Prices on the Basic and Power accounts have been the same since 2004 but this year it was time to make a ~$1 USD per month increase to these 2 plans. Prices on the Portfolio and Business plans remain the same. For those of you like yourself who have been with us since our "standard" plan existed, you are paying less than normal Basic customers.
Customers on Basic and Power plans paying annually will receive an email one month prior to their renewal outlining the price that they'll be billed at their next renewal.
Prices on the Basic and Power accounts have been the same since 2004 but this year it was time to make a ~$1 USD per month increase to these 2 plans. Prices on the Portfolio and Business plans remain the same. For those of you like yourself who have been with us since our "standard" plan existed, you are paying less than normal Basic customers.
erm, what happened to the grandfathering clause?
At least let the grandfathers (who kept the company running in the early days) that their coffins are sealed when you make the decision?
As I mentioned, those of you that are on our "Standard" (grandfathered) plan are still paying less than normal Basic customers to thank you for your loyalty all these years.
Edit: The above statement is outdated. Those on plans with pricing below the current pricing will start to see their pricing match the prices for new subscribers when their next billing cycle is set to renew.
> @leftquark said: > As I mentioned, those of you that are on our "Standard" (grandfathered) plan are still paying less than normal Basic customers to thank you for your loyalty all these years.
Hi, I too am being notifed of the price increase thru the auto renewal notification, I would expect a better humane communication done for those customer who was with your company since the early days. It has prompt me to search the web for some insight to the price hike and the best result is from this post.
You statement above is not true, with the new price, I am paying the same BASIC fee as any other new BASIC subscriber that sign up now.
@BigAl said:
Early warning would have been useful.
Any customer that was to receive a price increase was notified at least one month prior to their next renewal. To help improve our communication in the future, is there a more preferred time frame than 1 month early?
@GeofferyL said:
> @leftquark said:
> As I mentioned, those of you that are on our "Standard" (grandfathered) plan are still paying less than normal Basic customers to thank you for your loyalty all these years.
You statement above is not true, with the new price, I am paying the same BASIC fee as any other new BASIC subscriber that sign up now.
In April, when I posted about the customers on the Standard plan, it was true that those customers were still (and for the most part are still) paying less than new basic subscribers. As of October, those on plans with pricing below the current pricing will start to see their pricing match the prices for new subscribers when their next billing cycle is set to renew.
A lot of effort went into making sure the communication about the price raise was timely and appreciative of your tenure with SmugMug. With that said, we're always looking to do even better; do you have any specific insights that would have improved the communication?
A lot of effort went into making sure the communication about the price raise was timely
Really? I just received notification of the price increase in my renewal notice. From the above discussion, it sounds like this decision was made in April (or earlier). Why am I first hearing about this in December?
and appreciative of your tenure with SmugMug.
Apparently that communication didn't reach me either. All I got was a bill saying "This reflects an increase of $1.49 per month from your previous year’s subscription price."
A lot of effort went into making sure the communication about the price raise was timely and appreciative of your tenure with SmugMug. With that said, we're always looking to do even better; do you have any specific insights that would have improved the communication?
I'm not sure how this statement can be construed as true. I only received notification in my renewal notice, which I only looked for after I saw a nearly 50% increase charged to my credit card. 50%. This is not ~1 USD as you say above.
A lot of effort would be to send an email directly about the price increase, explaining why the grandfather clause is being nuked, and at least trying to convince me that I'm getting 50% more service than I was last year. I'm not BTW, at least for a power account, as the "hacker" ethos that it was designed to encourage has been more-or-less crushed a few years ago.
A lot of effort went into making sure the communication about the price raise was timely and appreciative of your tenure with SmugMug. With that said, we're always looking to do even better; do you have any specific insights that would have improved the communication?
I'm not sure how this statement can be construed as true. I only received notification in my renewal notice, which I only looked for after I saw a nearly 50% increase charged to my credit card. 50%. This is not ~1 USD as you say above.
