~~~MiniShop Etiquette~~~

[aerolyn]

Thank you to shy_bunny for making this banner for the thread ^^

06-12-04 This thread has been stickied and no longer needs to be bumped. :O Bumps and spam will be deleted, domokun repeated bumps and spam will result in a warning.
DO NOT TRY TO BUY AND SELL GAIA ITEMS IN THIS THREAD.

^ ^ Thank you aerolyn for making this thread. We hope that many users, both minishop newbies and regulars, will benefit from it.
-Minishop Mods

Please note that this is NOT A SHOP! Please stop asking what is for sale! ~Aerolyn

[last revised 9/27/04]

I'd like to quickly thank everyone who supported the Etiquette thread, a huge thank you to my good friend StarDust52 who helped get this stickied, and thank you to all the Minishop Mods ^^

I suppose what drove me to create such a guide was the frustration I was beginning to feel as a shopkeeper. Customers often avoid reading the rules, and although I can be incredibly patient, little nuisances were beginning to build into greater and greater annoyances. Now it has gotten to the point where it's actually taking up my time and disrupting my online experience.

Please understand that we all make mistakes. I certainly have, and I don't hold that against anyone. Most of my customers are wonderfully generous people that I love working with on a daily basis, and make my shop a pleasure to run heart

This is not an attempt to divide, blame, or accuse anyone. I want to make more Gaians, particularly those that do not frequent the minishop forum, aware of how to conduct business best so that both shopkeepers & shoppers are happy. This is a flexible guide to a happy shopping experience that may be amended at any time. Therefore these guidelines are not set in stone, nor are they deemed anything other than guidelines. Feel free to submit your suggestions to the thread wink

Before you begin reading, it has been assumed that you've already read the following:

Minishop Rules & Guidelines
Guide to Placing Your Minishop

Navigation:
~Guidelines for Customers
~Guidelines for Shopkeepers

Banner...in progress wink

[aerolyn]

Guidelines for Customers

Read all the way through the shop before ordering. It may seem tedious in some of the larger shops, but 99% of the time, any questions you may have are answered somewhere in the shop. The majority of shopkeepers describe in detail how to order, rules of their shop, FAQ, and more.

Read & follow the rules. Every shopkeeper has a different set of rules and their own way of conducting business. These rules are set up with the best of intentions in mind: to make the transaction flow smoothly so that you are satisfied as well as the shopkeeper. There could be some fairly major consequences in ignoring the rules, such as not receiving your order and/or the shopkeeper assuming your trade was offered as a donation.

Be very clear in what you are ordering. I use a simple form whenever I'm ordering that most shopkeepers will accept (again, read the rules to see if they prefer you using their form instead!):

order

Hi, I'd like to place an order:

1-thing (65g)
2-thing (40g each)
1-other thing (10g)

Total=155g

If you are vague, the shopkeeper may not know what you are ordering or even if you are ordering!

Avoid quoting the shop. Do not reply by quoting the entire post that lists what's for sale, the rules, the welcome, the links, or whatever is listed in the initial shop posts. Although your post will take up more space and probably draw attention, it's very rude and eats up bandwidth...both on Gaia and the shopkeeper's site. If you absolutely must quote the shop to make your point/order clear, please edit it down to the bare minimum required to get your point across.

Be patient! People on Gaia have lives offline, and shopkeepers are no different. If you place an order in their shop while they're gone, do not get angry for lack of response. They will get to you when they can. This also goes for when a shopkeeper is backed up with orders or otherwise unable to respond. Sending PM's every five minutes is only going to slow them down in processing your order.

Do not request what is not for sale. Unless the shopkeeper specifically says you may order customs, do not make such requests. Don't order limiteds after they are sold out.

Do not beg. It's unfair to plead for discounts, free items, gold, or otherwise in shops. Simply put: DON'T DO IT.

Don't sell stuff in other people's threads. We know you have that ugly mummy mask you want to sell (or whatever) but don't post or advertise in threads other than your own. It's really rude and annoying.

