Thank You
Thanks for this reply. It has helped me understand a little better the situation. I was in business and fully understand the need to prioritise. I just think it would be better for SM to state once and for all that they don’t intend to do anything about it or at least tell us where it is on their priority list. They say they are fulfilling the needs and desires of other users, fine,
I have just run out of steam… why bother….all you get is the stock answer…
For a lot you using PayPal also means you have to self fulfil all orders and that sucks......I have been after this for close to 3 yrs now to now avail and i live in the US but would like to do business (EASILY) outside......I have dealt with tiny flower shops in Prague and a couple of other places that offer their customers shoping carts in several currencies and you can see the rate change by the clik of the currency button.....
For a lot you using PayPal also means you have to self fulfil all orders and that sucks......I have been after this for close to 3 yrs now to now avail and i live in the US but would like to do business (EASILY) outside......I have dealt with tiny flower shops in Prague and a couple of other places that offer their customers shoping carts in several currencies and you can see the rate change by the clik of the currency button.....
I think hell will freeze over and we will have left this mortal toil before this feature is ever introduced.
I don't mind paying Smugmug 15% of my turnover plus lost interest on my money for the service.
But why should either I or my customers have to absorb the additional cost of post & packing?
There is also the added problem of handling disputes with suppliers.
Why not have a UK ( being very perocial) arm of SM? I would happily help set it up (TIC).
I have had a number of Australian clients refuse to order through my smugmug site because of the US dollar pricing.
Roger that . . . exact same experience in Australia.
We are lucky that some people care enough about our work to tell us that the USD$ is a non-starter. The majority of potential customers that have issues with the foreign currency will simply go away.
I'd propose that there are few things more professionally frustrating that spending all the effort, time, and money on getting the perfect image and then the best presentation for clients / the public and having it all fall over at the final hurdle simply because a price can't be converted - as happens on so many other e-commerce portals.
Dr. Thomas Moore, MSME, PhD.
Photographer - Oceanographer - Digital Media
For you Aussies ........... you might want to give redbubble.com a look......I am putting stuff over there so I have at least one place that I can sell in Euros, Aussie$ and other currencies.....RB is by no means SmugMug but I use it just for being able to offer to foreign clients in a currency they are truly familiar with (Euro) at least..............But the search is still on for similar in the UK and Central Europe.....I hate having to do it that way but for now it is my only choice if I really want to be able to sell to the world as web marketing was meant to be................GLOBAL!!!
For you Aussies ........... you might want to give redbubble.com a look......I am putting stuff over there so I have at least one place that I can sell in Euros, Aussie$ and other currencies.....RB is by no means SmugMug but I use it just for being able to offer to foreign clients in a currency they are truly familiar with (Euro) at least..............But the search is still on for similar in the UK and Central Europe.....I hate having to do it that way but for now it is my only choice if I really want to be able to sell to the world as web marketing was meant to be................GLOBAL!!!
I just think it would be better for SM to state once and for all that they don’t intend to do anything about it or at least tell us where it is on their priority list.
I've said before, it's not on the near-term priority list. We've got to get coupons, packages and a few more goodies out first, before we can make a new "list". Our priorities evolve. I can't say, truly, where this feature request will be in 3 months' time.
It's terribly important to us to hear from all of our customers - please don't stop!
I started this thread nearly three years ago and nothing has been achieved to help customers outside the US with their foreign currency transactions. With that in mind I am going to change my account from a Pro user to a Power user. Does anyone know if it can be done online? And I think it would be fair to get a pro-rata credit included when Smugmug pay out my Pro sales balance... Has anyone done this change of account level before?
I started this thread nearly three years ago and nothing has been achieved to help customers outside the US with their foreign currency transactions. With that in mind I am going to change my account from a Pro user to a Power user.
I considered doing this about 9 months ago, but I though I would hold off a bit and see what happened but enough is enough and it is obvious that nothing is going to happen for a LONG LONG time so I'm going to drop down to a Power user also for now.
