Is there an easier way of setting prices?

jonh68 · February 18, 2009

I have my portfolio pricing set as default. However, I would like to have a way of applying the print default prices for family, friends, or occasions where I have been paid upfront and the customer wants good quality prints.

Right now, I only see one option in quick pricing when the gallery is set up, unlike the quick settings of the gallery where I see all the different choices for family, sports, wildlife etc. I can use the prices of past galleries, but they gets a little ridiculous having EVERY gallery I have used to show up.

Also, I may have done this by accident, but all my print default prices I had set up for family and friends are now set at my marked up prices. Going back and manually changing each gallery has been frustrating too.

I really like smugmug and the service, but I have to say setting prices has been really frustrating. I will not discount user error and misunderstanding, but I would just like to have the option of setting some standardized pricing lists and have the ability to select those in quick pricing rather go through a list of galleries and hope the pricing hasn't been changed.

AnneMcBean · February 18, 2009

jonh68 wrote:

I have my portfolio pricing set as default. However, I would like to have a way of applying the print default prices for family, friends, or occasions where I have been paid upfront and the customer wants good quality prints.

Right now, I only see one option in quick pricing when the gallery is set up, unlike the quick settings of the gallery where I see all the different choices for family, sports, wildlife etc. I can use the prices of past galleries, but they gets a little ridiculous having EVERY gallery I have used to show up.

Also, I may have done this by accident, but all my print default prices I had set up for family and friends are now set at my marked up prices. Going back and manually changing each gallery has been frustrating too.

I really like smugmug and the service, but I have to say setting prices has been really frustrating. I will not discount user error and misunderstanding, but I would just like to have the option of setting some standardized pricing lists and have the ability to select those in quick pricing rather go through a list of galleries and hope the pricing hasn't been changed.

Hi,

Thanks for the great feedback. We definitely hope to add price lists as a feature in the future, but for the time-being here is something you can do:

On the pricing tool, you can price portfolio, galleries, gallery, or image. If you click on "galleries", you should be able to easily set a bunch of galleries to match the pricing of one specific gallery.

When you initially create a gallery, you can find a gallery in the quick price drop-down, or you can skip that step and just leave it without prices. Then you can go into the pricing tool and set a bunch of galleries (including the new one) to SmugMug default pricing at once.

I hope that makes sense! Price lists would be/will be ideal, but I don't want you to have to do any extra work in the meantime.

-Anne
SmugMug Support Hero

J Allen · February 18, 2009

I have 4 unlisted galleries for pricing only, just so I can go in to the quick settings pull-down and select which one I want to use for pricing the gallery.

Here are my four galleries:

1- EZ Prints Family Pricing

2- Bay Prints Family Pricing

3- EZ Prints Pro-Pricing

4- Bay Prints Pro-Pricing

Hope this helps, some else might have an easier solution though.

jonh68 · February 18, 2009

On the pricing tool, you can price portfolio, galleries, gallery, or image. If you click on "galleries", you should be able to easily set a bunch of galleries to match the pricing of one specific gallery.

When you initially create a gallery, you can find a gallery in the quick price drop-down, or you can skip that step and just leave it without prices. Then you can go into the pricing tool and set a bunch of galleries (including the new one) to SmugMug default pricing at once.

That's my complaint about setting pricing. I have 423 galleries and when I go that route, I have to find each gallery in the category I want to change. It would be nice to set a price for each category too, or have some kind of sort feature to put some kind of order to them.

When I create a gallery, it lists each galleries pricing in the price-drop down as well. There isn't a rhyme or reason to how the galleries are listed so its time spent hunting through the galleries. I know I can go back to the specific gallery I just created and set the default print costs, but after a day of shooting, processing, and uploading, I forget a step sometimes and don't check it.

I just think making it easier to set prices would be a priority feature in the pro category. I would like it to be just like how the gallery settings are.

AnneMcBean · February 18, 2009

jonh68 wrote:

I just think making it easier to set prices would be a priority feature in the pro category. I would like it to be just like how the gallery settings are.

I agree, except I have lots of requests for improving how the gallery settings work as well.

It's on the list for sure. Thanks for the unvarnished feedback.

-Anne

jonh68 · February 18, 2009

Well, now you have one on pricing.

David Evertsen · February 18, 2009

jonh68 wrote:

Well, now you have one on pricing.