A lot of effort would be to send an email directly about the price increase, explaining why the grandfather clause is being nuked, and at least trying to convince me that I'm getting 50% more service than I was last year. I'm not BTW, at least for a power account, as the "hacker" ethos that it was designed to encourage has been more-or-less crushed a few years ago.
I agree with Renstar. My email came today. There was no prior notice. Literally, out of the blue I get an email that says your subscription is due (which I NEVER get an email for, it is auto drawn out). I can understand a small increase, but 40%? SM has made bad business decisions for a while now...this is the end result. Time to move on...just another case of why you should invest in your own systems instead of others. Crashplan is another perfect example of this. 8 years of being an evangelist for SM, and starting up 23 photographers here, none of which I took a commission from SM for (Stupid me I see now) down the tubes.
> @ADWheeler said: > @renstar said: > > A lot of effort went into making sure the communication about the price raise was timely and appreciative of your tenure with SmugMug. With that said, we're always looking to do even better; do you have any specific insights that would have improved the communication? > > > > > > I'm not sure how this statement can be construed as true. I only received notification in my renewal notice, which I only looked for after I saw a nearly 50% increase charged to my credit card. 50%. This is not ~1 USD as you say above. > > A lot of effort would be to send an email directly about the price increase, explaining why the grandfather clause is being nuked, and at least trying to convince me that I'm getting 50% more service than I was last year. I'm not BTW, at least for a power account, as the "hacker" ethos that it was designed to encourage has been more-or-less crushed a few years ago. > > > > > > I agree with Renstar. My email came today. There was no prior notice. Literally, out of the blue I get an email that says your subscription is due (which I NEVER get an email for, it is auto drawn out). I can understand a small increase, but 40%? SM has made bad business decisions for a while now...this is the end result. Time to move on...just another case of why you should invest in your own systems instead of others. Crashplan is another perfect example of this. 8 years of being an evangelist for SM, and starting up 23 photographers here, none of which I took a commission from SM for (Stupid me I see now) down the tubes.
The same here! I received my notification today - informing me that my payments will go up in 12 days! No prior notice. I have been on SmugMug since 2008, almost 10 years. I have witnessed SmugMug making a number of questionable business decisions. It seems, they have always tried to solve their cash issues by passing the burden on to the customers. They also seem to focus on superficial site improvements while ignoring some often-requested practical features and improving the dated super clunky and unintuitive site builder tool.
I got my email this morning. I was a charter member. I thought we were grandfathered in - but apparently not. Looks like its time to move some other place. And of course there is no simple export feature either.
> @leftquark said: > As I mentioned, those of you that are on our "Standard" (grandfathered) plan are still paying less than normal Basic customers to thank you for your loyalty all these years.
This is not correct. I received this email today: --- We appreciate you being here with us since 2004. :)
This was not an easy decision but the price change was unavoidable. While we haven't increased our prices for consumer account levels in almost a decade, this is something we had to do now to be able to continue growing a strong business that you can rely on for the years to come.
The last time the Basic plan had a price change, we did at that time, keep you at the same price and did not increase your rate. That grandfather rate was a courtesy at the time, but not promised it would never change at another time. -- So we are not grandfahtered in with this price increase. Not good.
@leftquark said:
As I mentioned, those of you that are on our "Standard" (grandfathered) plan are still paying less than normal Basic customers to thank you for your loyalty all these years.
Just got my notice. 12 year Smugger. Apparently all the grandfathering or discounts for long timers have been discontinued. Renewal is full price.
Greg "Tis better keep your mouth shut and be thought of as an idiot than to open your mouth and remove all doubt"
Just received my renewal notice & am mortified to say the least ... after being faithful for years & starting with the $99 membership in the beginning, it's now jumping to $359.88 annually :-(
Not enough notice to mass haul elsewhere but I'll figure something out because this price is over the top :-(
The communication hasn't gotten any better in the last year. Just got my renewal notice this morning letting me know my business account would be going from $200 to $359.88. Never got that "I'm sorry" email that Jeffpcox posted. The renewal notice just said, "This price reflects an increase of $13.32 per month" without any explanation for the increase. At first I thought it was some screwup with the plan name change from Business to Pro that happened yesterday. Came here looking for other people complaining before emailing support. Had to do a search for "grandfathered" to find this thread.
