

1. If you have better heals you have been around longer, and dont need the tips as much.

2. Anti-social? Why are you a dancer???? Being rude and acting superior wont get you tips.

Hmm, so if I have this right, I see that there are two ways to play your dancer:

1. As a no-nonsense "I cannot talk right now because I'm performing; check with me after the show" type.


2. As an immersive "Come tell me your troubles, soldier" type.

Likewise, I see that there are two types of tippers:

1. As the "I'm just here to watch the show; leave me alone" type.


2. As the "Oh, let me tell you about this Krayt dragon..." type.

Those patrons of the first school likely will not tip a chatty dancer. Those patrons of the second school will likely ignore a silent dancer. I believe there are more of the second school than the first, but I'm never silent while I dance, so I cannot tell for certain.

And are there real-life dancers who chat it up with customers who aren't pole dancers? I admit to not being much of a club person, so I cannot say I have seen any. But then, I haven't seen bounty hunters, Jawas, or dewbacks. So, I'm grateful those are not in the game!

"2. Anti-social? Why are you a dancer???? Being rude and acting superior wont get you tips."

Where do you get the idea that I'm rude or antisocial? I'm simply makingthe point that, like every other profession in the game, dancers' skill should get them the $$. The social interaction is a plus (if the customer wants it - many don't), but what customers should be paying for in the end is the service. That's why we spend all that time developing the skills. If that's not as important as your attitude, then why bother training???