Auto Color Correction Option == BAD
As a professional photographer, I color correct every image I upload to SmugMug. My default color setting is True Color. Under no circumstances do I want a lab to "correct" the colors I've worked so hard to correct on my own through my color managed system. These images have already been corrected to match my own personal taste.
The typical client has no idea what "True Color" or "Auto" really means. Even if you provide them with an explanation, they won't understand color management or why I wouldn't want them to not select Auto. If I select True Color in my SmugMug settings, then I've explicity designated that I want True Color used when the lab prints my photographs. I will be very disappointed if clients are presented with this option.
Good thoughts
Discount coupons will be a nice driving force for marketing. Personally, prepaid is the wrong way to go. If a client needs a "freebie" then something went wrong and I will handle their needs; not give them a coupon and say "do over". Carrying branding into the shopping cart would be a nice feature also and the best, behind coupons, is the thank you note in orders. I would like that to be customizable by gallery or something that can be generated special if proof delay is selected, having a generic for those galleries that aren't proof delayed.
Never be afraid to think outside the box. Sometimes doing what the others have done only yield those results, which may be very limited.
I will be very disappointed if clients are presented with this option.
Thanks for your consideration.
Are you aware that they currently have that option with the existing cart? Worse case scenario is that nothing changes (the client can pick anything they want, and you can override their choice during proof delay)
Best case scenario is that the option is removed from the cart and the pro photographer can force a choice in advance.
...
Looks good... It seems more on the KISS (Keep it simple stupid) approach, which I like.
I am real interested in Coupons!!! I am moving to a new locate with nice store front and feel coupons would really help generate more customers.
I am not sure if I want customers to get DVD or CDs. Unless, they were protected and VERY dificult to crack the code, or were like the downloads. That or I will have them priced at an extremely high price. !
Packages sound GREAT too!!!
What is the projected date for this to go into place?
Why not (for pro accounts at least) simply remove the option from the customer cart completely.
If I have Auto turned on why would I want to give the customer the chance to get bad (maybe) prints because there was no color correction.
Same arguement goes in reverse. If I have spent the time to use the ICC profiles and turned on "True" color why should my customers be able to produce bad (again, maybe) prints.
It (color mode) simply shouldn't be a customer choice. Period.
And FWIW - I think (based on what you said about true color returns) the default should be Auto. Someone who spends the time to use profiles will spend the time to change the option from its default.
I fully agree with this! They shouldn't have a choice. If you're the site owner, and logged in, it should print with whatever color mode you set in the gallery. Or even better, allow us to have a global setting for color mode. Removing this choice from the shopping cart will also free up space the shopping cart screen. Thanks!
Those of you asking about the "pro lab" mentioned in Baldy's news item - what that means is, we're exploring the option of using additional lab(s) and this shopping cart change is a necessary first step to allow for that. We don't actually have any news on this other than it's something we hope to have in the future
Download Interface ? Changes
I might have missed it in all the points that have been made, but will there be any changes to the interface on the download portion of the check out ?
I've read through the thread and there's one thing that is not really mentioned. Branding. In the screenshots, I do not see a smugmug logo. As a pro, that is great. It's always bothered me that the SM logo shows in the cart. There's already a tons of links at the bottom of everypage in the footer. Can't that be stripped down the abbreviated footer? I digress.
What I would LOVE to see is a way to upload a logo of our choice for the cart. This should absolutely be an option for pro account holders. Even better, would be a way to customize the basic color scheme of the cart to match our site colors. This would be an excellent step in the right direction for pros.
I can envision a basic screen that lists the basic parts of the cart where we enter rgb or hex values. Click save and the cart would have those colors. Come on guys! I know you can do it!
Those of you asking about the "pro lab" mentioned in Baldy's news item - what that means is, we're exploring the option of using additional lab(s) and this shopping cart change is a necessary first step to allow for that. We don't actually have any news on this other than it's something we hope to have in the future
The thing I miss most from the cart is the fact that it does not include my headers and footers, and as such I have no record in Statcounter of people ever visiting the shopping cart.
I don't know if they are looking at the shopping cart or not until I see an order come down the pipe.
