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I really hope that Paizo can sort out their release schedule.
Doubling up on products for three months in a row gives me a real headache in justifying a subscription to myself, let alone my fiance.
Maybe Paizo should think about cancelling a future, unannounced book and pushing everything back.
If you can't keep up with your current schedule then maybe the schedule is wrong?
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One way to solve the cash flow issues this causes is to buy yourself a gift certificate each month and set your preferences such that credit is allocated to your subscription payments. If you do that, you actually end up saving money when the schedule slips (via combined shipping and the occasional efficiencies/discounts that generates).
It does mean you're paying for stuff in advance, but your cash flow can be managed perfectly - your regular amount goes onto your credit card every month exactly when you want it to.
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Wait til august. Stupid GenCon F's my bank account every year and I don't even attend. I think last year it was 3 AP's, a rulebook AND 500 bucks in minis. It's what made me cancel my Battles subscription, I was putting out $600+ because of a Con I can't even attend, partly because of the number of products shipping in August would yank my spending $ to almost nothing...
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Yeah, the snowpocalypse followed by the RotRL miniatures cases combined with the RotRLAE and the GenCon rush is what had me smoothing out my payments last year. Provided you don't mind paying for things in advance, it really solves the cashflow problem well.
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The occasional shipping efficiency is not really something you can actively manage, it will just happen from time to time:
Suppose your monthly subscription is $60 per month (including shipping) and some extreme situation happens - like January and February shipments are pushed back into March or something. When you know that's on the cards, you buy yourself a gift card for $60 at the usual time in January (but receive nothing). Again, you buy yourself another gift card for $60 in February (but receive nothinig). Then three months worth of product get shipped to you in March - they use up the $120 worth of credit and charge the remainder to your card - the worst case scenario being another $60 charge at the usual time.
Because you are now getting a larger shipment you can save money either through the $10 discount to shipping or just through efficiencies of getting a large package rather than three smaller packages. In the worst case scenario they ship you three packages for $60 each and you're no worse off.
The end result is that your card gets pinged $60 on the exact day of the month you specify. The only downside is the delay in delivery and there is a slight possibility of an upside in shipping savings (although as I mentioned, it's not one you can really plan to take advantage of).
Sneaky. Cunning. Conniving even. I like it.
Customer Service Manager
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Hmm, I need a scheme that doesn't depend on me remembering to buy gift cards each month: The Paizo Gift Card Subscription! Guaranteed to come out at the start of each month.
No?
I actually bounced this idea around with Gary the other day when we were going over the 520 toll bridge. I have a Good-To-Go pass that automatically renews when it gets down to a certain amount. I have no idea if this is feasible or not on paizo.com. We have certain restrictions on how and when we can bill things. I will bring it up though and see if it is feasible.
One problem I could foresee happening is that some of the subscriptions have varying prices for the products (like Pawns having some boxes and some just sheets sets and the Adventure Card Game having base sets and card decks).
Definitely a lot to investigate and think through with this. As always, I appreciate the feedback! Customer Service can't really do anything about product schedule issues, but we do try to be flexible and understanding when multiple issues come out. It gets harder when it happens three months in a row, but we do try to work with customers where and when possible.
Steve's suggestion with the store credit is actually one we use when customers are looking for an option to get billed on a specific day of the month as well as for double issues.
thanks
sara marie
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A gift card sub where the user set the amount to be bought and converted to credit each month would be great. (Even better if they could also select the day the transaction happened).
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A gift card sub where the user set the amount to be bought and converted to credit each month would be great. (Even better if they could also select the day the transaction happened).
Being able to set the date of transaction would make signing up a no-brainer for me.
Next month I plan to strat getting the Gift certs away but the first time I forget to do it will lead to $balance problems, so yes again a Gift cert subscription set by date would be great.
yeah I agree with others
I would have renewed my campaign setting subscription, but I am moving at the end of the month and just don't have the money to pay for multiple CS setting products at one time.
Something where it could be set up so that you get a monthly deduction would smooth over that problem
A gift card sub where the user set the amount to be bought and converted to credit each month would be great. (Even better if they could also select the day the transaction happened).