I, too, have been with Smugmug over 10 years and the only notification of price increase was my renewal notice. While I never like to see prices go up, I am happy with my Smugmug service and still think it's a better deal than others I have researched. While it would have been nice to have had more notice than I received, it wouldn't have made a difference to me.
Like everyone else, no notice and explanation of the 43% price increase, just a renewal notice. I also thought a "grandfather" clause was in effect since my pricing has been the same for the last 5 years. Wowzers!
1
Matthew SavilleRegistered Users, Retired ModPosts: 3,352Major grins
The email I received December 31st of last year had such faint light grey on white text that I literally couldn't read it on my phone, and the text was tiny anyways. I did't glance at the email until I was clearing my inbox a couple days ago. Glad I did.
I just don't need what the $360/yr plan offers anymore; I don't sell thousands of dollars worth of prints like I used to. I could likely be just fine with the $180/yr.
However, my displeasure at how this was handled has caused me to go even further, and instead of getting billed $360 in a few days, I'll be getting billed $8.99. Until I cool off and can make a dispassionate, long-term decision, I'll be leaving my account at that monthly rate.
Ugh I'm with everyone else here. Been with SmugMug forever and hadn't noticed the price increase last year (an increase of 13.32 a month that likewise was not something I noticed) I was so used to years of same renewal notices and auto billing that I didn't notice the change last year and only noticed this year that it had changed. I think the issue is that this price increase should have been emailed out separately and specifically called out and it wasn't. It was just hiding in our renewal notices and most of us have been around too long to think we should care of realize there's a chance hiding there. Very disappointing
@JFreeman said:
The communication hasn't gotten any better in the last year. Just got my renewal notice this morning letting me know my business account would be going from $200 to $359.88. Never got that "I'm sorry" email that Jeffpcox posted. The renewal notice just said, "This price reflects an increase of $13.32 per month" without any explanation for the increase. At first I thought it was some screwup with the plan name change from Business to Pro that happened yesterday. Came here looking for other people complaining before emailing support. Had to do a search for "grandfathered" to find this thread.
Ditto. Never got that other email about being sorry.
I too was surprised and disappointed at the major change in price. Have been here 11 years... downgrading my account today, and am looking at other options for hosting. I hate to leave; have always been a big fan. Until recently.
@ivegotyourpicture.com said:
I too was surprised and disappointed at the major change in price. Have been here 11 years... downgrading my account today, and am looking at other options for hosting. I hate to leave; have always been a big fan. Until recently.
I am with you. It's ridiculous, especially at a time of such low general inflation.
Comments
Just got an email reminding me that my annual subs are due, with the rider that it is going up.
Bugs
Spiders
Flowers
Prices on the Basic and Power accounts have been the same since 2004 but this year it was time to make a ~$1 USD per month increase to these 2 plans. Prices on the Portfolio and Business plans remain the same. For those of you like yourself who have been with us since our "standard" plan existed, you are paying less than normal Basic customers.
Customers on Basic and Power plans paying annually will receive an email one month prior to their renewal outlining the price that they'll be billed at their next renewal.
Former SmugMug Product Team
aaron AT aaronmphotography DOT com
Website: http://www.aaronmphotography.com
My SmugMug CSS Customizations website: http://www.aaronmphotography.com/Customizations
erm, what happened to the grandfathering clause?
At least let the grandfathers (who kept the company running in the early days) that their coffins are sealed when you make the decision?
Bugs
Spiders
Flowers
As I mentioned, those of you that are on our "Standard" (grandfathered) plan are still paying less than normal Basic customers to thank you for your loyalty all these years.
Edit: The above statement is outdated. Those on plans with pricing below the current pricing will start to see their pricing match the prices for new subscribers when their next billing cycle is set to renew.
Former SmugMug Product Team
aaron AT aaronmphotography DOT com
Website: http://www.aaronmphotography.com
My SmugMug CSS Customizations website: http://www.aaronmphotography.com/Customizations
Ok thanks. Wrong attitude from smug about the whole grandfathering thing. Early warning would have been useful.