I am hoping they can somehow combine my Pro rata refund for remaining months along with my few meagre sales in USD which I have yet to claim. I'll dig up my response from an email last year about dropping down to Power user as it answered questions on existing watermarks etc.. Stay tuned
Found the email but it looks like I never got a response to ProRata Refund of the Subscription fee for remaining months
Heres the email response
Thanks for contacting SmugMug.
1: If you e-mail "showmethemoney@smugmug.com" with your account details we will send you a cheque with your profits.
2: If you don't intend to sell prints you can turn off this option in Customise gallery - printing; set printable to "no". Prior to downgrading it would be best if you remove the watermarks from your photographs.
3: The maximum size that the public will be able to view will change from medium to xlarge if you downgrade to a power account. Your pictures will look the same and your links should still work.
I am hoping they can somehow combine my Pro rata refund for remaining months
Found the email but it looks like I never got a response to ProRata Refund of the Subscription fee for remaining months
Hi
I also enquired recently about a refund for downgrading to Power user, Andy advised that it isn't possible to refund as they commit to pre-purchasing space (can't find the email from him).
Hi
I also enquired recently about a refund for downgrading to Power user, Andy advised that it isn't possible to refund as they commit to pre-purchasing space (can't find the email from him).
Caroline
But standard, power and pro all have unlimited space - however I do understand they have probably calculated average space requirements for each user type.
Oh well, it's a shame - it's not like we are telling them we want international lab partnerships, we just want our country folk to pay in their own currency. PLENTY of other websites do it (and the are a LOT smaller than Smugmug), I am stunned that SM still don't..
I considered doing this about 9 months ago, but I though I would hold off a bit and see what happened but enough is enough and it is obvious that nothing is going to happen for a LONG LONG time so I'm going to drop down to a Power user also for now.
I plan on doing exactly the same in a couple of months when my renewal is up. Andy has mentioned before they dont give pro-rata refunds so may as well wait till the last minute and downgrade.
Now I have paypal working I dont need the pro account however if Smugmug was to offer international pricing I would jump straight back up to a pro account to save the self-fulfilment I have to do at the moment.
I started this thread nearly three years ago and nothing has been achieved to help customers outside the US with their foreign currency transactions. With that in mind I am going to change my account from a Pro user to a Power user. Does anyone know if it can be done online? And I think it would be fair to get a pro-rata credit included when Smugmug pay out my Pro sales balance... Has anyone done this change of account level before?
Cammo, I downgraded my account to a Power account a few months ago. I had to send in an email to have it done. The lack of support for foreign (not to me!) currencies is one of the reasons I did this. I love SmugMug, but I need local currency support, especially at today's exchange rates.
<TABLE><TBODY><TR><TD>Custom products created and fulfilled by you</TD><TD>4% of the selling price</TD><TD>Zenfolio will create orders, use your PayPal account to send payment to you directly, and you can then fulfill orders and provide customer service.</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
Come on SMUGMUG, if they can do it i am sure you can.
My wife, not a photographer, loves your interface and I don't want to be even looking elsewhere but you are clearly forcing your customers to do so. Can't you give us a hint as to when this facility might become available, please?
Very interesting. Will be waiting in anticipation of your review to see just what it is like and whether it is worth the move. Using paypal integration does that also mean you can set the currency?
Would be fantasic if Smugmug could offer something as simple as this.
Ok so it's Uk based, but there must be equivalent companies in your home country that can do the same. I'll also be downgrading to power as I no longer need SM sales tool.
Very interesting. Will be waiting in anticipation of your review to see just what it is like and whether it is worth the move. Using paypal integration does that also mean you can set the currency?
Would be fantasic if Smugmug could offer something as simple as this.
You can't set the currency yet - but it's coming soon (according to them). I will be surprised if it isn't available in the next few months.
Still like SM a lot - but can't use them for sales. Once ZF allow currency choice, then I will switch any 'for sale' work over there. I will probably continue with SM for my personal stuff.
ZF are also working on integration with a UK lab. No indication of who it is. If it's someplace like Loxley - great - but it may be a more consumer-oriented lab.