Thanks John, come across this and I agree would love to have some of your suggestions implemented... I second your motion!!

catspaw · February 19, 2009

family guy wrote:

I have 4 unlisted galleries for pricing only, just so I can go in to the quick settings pull-down and select which one I want to use for pricing the gallery.

Here are my four galleries:

1- EZ Prints Family Pricing

2- Bay Prints Family Pricing

3- EZ Prints Pro-Pricing

4- Bay Prints Pro-Pricing

I REALLY like this idea -- I'll have something different depending on the type of events, but this works for me

Seamus · February 21, 2009

NeilL wrote:

Well, I think I echo the sentiments here. Pricing seems unnecessarily rocket science/brain surgery tricky. It gets a bit out of order when categories, profiles, galleries, unlisted galleries, individual photos, the two printing services and all the hundreds of choices get tangled together in the process.

I know, I know... I don't SEE it the way you SM guys see it. It's my brain that's the problem. But, I'm the customer. And it's easier for the pricing system to be changed than for me to change my brain, that's for sure!

I want to be able to open a category (I don't know what this "profile" thing is, I haven't found it anywhere on my copy), OR a gallery, OR an individual image and set options and prices for that and just that, independently of any other mass pricing method.

I created a new category and gallery just for one photo because apparently by putting it in an existing gallery it just HAD to inherit the pricing settings of that gallery. The one image pricing option did nothing with that image while it was in that gallery. Just stubbornly refused to make an exception of that one image.

Again, I'm dumb, but you guys have got to go with the common dumbness sometimes 'stead of beating our heads against the wall you created.

In general, I find the SM systems to be a little clunky to use, though beautiful to look at and full of the greatest features.

You can set a price for an individual print. Go to the gallery -> tools -> set prices. When the pricing screen opens, click on image and set the price. Done!

Shay.

Andy · February 21, 2009

NeilL wrote:

As I said, I just wanna go in and price an individual photo, or photos in a gallery, whatever, as I choose. I don't want to have to be undoing hundreds of default settings to do that. That's backwards to me.

So, go to the image, click 'set prices' from the tools menu. Click the 'image' pricing option up near the top. Now, click custom, add $0, click 'all products' then apply. Now go to the sizes you want to sell, and add a price. There you go...

Does this help?

I'm sorry that it's been rough - our system offers so many options, Neil and with that, comes the need to learn 'em

once you price a few galleries you'll quickly get the hang of it. Holler for help any time.

Andy · February 21, 2009

NeilL wrote:

If you think the system is perfect

I never said that. But this is a huge improvement over v1 of the pricing tool

I said that with all the options that pros demand, and need, sometimes comes more complexity than some would like to endure.

catspaw · February 22, 2009

NeilL wrote:

EDIT: I see that if I go to Tools>Set prices, the gallery prices are all there, but if I select Buy>This photo the complete list of all products with the cost prices is there.

I believe this will show you the prices for YOU (at cost) if you are logged in. Log out and refresh a few times, then try to buy as if you were one of your clients. Or try visitor view.

denisegoldberg · February 22, 2009

NeilL wrote:

Unfortunately not, Leah, either in FF or IE, the complete list at cost shows.

Assuming that the site in your link is the one you are working on, I just jumped over there and clicked buy on one of the photos. The prices I am seeing are not the default smug prices.

Are you sure you're using a browser where you have logged out of smug? Don't use visitor view for this, log out completely.

--- Denise

NeilL · February 22, 2009

denisegoldberg wrote:

Assuming that the site in your link is the one you are working on, I just jumped over there and clicked buy on one of the photos. The prices I am seeing are not the default smug prices.

Are you sure you're using a browser where you have logged out of smug? Don't use visitor view for this, log out completely.

--- Denise

Ah yes, Denise, it looks right now, after I rebooted. I'll go back into my account and see if I can set an independent set of options for just one of the photos.

Thanks.

NeilL · February 22, 2009

Yes, I think this story is heading for a happy ending!

One thing, is it possible to turn off cropping by the customer, so rather they receive a print with white borders if with the size they choose the image size is not congruent with the print size?

Thanks.

jonh68 · February 22, 2009

Andy wrote:

I said that with all the options that pros demand, and need, sometimes comes more complexity than some would like to endure.

As a customer, I really don't know how to take that comment. It makes me feel like the fault is with me for wanting to customize quick pricing like we can in the gallery setting. The other response to my inquire was thanks, but we are busy with other requests.