Definitely. That would help a ton when mini cases are getting ready to ship. Personally, I would charge about $150 per month, let $60-$100 of that go to the usual subscriptions, and save up the overages so that minis don't take such a huge chunk out of a single month's disposable income.
I've heard that before about paypal. I got an account but there are LOTS of sites that cant work with them. And alot of sites that have had issues with paypal being rather draconian in the way they treat their clients, often with a "one shot, no appeal" customer complaint policy. Total control freaks.
As a payment processor, they really need to be. Between regulations in countries all over the world and people trying to get funds that they are not entitled to, they need to be paranoid as all get out, I imagine.
Getting their business processes and those of other companies (like our beloved Paizo) is probably a matter of time, communication, and patience. It's no good for either company - or their customers - to rush into something that exposes them to an attack. 'Cause there's probably someone waiting for the opportunity - or you have proceed as if it were the case.
I feel for folks waiting for Paypal access, but I'm glad Paizo is considering it carefully before taking the leap. Or waiting to leap at all.
I like the gift card recurring sub idea. A customer determines a payment method, monthly amount [that can be adjusted up/down as needed] and the scheduling thing, then *pouf*, steady monthly budgeting.
Great idea, Steve!
Sara Marie, how does the whole thing work with what you mentioned Paizo working with customers on this method/concept?
Follow Up Edit: For those who get large-sum commissions, this could work really well. Uncle Sam hwarfs up a big refund, a Paizo customer dumps it into a pre-paid c-card, buys a big gift cert for themself, maintains sub(s) via that gift cert.
A question is "does my Pathfinder Advantage apply to purchases made with gift certs?".
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What if you could set an overage limit on your subscription page as well as a priority of subscriptions option on the subscriptions page. When your limit has been exceeded the website takes your subscription priorities in order from first to last. Then should there be any side cart items the site takes it in order from when it was added. Whatever items get "cut" are moved to the following month. Should a subscription be moved to the following month for three months in a row then the site will send you an email that your subscription has been suspended until further notice and to contact Customer Service to reinstate your subscription.
Just an option and my 2cp.
It definitely does. I've done this manually - put a few hundred dollars into store credit every now and and allowed it to build up. Subscriptions go through as usual, other orders get processed as usual - the money comes from the store credit rather than credit card but the order itself isn't otherwise affected.
Every time a shipment goes over $100, you get $10 off shipping. Personally, I prefer the over-$100 months to those that come in around $90; I feel like I'm getting a good deal.
Hey, didn't Sara Marie used to be a carebear? Were you demoted?
Nope, PROmoted. She's the manager now rather than a CSR.
Hey, didn't Sara Marie used to be a carebear? Were you demoted?
She's the new Cosmo.
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Hey, didn't Sara Marie used to be a carebear? Were you demoted?Nope, PROmoted. She's the manager now rather than a CSR.
Nobody gets my jokes...
Hey, didn't Sara Marie used to be a carebear? Were you demoted?She's the new Cosmo.
So, let me get this straight: the moustache is controlling Sara Marie now?
Hey, didn't Sara Marie used to be a carebear? Were you demoted?She's the new Cosmo.
But is that a promotion or a fall to the lowest places?
Paypal isn't on the table right now. Every time we look into it, their terms and conditions they need us to agree to do not work for us.
Coming from the banking industry at Chase (in a past life) I agree totally with this. Paypal is pretty rotten about following those regulations that payment processors have to and are in turn way too stringent on their own policies laid out for participators. Please no Paypal.
Gift card pool idea with adjustable amounts and adjustable date of transaction is a fantastic idea.
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I've updated my title to something suitably appropriate.
I approve.
Removed a suggestion for something that doesn't scale well.
Sorry. I'll bear that in mind.
I've updated my title to something suitably appropriate.
Is it "dire care bear" or "dire care bear"?
EDIT: Or "dire care bear manager"?
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"Hello. Customers complaining on products shall be ripped apart by dire bears. Customers complaining on service shall be ripped apart by dire managers. So, what is your problem today?"