Bugs
Spiders
Flowers
> As I mentioned, those of you that are on our "Standard" (grandfathered) plan are still paying less than normal Basic customers to thank you for your loyalty all these years.
Hi, I too am being notifed of the price increase thru the auto renewal notification, I would expect a better humane communication done for those customer who was with your company since the early days. It has prompt me to search the web for some insight to the price hike and the best result is from this post.
You statement above is not true, with the new price, I am paying the same BASIC fee as any other new BASIC subscriber that sign up now.
Any customer that was to receive a price increase was notified at least one month prior to their next renewal. To help improve our communication in the future, is there a more preferred time frame than 1 month early?
In April, when I posted about the customers on the Standard plan, it was true that those customers were still (and for the most part are still) paying less than new basic subscribers. As of October, those on plans with pricing below the current pricing will start to see their pricing match the prices for new subscribers when their next billing cycle is set to renew.
A lot of effort went into making sure the communication about the price raise was timely and appreciative of your tenure with SmugMug. With that said, we're always looking to do even better; do you have any specific insights that would have improved the communication?
Former SmugMug Product Team
aaron AT aaronmphotography DOT com
Website: http://www.aaronmphotography.com
My SmugMug CSS Customizations website: http://www.aaronmphotography.com/Customizations
Really? I just received notification of the price increase in my renewal notice. From the above discussion, it sounds like this decision was made in April (or earlier). Why am I first hearing about this in December?
Apparently that communication didn't reach me either. All I got was a bill saying "This reflects an increase of $1.49 per month from your previous year’s subscription price."
@jdjdjd: I assume you're on an annual plan? Annual subscribes will be / are being notified one month before their renewal date.
Former SmugMug Product Team
aaron AT aaronmphotography DOT com
Website: http://www.aaronmphotography.com
My SmugMug CSS Customizations website: http://www.aaronmphotography.com/Customizations
I'm not sure how this statement can be construed as true. I only received notification in my renewal notice, which I only looked for after I saw a nearly 50% increase charged to my credit card. 50%. This is not ~1 USD as you say above.
A lot of effort would be to send an email directly about the price increase, explaining why the grandfather clause is being nuked, and at least trying to convince me that I'm getting 50% more service than I was last year. I'm not BTW, at least for a power account, as the "hacker" ethos that it was designed to encourage has been more-or-less crushed a few years ago.
I agree with Renstar. My email came today. There was no prior notice. Literally, out of the blue I get an email that says your subscription is due (which I NEVER get an email for, it is auto drawn out). I can understand a small increase, but 40%? SM has made bad business decisions for a while now...this is the end result. Time to move on...just another case of why you should invest in your own systems instead of others. Crashplan is another perfect example of this. 8 years of being an evangelist for SM, and starting up 23 photographers here, none of which I took a commission from SM for (Stupid me I see now) down the tubes.
> @renstar said:
>
> A lot of effort went into making sure the communication about the price raise was timely and appreciative of your tenure with SmugMug. With that said, we're always looking to do even better; do you have any specific insights that would have improved the communication?
>
>
>
>
>
> I'm not sure how this statement can be construed as true. I only received notification in my renewal notice, which I only looked for after I saw a nearly 50% increase charged to my credit card. 50%. This is not ~1 USD as you say above.
>
> A lot of effort would be to send an email directly about the price increase, explaining why the grandfather clause is being nuked, and at least trying to convince me that I'm getting 50% more service than I was last year. I'm not BTW, at least for a power account, as the "hacker" ethos that it was designed to encourage has been more-or-less crushed a few years ago.
>
>
>
>
>
> I agree with Renstar. My email came today. There was no prior notice. Literally, out of the blue I get an email that says your subscription is due (which I NEVER get an email for, it is auto drawn out). I can understand a small increase, but 40%? SM has made bad business decisions for a while now...this is the end result. Time to move on...just another case of why you should invest in your own systems instead of others. Crashplan is another perfect example of this. 8 years of being an evangelist for SM, and starting up 23 photographers here, none of which I took a commission from SM for (Stupid me I see now) down the tubes.