I would love to be more aware of how many customers are considering purchases (by the number of people who enter the shopping cart)
BUT... don't hold up the release on my account. I would much rather you get this thing out there and get working on coupons and packages.
I've read the whole thread and didn't see this asked. Perhaps I'm just sleep challenged today, but... What if you *do* want to crop now (not auto)? Am I missing something, or is the layout missing something?
I've read through the thread and there's one thing that is not really mentioned. Branding. In the screenshots, I do not see a smugmug logo. As a pro, that is great. It's always bothered me that the SM logo shows in the cart. There's already a tons of links at the bottom of everypage in the footer. Can't that be stripped down the abbreviated footer? I digress.
What I would LOVE to see is a way to upload a logo of our choice for the cart. This should absolutely be an option for pro account holders. Even better, would be a way to customize the basic color scheme of the cart to match our site colors. This would be an excellent step in the right direction for pros.
I can envision a basic screen that lists the basic parts of the cart where we enter rgb or hex values. Click save and the cart would have those colors. Come on guys! I know you can do it!
Please????
yeah please hang in there, that's not part of this release. It's something we've talked about, I'd love to see us do, but can't promise that it can be done. But we talk about it lots and I'm trying. Thank you.
We say in our confirm emails: "the deliveryman cometh" and other cool things. You probably know by now, we're no ordinary company. If you're looking for a stuffy shopping cart that wears a suit and tie, it won't be at SmugMug, I'm sorry
We're gonna have wording in the cart that is consistent with our style as a Company. And "Who's getting the goods" and "Who's Paying" fit right in, IMO.
Amen to that! I adore the wording used around smugmug.
Everytime I've ever needed anything, you guys have been right there for me...I totally trust you're gonna do the right thing by us on this too. Most of my clients just purchase copyrights, I've only recently opened up the shopping cart option, but totally look forward to the new abilities this will add. Keep up the awesome work!
I do have to say that I'm over here giggling at all the ruckus the auto/true is causing...helllloooo! It's already an option is your current shopping cart!
Auto/True
The only thing that I'm not sure about, is my clients (who order the prints directly) gets to choose Auto/True.
Is there a way to overwrite it, so that only the gallery owner could make that choice? Other than that it looks great. Thanks
The only thing that I'm not sure about, is my clients (who order the prints directly) gets to choose Auto/True.
Is there a way to overwrite it, so that only the gallery owner could make that choice? Other than that it looks great. Thanks
Thanks
Set a proof delay on your galleries. When you get notified of the order, go in and set it to whatever you want it to be.
We say in our confirm emails: "the deliveryman cometh" and other cool things. You probably know by now, we're no ordinary company. If you're looking for a stuffy shopping cart that wears a suit and tie, it won't be at SmugMug, I'm sorry
We're gonna have wording in the cart that is consistent with our style as a Company. And "Who's getting the goods" and "Who's Paying" fit right in, IMO.
Andy,
Maybe answered somewhere else in the thread, but I have to sometimes modify those emails. I like to thank the people buying images, by forwarding on the Smugmug notice we get. The "who loves you, baby" line usually gets deleted. The "familiarity" type of language is nice and I actually prefer it to stuffy, but not everyone on the customer side may find it appropriate, and they're the ones we're trying to get to order.
So, are the customers going to be able to see a toggle between the auto color and true? Like they click on Auto and it shows a preview? That would be pretty cool.
If the customer wants auto give them auto. If they want true give them true. The feature of seeing a toggel preview would be great. I spend a good bit of time doing color management, but the customer is ALWAYS (to a point of course) right.
So, are the customers going to be able to see a toggle between the auto color and true? Like they click on Auto and it shows a preview? That would be pretty cool.
If the customer wants auto give them auto. If they want true give them true. The feature of seeing a toggel preview would be great. I spend a good bit of time doing color management, but the customer is ALWAYS (to a point of course) right.
Wrong. I always choose for my customers. I haven't had a complaint yet.
Maybe Who's the lucky one is just as memorable but without the twinge.
