Image Designer Archive

I have tried to follow a standard pricing policy for the six months that I have been a Master Image Designer. This has not caused any problems and I have more often than not been tipped a great deal more than the agreed charge. My policy always has been to mail my prices to the potential client before the session starts so that they have a clear understanding of what they will be likely to pay - I do my best to be professional and fair as this is my only serious profession in which I can get an income (dancing does not generate income apart from the infrequent buff).

Up to last night I was using a stand charge of 5k for any ID change type including the purchase of ALL holographic emotes plus 10k for stat migration if they take an ID change or 50k for stat migration if nothing else is selected (and I strongly advised people the take at least one ID change to save them money).

I had a very unpleasant experience with one potential client who complained about the pricing as I wanted to charge him 50k to migrate stats. I explained as clearly as possible that if they purchased the holo-emotes or had a new hairstyle and colour that the total charge would be 15k rather then 50k and that the 50k was to discourage stat only changes as they take a long time. He was having none of this (despite having a list of 19 master badges on his profile) and accused me of being nothing an evil profiteering Master ID. I will not go into detail of what happened next - suffice to say that a novice ID silently did the change for him for 5k and the person then camped in the ID tent spamming that I charge 50k and that I am evil and people should go to the other ID staff.

Now I said all through these negotiations that I declare my prices up front and that if people are 100% unwilling to pay what I suggested that they have the right to seek out others so I took his action to be nothing short of harassment and duly filed a report to that effect.

However, I now see that there are many novice ID's who are willing to use the 10 minute stat migration as a desperate way to "grind" experience points and a professional master ID is therefore at a serious disadvantage as they will be seen to be greedy by others as they prefer credits over exp. (just like a master smuggler over a grinding slicer).

To cut a very long story short, I dislike the grief I am getting over asking people to pay for stat migrations. There are people on FarStar who have Master ID's who are master in other professions which have much better money making skills (i.e. tailor or TK) and these people are giving their services for free (if you can find them) as they have no need of credits. This makes it very hard for professional ID's like myself to make an honest living - I do have a guild hall to maintain after all.

I have adjusted the mail which I send to all my potential clients and I was wondering if people still consider that I am being an evil money grabbing Master ID or simply a professional trying to make a living along the same lines as all other "elite" professions?

In-game mail message is in this format:-



Hello I am Mystaria Starlight a Master Image Designer,

Please allow me to briefly explain my Image Design pricing policy...

I require a non-refundable deposit of 5,000 credits before I start any work.

This deposit will be deducted from the final bill should you accept any design changes.

The deposit will not be refunded if you decide not to go ahead with any changes.

All cosmetic and body changes are charged at the flat rate of 5,000 credits per change type.

For example a new hairstyle plus hair colour will cost 5,000 total
Adjusting eyes (size, shape and/or colour) will cost \#ffff00\5,000\#00ff00\ total
A new hairstyle with colour plus a new skin colour plus a nose job will cost 5,000 total
The first design change is paid for by your deposit

Stat migration costs nothing if you also take another ID service from me during the 10 minute wait or 10,000 if you do not want any other services. Clients are strongly encouraged to opt for ID services as well as a stat migration as this is cheaper

Holographic emotes are installed for 5,000 credits - you get all the emotes for this.

Clients are requested to contact me in advance of /tipping me the required 5,000 deposit.

I am open to negotiation on the prices but I consider them to be fair and below the market rate.

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I await your comments

I have a pricing structure that's worked very well for me (although I have raised my prices twice) with no complaints from clients, and many of them still tip above the asked for price. my prices are thus: 3k per change, 5k for skin colour 1k per holoemote, 10k for stat migration. Period. There are times (like with newbies) that I make exceptions. I had one person come to me wanting a stat change (I was working on a stat migration when he contacted me) and when I explained my prices he laughed and said "I can get it for free from some one else" and the whole time he was ranting about my fees I was wondering "why come to me in the first place, if you already know you can get it for free?" I guess the point of this rambling is this: no matter what you charge, wether reasonable or extortionate, there will be complaints. Some one will always find *something* to gripe about. So don't take that jerk to heart, and keep in mind there are a lot of really good clients out there who realize that ID is just as real of a profession as any thing else.