The same here! I received my notification today - informing me that my payments will go up in 12 days! No prior notice. I have been on SmugMug since 2008, almost 10 years. I have witnessed SmugMug making a number of questionable business decisions. It seems, they have always tried to solve their cash issues by passing the burden on to the customers. They also seem to focus on superficial site improvements while ignoring some often-requested practical features and improving the dated super clunky and unintuitive site builder tool.
> As I mentioned, those of you that are on our "Standard" (grandfathered) plan are still paying less than normal Basic customers to thank you for your loyalty all these years.
This is not correct. I received this email today:
---
We appreciate you being here with us since 2004. :)
This was not an easy decision but the price change was unavoidable. While we haven't increased our prices for consumer account levels in almost a decade, this is something we had to do now to be able to continue growing a strong business that you can rely on for the years to come.
The last time the Basic plan had a price change, we did at that time, keep you at the same price and did not increase your rate. That grandfather rate was a courtesy at the time, but not promised it would never change at another time.
--
So we are not grandfahtered in with this price increase. Not good.
> Ok thanks. Wrong attitude from smug about the whole grandfathering thing. Early warning would have been useful.
You will probably see the price increase in 2018.
Just got my notice. 12 year Smugger. Apparently all the grandfathering or discounts for long timers have been discontinued. Renewal is full price.
"Tis better keep your mouth shut and be thought of as an idiot than to open your mouth and remove all doubt"
Just received my renewal notice & am mortified to say the least ... after being faithful for years & starting with the $99 membership in the beginning, it's now jumping to $359.88 annually :-(
Not enough notice to mass haul elsewhere but I'll figure something out because this price is over the top :-(
The communication hasn't gotten any better in the last year. Just got my renewal notice this morning letting me know my business account would be going from $200 to $359.88. Never got that "I'm sorry" email that Jeffpcox posted. The renewal notice just said, "This price reflects an increase of $13.32 per month" without any explanation for the increase. At first I thought it was some screwup with the plan name change from Business to Pro that happened yesterday. Came here looking for other people complaining before emailing support. Had to do a search for "grandfathered" to find this thread.
http://joshfreeman.smugmug.com
I, too, have been with Smugmug over 10 years and the only notification of price increase was my renewal notice. While I never like to see prices go up, I am happy with my Smugmug service and still think it's a better deal than others I have researched. While it would have been nice to have had more notice than I received, it wouldn't have made a difference to me.
Sherry
Wowzers!
The email I received December 31st of last year had such faint light grey on white text that I literally couldn't read it on my phone, and the text was tiny anyways. I did't glance at the email until I was clearing my inbox a couple days ago. Glad I did.
I just don't need what the $360/yr plan offers anymore; I don't sell thousands of dollars worth of prints like I used to. I could likely be just fine with the $180/yr.
However, my displeasure at how this was handled has caused me to go even further, and instead of getting billed $360 in a few days, I'll be getting billed $8.99. Until I cool off and can make a dispassionate, long-term decision, I'll be leaving my account at that monthly rate.
My SmugMug Portfolio • My Astro-Landscape Photo Blog • Dgrin Weddings Forum
Ugh I'm with everyone else here. Been with SmugMug forever and hadn't noticed the price increase last year (an increase of 13.32 a month that likewise was not something I noticed) I was so used to years of same renewal notices and auto billing that I didn't notice the change last year and only noticed this year that it had changed. I think the issue is that this price increase should have been emailed out separately and specifically called out and it wasn't. It was just hiding in our renewal notices and most of us have been around too long to think we should care of realize there's a chance hiding there. Very disappointing
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Ditto. Never got that other email about being sorry.
Facebook: Friend / Fan || Twitter: @shimamizu || Google Plus
I too was surprised and disappointed at the major change in price. Have been here 11 years... downgrading my account today, and am looking at other options for hosting.
I hate to leave; have always been a big fan. Until recently.
this is exactly why I moved to Zen. much happier now.
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I am with you. It's ridiculous, especially at a time of such low general inflation.