We'll work on the wording. One thing we hear every day is how glad our customers are that we don't have forgettable corporate writing that gets lost in a sea of sameness.
I love Smug's irreverence. It fits well with my persona, and by extension my site [ballgamepictures.com]. All things being equal, one Smug-type-service to another, I would choose the "Smugness" hands down. That said...I can imagine many sites that might cringe. A bit like Mike Myers' "The Love Guru" crashing the last scene in "Sense and Sensibility". Numsayin', Dog? If custom text is a non starter [can you imagine someone adding "Thanks fer nuttin' MuthaF..." well, you get the idea ...THAT certainly wouldn't look good for SM's own branding]. Perhaps there could be a short list of SM acceptable salutations, etc. that might reflect different moods to match the photo site.
Jus' muckrakin' here.
Canon 7D! | Baux Pinhole MkIV | 30mm TP Tube Extender | SteadiHand IS system | BiPed 2000 Camera Support | Steely Gaze
Maybe answered somewhere else in the thread, but I have to sometimes modify those emails. I like to thank the people buying images, by forwarding on the Smugmug notice we get. The "who loves you, baby" line usually gets deleted. The "familiarity" type of language is nice and I actually prefer it to stuffy, but not everyone on the customer side may find it appropriate, and they're the ones we're trying to get to order.
Jay S.
When SM sends me the notice I email the customer (the notice has the customer's email) and send a little thank you note. That or follow up with a phone call. Granted it would be nice if I had a little prefab note that we could make that would automatically be sent.
If custom text is a non starter [can you imagine someone adding "Thanks fer nuttin' MuthaF..." well, you get the idea ...THAT certainly wouldn't look good for SM's own branding].
Pro Labs
On the pro labs feature, I think it would be cool if there was a choice for many. I.e. the pro lab gets the API or whatever from SM if they want to begin to offer pro lab services through SM. Obviously they cut some coin to SM on the orders or something along those lines.
In this case, the labs would/could begin to market SM as an easy way for their existing clients to order through them.
Wrong. I always choose for my customers. I haven't had a complaint yet.
If no preview... then why have it? Granted it may have a preview. Andy or the Web fellow creating the UI could answer this...
I dunno... I like customer service. Creates loyalty. I give them my suggestion and hear their ideas. Often clients will want to try a pose they have seen in some mag. So, I will work it in. I tell them some poses don't work for everyone. ! Sometimes they like it, but often they don't. The pose is usually not flattering for the body type. The customer always thanks me for trying it though.
Very Nice But....
This is nice, and user friendly, but some simple options that others are using would make a bigger impact then making the checkout process cleaner! such as offering a discound for buying more than one photo of the same image, or giving us the power to set a price for 2 - 5x7 photos of same image. And offering a discount for a given period of time. And package options such as a 5x7, 4 wallets, and 8x10 for a set price. I don't know how everyone ells feels about this, but in my business which is mostly online sports photography sales, this would be a huge huge plus. Currently I have a gallery where I set all prices to "Normal" and the default price has a 10% discount! after a gallery has been online for 10 Days I set the gallery prices to Normal by using the bulk change option which was not a major issue, but now that I have hundreeds of galleries in my acct, my system ether hangs or Firefox crashes because of the amount of galleries it is trying to load.
Just venting a bit because this is someting I have been hoping for for a very long time.
Paul.
iPhone users will appreciate how the buttons work.[/quote]
Sorry if I missed this, but is there a way for customers to browse around galleries, adding photos to the cart, and THEN go select the quantities, cropping, etc. rather then getting the pop up as soon as they do a "Buy this Photo".. I'm looking for more of an "Add to Cart" .. which will then let them do all the selections first, then go back in and do the other stuff.
Branding the cart is probably not an option, the cart could be loaded with
photos from different sites. How would you feel if after adding some from
your site they add some from another site and now their logo/branding shows.
Maybe answered somewhere else in the thread, but I have to sometimes modify those emails. I like to thank the people buying images, by forwarding on the Smugmug notice we get. The "who loves you, baby" line usually gets deleted. The "familiarity" type of language is nice and I actually prefer it to stuffy, but not everyone on the customer side may find it appropriate, and they're the ones we're trying to get to order.