Novice ID even 1010 ID cannot change stats.I tried to in a booth and couldn't this should be given back to players or to level 1000 entertainers or even novice.

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PFD wrote:
Novice ID even 1010 ID cannot change stats.I tried to in a booth and couldn't this should be given back to players or to level 1000 entertainers or even novice.

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Are you sure you did it correctly? You don't have to do anything with the booth, just be in thetent. You migrate your stats before you begin the ID session. When everything is set, ID the person and the stat migration box should be clickable. And you can't migrate your own stats if that's what you tried to do.

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Kwee wrote:

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PFD wrote:
Novice ID even 1010 ID cannot change stats.I tried to in a booth and couldn't this should be given back to players or to level 1000 entertainers or even novice.

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Are you sure you did it correctly? You don't have to do anything with the booth, just be in thetent. You migrate your stats before you begin the ID session. When everything is set, ID the person and the stat migration box should be clickable. And you can't migrate your own stats if that's what you tried to do.

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Although I wouldn't consider your prices below the market rate, but they don't seem to be overly expensive either. 50k for only a stat migration is quite steep, and I understand people tripping over it. They come to you for a reason, that reason is not being forced to buy holo emotes, not being forced to take an ID change, no they want their stats migrated and are quite happy with how they look. So all they see is the 50k, and not the option that they might get it for a lot less if they only would take an ID change. Tho you then force them to do something they don't really want to do.

I agree that only stat migrations are boring, my standard fee for stat migration is 20k. I toss in a free holo. *shrug* I just HATE the 10 min wait. I have helped several persons and none complained. I also have helped entertainers for a symbolic donation or for free, or helped out the occasional young player with screwed up stats.

I just had pretty much the same experiance, without he spamming. And my charge for stat migration was for only 10k for just the stats.I explianed to the client that I'm not going to sit on my thumb for 10 minutes for free. I imediatly added him to my ignore and deny servicelists and told him to have fun finding cheaper. And that wast that.

My policy: If they're rude, be rude back! I am very nice and professionalwith my services, and am in no way out of line with my pricing or my attitude, and therefore will not stand for rude customers.

Your time is money and as was posted earlier, someone's always going to complain about having to pay for what they could do for free before. Stick to your guns and add the person to your squelch list. Guess the novice ID's that were around you didnt realize they could stick to your price and make enough to cover their expenses for a longer period of time. What kills me is the person that was spamming against you was probably wearing full composite and using a krayt, max-sliced pistol....

-Lution

No matter how you slice it, there is going to be resentment to having to pay for a service that the day before they could do themselves, yet alone 50k... I don't know if there is anyway to resolve that. Entertainers have felt that resentment from day one as people had to come to them to cure BF or mind wounds, but at least that was the way it was done from the beginning, not a change made almost a year into the game...

As far as competition from novices, well they need the clients to advance, don't be surprised to see it offered even for free... Now you feel the pain that entertainers feel as buffbots arrive taking away their really sole means for support.

Lets face it, there is a lot of stuff that is really borked in SWG and it seems to multiply if it starts out off the entertainer trees... Musicians futures being threatened and they are thrown bots... Player cities are encouraged but IDers are forced into a tent city... The devs don't play their own game here, thats the impression I get. Their idea if getting ideas is looking at a board instead of getting in the game and playing the profession themselfs. I would really like to see one get in this game and say... lets see one master ID as it is now. I have seen very little that suggests the devs play this game themselfs. Otherwise you wouldn't see a borked new game "feature" ever enter this game. Let them try staring at an interface screen for ten minutes, or five, or two even, for hours at a time.

Personally I would think playing an IDer the way it is now is like spending your entire day going from planet to planet to planet waiting 10 minutes for each connection. How many really dedicated IDers are going to man that tent they been given for hours and hours a day. Forget the 50k, your paying 15 bucks a month for that pleasure