That doesn't cut it. Everything else about smugmug is great, but the pricing is crap. Pricing is the NUMBER ONE reason to have a pro account and it's complicated for making quick changes or setting prices in a new gallery. I SHOULDN'T have to go back to a newly created gallery if I want a different set of pricing other than default and I SHOULDN'T have to sort through every gallery created to find a pricing I want.

It doesn't have to be complex. We can customize gallery settings and have them pull down in the quick gallery setting.

For pricing, there isn't. You choose the default price, or dig around for a previous gallery pricing. Let us make a list of price settings we can have in the quick pricing pull down.

I know the nature of the beast in commercial business and customer service. You have to pick and choose and make priorities. If it's low on the priorty, then fine. However, I am dissapointed with the responses so far with my requests.

Andy · February 22, 2009

jonh68 wrote:

I am dissapointed with the responses so far with my requests.

Ugh,I'm so sorry

Maybe I didn't say it the right way, John- I'm really, really sorry.

Just this weekend, Sorcerer bigwebguy was talking about how he plans making some more improvements.

But I have to say, as the pricing tool is far easier now than it was a few months ago. We'll give you any amount of personal attention and help you need & want, just holler for me, ATTN: Andy, at the help desk, and we'll get you going.

I'm sorry again that the tool is hard than it should be. I'm also gonna have the Mistress of the Help Pages, Anne McBean, reply here just in case I'm being really dum about something, too - okay?

jonh68 · February 23, 2009

I agree SETTING the prices is easier. Its the SELECTING of prices for galleries that needs improving.

AnneMcBean · February 23, 2009

jonh68 wrote:

I agree SETTING the prices is easier. Its the SELECTING of prices for galleries that needs improving.

Previously you said "I just think making it easier to set prices would be a priority feature in the pro category."

I agreed. I still agree, but as I've thought about it more...

Making it work just like quick settings would be a step up, but I still don't think it would be ideal. We hope to make it work much better than quick settings currently work, but it will take some time and careful thinking to do it right.

(Just to be clear, we DO have a lot of other stuff we're busy working on. Stuff that lots of other pros have been begging for. Many pros think coupons are most important, for example. So please don't think this won't get done, or that it's not important but like you said, we have to prioritize what we work on.)

That being said, I'm wondering if there's some low-hanging fruit here, to improve on the current functionality without tearing it all up. You said there doesn't appear to be a rhyme or reason to how the galleries are sorted on the "Create new gallery" page or the "Set prices for: Galleries" page in the pricing tool. That should be a quick fix for a sorcerer and I've already brought it to their attention.

-Anne

jfriend · February 23, 2009

AnneMcBean wrote:

Previously you said "I just think making it easier to set prices would be a priority feature in the pro category."

I agreed. I still agree, but as I've thought about it more...

Making it work just like quick settings would be a step up, but I still don't think it would be ideal. We hope to make it work much better than quick settings currently work, but it will take some time and careful thinking to do it right.

(Just to be clear, we DO have a lot of other stuff we're busy working on. Stuff that lots of other pros have been begging for. Many pros think coupons are most important, for example. So please don't think this won't get done, or that it's not important but like you said, we have to prioritize what we work on.)

That being said, I'm wondering if there's some low-hanging fruit here, to improve on the current functionality without tearing it all up. You said there doesn't appear to be a rhyme or reason to how the galleries are sorted on the "Create new gallery" page or the "Set prices for: Galleries" page in the pricing tool. That should be a quick fix for a sorcerer and I've already brought it to their attention.

-Anne

Anne, this isn't the only place in the Smugmug UI that there's a flat list of galleries that is pretty much useless when you have a lot of galleries. This is also a very, very long running feature request that has never gotten any priority (at least two years old, maybe even three years). I pretty much can't use Move Photo any more because the unsorted flat list of galleries with no category or sub-category information is impossible to use. It's not just time consuming to use, but impossible when you have galleries in different categories or sub-categories with the same name (which I do).

Please, please have the sorcerers remove all occurrences of a flat list of gallery names and replace it with a categorized, hierarchical picker like is used for Adding photos.

Just try using the flat list sometime with 540 galleries when many galleries (all in different sub-categories) are named "Highlights" or "Sara". That's what I have in one of my accounts.

David Evertsen · February 23, 2009

jfriend wrote:

Anne, this isn't the only place in the Smugmug UI that there's a flat list of galleries that is pretty much useless when you have a lot of galleries....

Please, please have the sorcerers remove all occurrences of a flat list of gallery names and replace it with a categorized, hierarchical picker like is used for Adding photos.