Photo Cart may work for some
I had been waiting for this feature (and a few others) for a long, long, long time. I specifically needed:
• Foreign currency support
• More cart item options
• Package creation options
• Coupons/credit support
• Self-fulfillment
I simply couldn't wait any longer. I have a good web host with a pile of storage and bandwidth, so I purchased Photo Cart last week. It has been live for 1 day, and with only 1 gallery on it so far, it has paid for itself more than 2 times over.
If your needs are similar to mine above, and you have a web hosting solution, then I would say check out Photo Cart.
would you provide a link to YOUR site so we can see it and does your shopping cart allow different currencies........
It looks essentially identical to the demo cart at www.picturespro.com. It doesn't have the stylistic customization of a Smugmug account, but I also don't need it - I already have a separate website and blog. It just needs to be a shopping cart. I won't dispute the fact that Smugmug customization and galleries are awesome - I've never seen a nicer gallery setup than Smugmug. These things are secondary to me, however. I don't presume to recommend Photo Cart for everyone - It simply isn't for everyone, just as Smugmug doesn't suit me for what I need to do.
Don't get me wrong, I'm keeping my Smug account active - I like the galleries, and I will post my family/recreation shots there for my family and friends to enjoy. Plus I like the prints, they really are great quality.
Photo Cart will allow any currency I enable, including localized tax/VAT rates, plus shipping tables based on zip/postal code. In my case, my events are primarily weddings, and 100% of my clients are Canadian, so my primary currency is Canadian Dollars. The payment processor allows payment in currencies other than Canadian Dollars.
I hope that clarifies my position.
It looks essentially identical to the demo cart at www.picturespro.com. It doesn't have the stylistic customization of a Smugmug account, but I also don't need it - I already have a separate website and blog. It just needs to be a shopping cart. I won't dispute the fact that Smugmug customization and galleries are awesome - I've never seen a nicer gallery setup than Smugmug. These things are secondary to me, however. I don't presume to recommend Photo Cart for everyone - It simply isn't for everyone, just as Smugmug doesn't suit me for what I need to do.
Don't get me wrong, I'm keeping my Smug account active - I like the galleries, and I will post my family/recreation shots there for my family and friends to enjoy. Plus I like the prints, they really are great quality.
Photo Cart will allow any currency I enable, including localized tax/VAT rates, plus shipping tables based on zip/postal code. In my case, my events are primarily weddings, and 100% of my clients are Canadian, so my primary currency is Canadian Dollars. The payment processor allows payment in currencies other than Canadian Dollars.
I hope that clarifies my position.
After a bit'o googling I found your site.....nice well done......Thanks for the link to pictures pro also.....interesting to say the least....
Now site is built and you ahve a shopping cart.....I did not see an offering for a credit card gateway of any sort........or is it all tied to PayPal....which is fine with me.....as I use PayPal alot myself............
What do you know that we don't FrankC?
Have you been told this or is it a guess?
I sincerely hope you are right.
All I know is on the public ZF forums - there are a few threads about this, and various replies from ZF staff.
I asked them about multi-currency support, and they said part of the recent release, which added PayPal support, was to prepare for multi-currency sales.
After a bit'o googling I found your site.....nice well done......Thanks for the link to pictures pro also.....interesting to say the least....
Now site is built and you ahve a shopping cart.....I did not see an offering for a credit card gateway of any sort........or is it all tied to PayPal....which is fine with me.....as I use PayPal alot myself............
Thank you for the kind words. I knew you'd find it. It is temporarily linked to Paypal until my merchant account is fully set up. I am still in a negotiations process with a couple of them. I would like to find one that ideally offers the payment gateway, plus both a virtual terminal and a virtual terminal app for my iphone, and without costing $arm+leg. I don't know if that is available yet for me, however.
The backend is really quite a learning curve, there are so many ways to apply dicounts, print credits, account credits, coupons, etc. The invoicing module seems really good, I can create an invoice for a customer without a shopping cart scenario ever taking place, send them the invoice and have payment gateway available right on the document. really cool.
Now this is kind of ironic - I am sending orders I receive from Photo Cart to be fulfilled at Bay Photo via Smugmug. I simply can't get a pro-lab print here locally that even comes close in price, even after shipping+currency conversion. So all of this hoopla is basically started because my clients won't buy in US dollars. It is a weird workaround that way, but on the plus side, my order files are archived for easy re-order with Smugmug instead of taking up space on my web host, or one of my drives.