I don't want to sound negative here, but will the text be customizable? The "Who's getting the goods" and "Who's Paying" text, while cute, may not be the most "customer friendly" from some people's perspective....
Comments
Also....I look forward to my customers being able to order CDs/DVDs!
thanks for all you do smugmug!!!
As a professional photographer, I color correct every image I upload to SmugMug. My default color setting is True Color. Under no circumstances do I want a lab to "correct" the colors I've worked so hard to correct on my own through my color managed system. These images have already been corrected to match my own personal taste.
The typical client has no idea what "True Color" or "Auto" really means. Even if you provide them with an explanation, they won't understand color management or why I wouldn't want them to not select Auto. If I select True Color in my SmugMug settings, then I've explicity designated that I want True Color used when the lab prints my photographs. I will be very disappointed if clients are presented with this option.
Thanks for your consideration.
Discount coupons will be a nice driving force for marketing. Personally, prepaid is the wrong way to go. If a client needs a "freebie" then something went wrong and I will handle their needs; not give them a coupon and say "do over". Carrying branding into the shopping cart would be a nice feature also and the best, behind coupons, is the thank you note in orders. I would like that to be customizable by gallery or something that can be generated special if proof delay is selected, having a generic for those galleries that aren't proof delayed.
Never be afraid to think outside the box. Sometimes doing what the others have done only yield those results, which may be very limited.
Covert Digital Studios
Are you aware that they currently have that option with the existing cart? Worse case scenario is that nothing changes (the client can pick anything they want, and you can override their choice during proof delay)
Best case scenario is that the option is removed from the cart and the pro photographer can force a choice in advance.
Either way, you are still in control.
Looks good... It seems more on the KISS (Keep it simple stupid) approach, which I like.
I am real interested in Coupons!!! I am moving to a new locate with nice store front and feel coupons would really help generate more customers.
I am not sure if I want customers to get DVD or CDs. Unless, they were protected and VERY dificult to crack the code, or were like the downloads.
Packages sound GREAT too!!!
What is the projected date for this to go into place?
Thanks for listening to the little guy.
My Gear
I fully agree with this! They shouldn't have a choice. If you're the site owner, and logged in, it should print with whatever color mode you set in the gallery. Or even better, allow us to have a global setting for color mode. Removing this choice from the shopping cart will also free up space the shopping cart screen. Thanks!
http://www.fernandogonzalez.net
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I might have missed it in all the points that have been made, but will there be any changes to the interface on the download portion of the check out ?
Thanks for all you do !
NH Sports Photography
nhsports.smugmug.com
I've read through the thread and there's one thing that is not really mentioned. Branding. In the screenshots, I do not see a smugmug logo. As a pro, that is great. It's always bothered me that the SM logo shows in the cart. There's already a tons of links at the bottom of everypage in the footer. Can't that be stripped down the abbreviated footer? I digress.
What I would LOVE to see is a way to upload a logo of our choice for the cart. This should absolutely be an option for pro account holders. Even better, would be a way to customize the basic color scheme of the cart to match our site colors. This would be an excellent step in the right direction for pros.
I can envision a basic screen that lists the basic parts of the cart where we enter rgb or hex values. Click save and the cart would have those colors. Come on guys! I know you can do it!
Please????
http://www.fernandogonzalez.net
I suggest mpix.
I don't know if they are looking at the shopping cart or not until I see an order come down the pipe.
I would love to be more aware of how many customers are considering purchases (by the number of people who enter the shopping cart)
BUT... don't hold up the release on my account. I would much rather you get this thing out there and get working on coupons and packages.
I've read the whole thread and didn't see this asked. Perhaps I'm just sleep challenged today, but... What if you *do* want to crop now (not auto)? Am I missing something, or is the layout missing something?
mywaterpolopics.smugmug.com
mywaterpolopics.com
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Amen to that! I adore the wording used around smugmug.
Everytime I've ever needed anything, you guys have been right there for me...I totally trust you're gonna do the right thing by us on this too. Most of my clients just purchase copyrights, I've only recently opened up the shopping cart option, but totally look forward to the new abilities this will add. Keep up the awesome work!