Just try using the flat list sometime with 540 galleries when many galleries (all in different sub-categories) are named "Highlights" or "Sara". That's what I have in one of my accounts.

I second the motion on this as well, I still use the move but I cannot for the life of me figure out the rhyme or reason for the pull down box list order. It is such a pain, I have such cryptic names for the ends of my galleries so I know which one I need, it would be easier if they would do like the add hierarchy. That would work wonders..

bwg · February 23, 2009

jfriend wrote:

Please, please have the sorcerers remove all occurrences of a flat list of gallery names and replace it with a categorized, hierarchical picker like is used for Adding photos.

you apparently missed the gallery picker in the price tool you so thoroughly reviewed. I even named it internally after you. its getting rolled out to the other pages soon.

see, I listen

jfriend · February 23, 2009

bigwebguy wrote:

you apparently missed the gallery picker in the price tool you so thoroughly reviewed. I even named it internally after you. its getting rolled out to the other pages soon.

see, I listen

Yes, I missed it there because I don't price that way. I will be very happy to see it in other areas of the site where is will help me a lot. Thanks.

jonh68 · February 23, 2009

AnneMcBean wrote:

That being said, I'm wondering if there's some low-hanging fruit here, to improve on the current functionality without tearing it all up. You said there doesn't appear to be a rhyme or reason to how the galleries are sorted on the "Create new gallery" page or the "Set prices for: Galleries" page in the pricing tool. That should be a quick fix for a sorcerer and I've already brought it to their attention.

-Anne

I would be happy if categories and then galleries within that category could be selected in the quick pricing menu.

I usually just use two pricing structures. My pro price and then the default printing cost for friends and family. At first, it was OK, but now it is more tedious to find specific galleries with more galleries put online.

Mohamed.Ghuloom · February 25, 2009

Ok, I have an idea!

What if smugmug could implement a pricing wizard where we would be asked friendly questions for the process of entering our desired prices. Then we could save that wizard as a profile. and make as many other pricing profiles as we want. Then the time of pricing, we would just choose the profile we want

This idea is difinitly very good, but needs more brainstorming.

Another thing is the pricing of individual photo:
Like we edit a caption of a photo or add new keywords to it by simply clicking on the "edit" link, why can't we just price this way? Again, more brainstorming needed..

Love ya all

NeilL · February 25, 2009

Mohamed.Ghuloom wrote:

Ok, I have an idea! What if smugmug could implement a pricing wizard where we would be asked friendly questions for the process of entering our desired prices. Then we could save that wizard as a profile. and make as many other pricing profiles as we want. Then the time of pricing, we would just choose the profile we want
This idea is difinitly very good, but needs more brainstorming.

Another thing is the pricing of individual photo:
Like we edit a caption of a photo or add new keywords to it by simply clicking on the "edit" link, why can't we just price this way? Again, more brainstorming needed..

Love ya all

Nice ideas, Moh! Don't know if anyone at SM who could put them to use would be interested? Your way of thinking accords with mine - not to work backwards from defaults, not to have to come to terms with, work around, a preformed structure, but to start from an initial simple need, eg price a single photo in a gallery, and mesh this into hierarchies. Bottom-up rather than top-down.

bwg · February 26, 2009

jonh68 wrote:

I would be happy if categories and then galleries within that category could be selected in the quick pricing menu.

I usually just use two pricing structures. My pro price and then the default printing cost for friends and family. At first, it was OK, but now it is more tedious to find specific galleries with more galleries put online.

this just went live:

jonh68 · February 27, 2009

That's close, but you still have to go back to the gallery to select prices. A pull down menu in quick pricing of pre-set pricing structures is what I would like.

bwg · February 27, 2009

jonh68 wrote:

A pull down menu in quick pricing of pre-set pricing structures is what I would like.

i agree. we'll get there.

David Evertsen · March 1, 2009

bigwebguy wrote:

this just went live:

Selected 121 out of 422 galleries for pricing and after about 5 minutes. Got this message..

This webpage is not available.

The webpage at http://www.phabulousphotos.com/pro/setprices.mg?ImageID=472313283&ImageKey=82veg&Type=AlbumBulk might be temporarily down or it may have moved permanently to a new web address.

More information on this error

Below is the original error message

Error 320 (net::ERR_INVALID_RESPONSE): Unknown error.

So are they changed?? Are they not?? What should I do??

Is there an easier way of setting prices?

Comments