Now this is kind of ironic - I am sending orders I receive from Photo Cart to be fulfilled at Bay Photo via Smugmug. I simply can't get a pro-lab print here locally that even comes close in price, even after shipping+currency conversion. So all of this hoopla is basically started because my clients won't buy in US dollars. It is a weird workaround that way, but on the plus side, my order files are archived for easy re-order with Smugmug instead of taking up space on my web host, or one of my drives.
Could not agree more. The prices and quality from Bay are fantasic so I still do some of my "self-fulfilment" via Smugmug & Bay but take my payments via paypal in local currency.
Please Smugmug tell me there is progress on setting the currency?! It's the greatest problem I have with Smugmug, I love everything else! I need Australian currency, especially with the dollar the way it is.
Please Smugmug tell me there is progress on setting the currency?! It's the greatest problem I have with Smugmug, I love everything else! I need Australian currency, especially with the dollar the way it is.
I'd suggest you look into doing your own sales with Paypal... Unfortunately Smugmug doesn't have enough overseas pros wanting this feature to justify its development. They have previously confirmed that it's not on any development schedule. I doubt this has changed.
All I know is on the public ZF forums - there are a few threads about this, and various replies from ZF staff.
I asked them about multi-currency support, and they said part of the recent release, which added PayPal support, was to prepare for multi-currency sales.
OK - so it's finally been implemented.
Multi-currency + Photobox as the European lab (who also happen to have a facility here in Ireland).
So, this will make a big change to how I use Smugmug in future.
I will continue to use SM, but for my personal stuff mainly. The options and CS are still ahead of the others (not just ZF).
For my commercial work - that will all go on ZF, and I hope to start earning some more money from print sales.
Eventually, I may switch to just using one of them.
(Incidentally, it took about a year to achieve this from the time ZF first committed to doing it).
Comments
Thanks for this reply. It has helped me understand a little better the situation. I was in business and fully understand the need to prioritise. I just think it would be better for SM to state once and for all that they don’t intend to do anything about it or at least tell us where it is on their priority list. They say they are fulfilling the needs and desires of other users, fine,
I have just run out of steam… why bother….all you get is the stock answer…
Roy Palmer - Digital Images
http://www.digital-images.org.uk/
I think hell will freeze over and we will have left this mortal toil before this feature is ever introduced.
I don't mind paying Smugmug 15% of my turnover plus lost interest on my money for the service.
But why should either I or my customers have to absorb the additional cost of post & packing?
There is also the added problem of handling disputes with suppliers.
Why not have a UK ( being very perocial) arm of SM? I would happily help set it up (TIC).
Roy Palmer - Digital Images
http://www.digital-images.org.uk/
Roger that . . . exact same experience in Australia.
We are lucky that some people care enough about our work to tell us that the USD$ is a non-starter. The majority of potential customers that have issues with the foreign currency will simply go away.
I'd propose that there are few things more professionally frustrating that spending all the effort, time, and money on getting the perfect image and then the best presentation for clients / the public and having it all fall over at the final hurdle simply because a price can't be converted - as happens on so many other e-commerce portals.
Photographer - Oceanographer - Digital Media
ThomasMoorePhotography - Blog
www.ThomasMoorePhotography.com
www.DigitalTasmania.com
www.CoastView.com.au
thomas.moore@coastview.com.au
0409681127
Is this not a wonder and simple page?
http://www.redbubble.com/settings/currency?return_to=%2Fauth%2Flogin
Roy Palmer - Digital Images
http://www.digital-images.org.uk/
It's terribly important to us to hear from all of our customers - please don't stop!
Portfolio • Workshops • Facebook • Twitter
Smugmug address - http://camlaird.smugmug.com
I considered doing this about 9 months ago, but I though I would hold off a bit and see what happened but enough is enough and it is obvious that nothing is going to happen for a LONG LONG time so I'm going to drop down to a Power user also for now.