I do have to say that I'm over here giggling at all the ruckus the auto/true is causing...helllloooo! It's already an option is your current shopping cart!
The only thing that I'm not sure about, is my clients (who order the prints directly) gets to choose Auto/True.
Is there a way to overwrite it, so that only the gallery owner could make that choice? Other than that it looks great. Thanks
Thanks
Set a proof delay on your galleries. When you get notified of the order, go in and set it to whatever you want it to be.
Andy,
Maybe answered somewhere else in the thread, but I have to sometimes modify those emails. I like to thank the people buying images, by forwarding on the Smugmug notice we get. The "who loves you, baby" line usually gets deleted. The "familiarity" type of language is nice and I actually prefer it to stuffy, but not everyone on the customer side may find it appropriate, and they're the ones we're trying to get to order.
Jay S.
If the customer wants auto give them auto. If they want true give them true. The feature of seeing a toggel preview would be great. I spend a good bit of time doing color management, but the customer is ALWAYS (to a point of course) right.
My Gear
Nope.
Wrong.
I love Smug's irreverence. It fits well with my persona, and by extension my site [ballgamepictures.com]. All things being equal, one Smug-type-service to another, I would choose the "Smugness" hands down. That said...I can imagine many sites that might cringe. A bit like Mike Myers' "The Love Guru" crashing the last scene in "Sense and Sensibility". Numsayin', Dog? If custom text is a non starter [can you imagine someone adding "Thanks fer nuttin' MuthaF..." well, you get the idea
Jus' muckrakin' here.
When SM sends me the notice I email the customer (the notice has the customer's email) and send a little thank you note. That or follow up with a phone call. Granted it would be nice if I had a little prefab note that we could make that would automatically be sent.
My Gear
I'll admit it. I laughed.
On the pro labs feature, I think it would be cool if there was a choice for many. I.e. the pro lab gets the API or whatever from SM if they want to begin to offer pro lab services through SM. Obviously they cut some coin to SM on the orders or something along those lines.
In this case, the labs would/could begin to market SM as an easy way for their existing clients to order through them.
Glass: >Sigma 17-35mm,f2.8-4 DG >Tamron 28-75mm,f2.8 >Canon 100mm 2.8 Macro >Canon 70-200mm,f2.8L IS >Canon 200mm,f2.8L
Flash: >550EX >Sigma EF-500 DG Super >studio strobes
Sites: Jim Mitte Photography - Livingston Sports Photos - Brighton Football Photos
If no preview... then why have it? Granted it may have a preview. Andy or the Web fellow creating the UI could answer this...
I dunno... I like customer service. Creates loyalty. I give them my suggestion and hear their ideas. Often clients will want to try a pose they have seen in some mag. So, I will work it in. I tell them some poses don't work for everyone.
My Gear
This is nice, and user friendly, but some simple options that others are using would make a bigger impact then making the checkout process cleaner! such as offering a discound for buying more than one photo of the same image, or giving us the power to set a price for 2 - 5x7 photos of same image. And offering a discount for a given period of time. And package options such as a 5x7, 4 wallets, and 8x10 for a set price. I don't know how everyone ells feels about this, but in my business which is mostly online sports photography sales, this would be a huge huge plus. Currently I have a gallery where I set all prices to "Normal" and the default price has a 10% discount! after a gallery has been online for 10 Days I set the gallery prices to Normal by using the bulk change option which was not a major issue, but now that I have hundreeds of galleries in my acct, my system ether hangs or Firefox crashes because of the amount of galleries it is trying to load.
Just venting a bit because this is someting I have been hoping for for a very long time.
Paul.
iPhone users will appreciate how the buttons work.[/quote]
Jay S.
photos from different sites. How would you feel if after adding some from
your site they add some from another site and now their logo/branding shows.
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Paul, you missed the part that Baldy said: This Cart release is what is laying the foundation for coupons and more.
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I want to project a professional image. Way too cutesy. No offense. Keep the "Who loves ya baby" if you must in communications only to me.