I am hoping they can somehow combine my Pro rata refund for remaining months along with my few meagre sales in USD which I have yet to claim. I'll dig up my response from an email last year about dropping down to Power user as it answered questions on existing watermarks etc.. Stay tuned
Here was an old thread asking some questions but Ive got an email somewhere with more detail
http://www.dgrin.com/showthread.php?t=107294
Found the email but it looks like I never got a response to ProRata Refund of the Subscription fee for remaining months
Heres the email response
Thanks for contacting SmugMug.
1: If you e-mail "showmethemoney@smugmug.com" with your account details we will send you a cheque with your profits.
2: If you don't intend to sell prints you can turn off this option in Customise gallery - printing; set printable to "no". Prior to downgrading it would be best if you remove the watermarks from your photographs.
3: The maximum size that the public will be able to view will change from medium to xlarge if you downgrade to a power account. Your pictures will look the same and your links should still work.
4: you will keep your custom domain name.
Hi
I also enquired recently about a refund for downgrading to Power user, Andy advised that it isn't possible to refund as they commit to pre-purchasing space (can't find the email from him).
Caroline
www.carolineshipsey.co.uk - Follow me on G+
[/URL]
But standard, power and pro all have unlimited space - however I do understand they have probably calculated average space requirements for each user type.
Oh well, it's a shame - it's not like we are telling them we want international lab partnerships, we just want our country folk to pay in their own currency. PLENTY of other websites do it (and the are a LOT smaller than Smugmug), I am stunned that SM still don't..
Smugmug address - http://camlaird.smugmug.com
I plan on doing exactly the same in a couple of months when my renewal is up. Andy has mentioned before they dont give pro-rata refunds so may as well wait till the last minute and downgrade.
Now I have paypal working I dont need the pro account however if Smugmug was to offer international pricing I would jump straight back up to a pro account to save the self-fulfilment I have to do at the moment.
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/craigridleyoutdoorphotography
Want to save $5 on a smugmug account? Use this coupon code: WzG2eZLQPGrqI
Richard McDonald
Ottawa - Gatineau, Canada
http://rmcd.smugmug.com
Thanks for that. Looks like I'll have to wait till October then. That will give me time to clean up existing watermarks etc for the downgrade
Zenfolio are now offering Paypal through their shopping cart for self-fulfilled products.
See http://www.zenfolio.com/zf/selling.aspx
I'm off to give it a try.
<TABLE><TBODY><TR><TD>Custom products created and fulfilled by you</TD><TD>4% of the selling price</TD><TD>Zenfolio will create orders, use your PayPal account to send payment to you directly, and you can then fulfill orders and provide customer service.</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
Come on SMUGMUG, if they can do it i am sure you can.
My wife, not a photographer, loves your interface and I don't want to be even looking elsewhere but you are clearly forcing your customers to do so. Can't you give us a hint as to when this facility might become available, please?
Roy
Roy Palmer - Digital Images
http://www.digital-images.org.uk/
Very interesting. Will be waiting in anticipation of your review to see just what it is like and whether it is worth the move. Using paypal integration does that also mean you can set the currency?
Would be fantasic if Smugmug could offer something as simple as this.
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/craigridleyoutdoorphotography
Want to save $5 on a smugmug account? Use this coupon code: WzG2eZLQPGrqI
Ok so it's Uk based, but there must be equivalent companies in your home country that can do the same. I'll also be downgrading to power as I no longer need SM sales tool.
Become a fan of Chris Humphreys Photography
You can't set the currency yet - but it's coming soon (according to them). I will be surprised if it isn't available in the next few months.
Still like SM a lot - but can't use them for sales. Once ZF allow currency choice, then I will switch any 'for sale' work over there. I will probably continue with SM for my personal stuff.
ZF are also working on integration with a UK lab. No indication of who it is. If it's someplace like Loxley - great - but it may be a more consumer-oriented lab.
http://photos.frankcourtney.com/
Wedding Photographer Dublin
I had been waiting for this feature (and a few others) for a long, long, long time. I specifically needed:
• Foreign currency support
• More cart item options
• Package creation options
• Coupons/credit support
• Self-fulfillment
I simply couldn't wait any longer. I have a good web host with a pile of storage and bandwidth, so I purchased Photo Cart last week. It has been live for 1 day, and with only 1 gallery on it so far, it has paid for itself more than 2 times over.
If your needs are similar to mine above, and you have a web hosting solution, then I would say check out Photo Cart.
It looks essentially identical to the demo cart at www.picturespro.com. It doesn't have the stylistic customization of a Smugmug account, but I also don't need it - I already have a separate website and blog. It just needs to be a shopping cart. I won't dispute the fact that Smugmug customization and galleries are awesome - I've never seen a nicer gallery setup than Smugmug. These things are secondary to me, however. I don't presume to recommend Photo Cart for everyone - It simply isn't for everyone, just as Smugmug doesn't suit me for what I need to do.
Don't get me wrong, I'm keeping my Smug account active - I like the galleries, and I will post my family/recreation shots there for my family and friends to enjoy. Plus I like the prints, they really are great quality.
Photo Cart will allow any currency I enable, including localized tax/VAT rates, plus shipping tables based on zip/postal code. In my case, my events are primarily weddings, and 100% of my clients are Canadian, so my primary currency is Canadian Dollars. The payment processor allows payment in currencies other than Canadian Dollars.
I hope that clarifies my position.
What do you know that we don't FrankC?
Have you been told this or is it a guess?
I sincerely hope you are right.
Roy Palmer - Digital Images
http://www.digital-images.org.uk/
After a bit'o googling I found your site.....nice well done......Thanks for the link to pictures pro also.....interesting to say the least....
Now site is built and you ahve a shopping cart.....I did not see an offering for a credit card gateway of any sort........or is it all tied to PayPal....which is fine with me.....as I use PayPal alot myself............
All I know is on the public ZF forums - there are a few threads about this, and various replies from ZF staff.
I asked them about multi-currency support, and they said part of the recent release, which added PayPal support, was to prepare for multi-currency sales.
http://photos.frankcourtney.com/
Wedding Photographer Dublin
Thank you for the kind words. I knew you'd find it. It is temporarily linked to Paypal until my merchant account is fully set up. I am still in a negotiations process with a couple of them. I would like to find one that ideally offers the payment gateway, plus both a virtual terminal and a virtual terminal app for my iphone, and without costing $arm+leg. I don't know if that is available yet for me, however.
The backend is really quite a learning curve, there are so many ways to apply dicounts, print credits, account credits, coupons, etc. The invoicing module seems really good, I can create an invoice for a customer without a shopping cart scenario ever taking place, send them the invoice and have payment gateway available right on the document. really cool.
Now this is kind of ironic - I am sending orders I receive from Photo Cart to be fulfilled at Bay Photo via Smugmug. I simply can't get a pro-lab print here locally that even comes close in price, even after shipping+currency conversion. So all of this hoopla is basically started because my clients won't buy in US dollars. It is a weird workaround that way, but on the plus side, my order files are archived for easy re-order with Smugmug instead of taking up space on my web host, or one of my drives.
Could not agree more. The prices and quality from Bay are fantasic so I still do some of my "self-fulfilment" via Smugmug & Bay but take my payments via paypal in local currency.
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/craigridleyoutdoorphotography
Want to save $5 on a smugmug account? Use this coupon code: WzG2eZLQPGrqI
I'd suggest you look into doing your own sales with Paypal... Unfortunately Smugmug doesn't have enough overseas pros wanting this feature to justify its development. They have previously confirmed that it's not on any development schedule. I doubt this has changed.
Cheers - N
http://www.nzsnaps.com (talkiet.smugmug.com)
OK - so it's finally been implemented.
Multi-currency + Photobox as the European lab (who also happen to have a facility here in Ireland).
So, this will make a big change to how I use Smugmug in future.
I will continue to use SM, but for my personal stuff mainly. The options and CS are still ahead of the others (not just ZF).
For my commercial work - that will all go on ZF, and I hope to start earning some more money from print sales.
Eventually, I may switch to just using one of them.
(Incidentally, it took about a year to achieve this from the time ZF first committed to doing it).
http://photos.frankcourtney.com/
Wedding Photographer Dublin