Private message shopkeepers only if they say you can! PM's can be disruptive to the flow of business and most of what is PM'd can actually be handled within the shop thread. In general, shopkeepers keep a close eye on their shop and will respond to posted questions in a much kinder manner than if you PM them.

Send trade at the time of order unless the shopkeeper says otherwise. Most shopkeepers require you to send payment at the time of placing your order. Please do not ask when to start the trade or wait as shopkeepers are quite busy and don't have time to inform you when the proper time is. Suggestion to add this made by Pinque Von Fluffendorken

Respect. I hope this doesn't need explanation. In general, respect others, particularly those you're buying from. Be kind. Be courteous. Even if the shopkeeper makes a really huge error that makes you angry, relax. A good shopkeeper will jump on that error ASAP and correct any wrongdoing. We mean you no harm!

Don't order from dead/abandoned/closed shops. More often than not, this is just plain annoying. Obviously no one is there..so why would you?

[aerolyn]

Guidelines for Shopkeepers

Be courteous =) Part of being a shopkeeper is being respectful to your customers. After all, they're the reason why you have a shop wink Here are some things to remember when dealing with customers (particularly insane obnoxious ones):

1. Service with a smile biggrin Heard that slogan before? Bet you have wink Know why? A smile can do so much in your favor! Getting all the more angry in an upsetting situation only fuels the fire and worsens the situation. Nor do annoying consumers need to know *just* how much they annoy you. Smile biggrin Go ahead, let it go and let them go on their merry way.

2. Remember that you too are a customer. We all buy from each other, so it's unfair to bite someone's head off for breaking the rules when you refuse to follow them in other shops. Treat them precisely how you'd expect to be treated in other shops.

3. Show gratitude for those purchasing from you! They don't have to give you their gold, but they do because they want to. We want it to stay that way, right? Thank them.

4. Be polite. Don't assume the worst from everyone or take out your anger and frustration on your customers. It's not their fault. If you're just not having a good day, maybe it's time to take a break from shopkeeping and chill for awhile.

Understand what is reasonable. Don't expect too much from those buying from you. Just because you feel powerful, you don't need to ask your customers to jump through flaming hoops because you so desire. In general, don't make your rules too long or too complex. If you do, expect people to get confused.

Show kindness. Most people are just unaware when they do something that might aggravate you, whether it's being rude or breaking a rule. Depending on the situation, you may chose to let it slide, or kindly inform them of what they did. If you had to cancel a trade, explain to them in a kind manner why you had to.

Blacklists are not to be taken lightly. Don't add everyone you can possibly think of to your blacklist. Blacklists are only reserved for those you'd absolutely never sell to again. It also isn't fair to append your blacklist to encompass those of fellow shopkeepers when those individuals haven't even visited your shop yet.

Flexible yet firm. There's a time to change, and a time to stand your ground. Maybe if 20 people are repeatedly breaking a rule, it's time to do a little revision of your rules. However, if the conduct of an ill-mannered individual puts you or your shop at risk (such as art theft), be willing to take a stand. Again, being firm doesn't imply being overly aggressive. You can get your point across without hurting others.

Communicate clearly. This is very important. Clearly mark out sections of your shop in a logical, easy to follow order. Keeping a section for news and updates is smart, especially if you update often. When communicating with customers, don't be vague as they may misunderstand what it is you're talking about. Be specific.

Be prompt with delivery. Don’t sit on orders. It's one thing to be offline, but another to completely ignore customers. If you say it'll be two days or one week, mean it.

Be consistent in how you handle customers. People like to know they can depend on you for a quality product as well as service, and if you're always changing how you handle business, customers begin to lose trust.

Don't advertise in other people's threads. Placing advertisements in the thread of other shops is very rude, whether it's an outright banner or a subtle suggestion that your shop is some how better.

Post a closed sign or clear notice if you no longer intend to do business, or are taking an extended hiatus from Gaia. It's just a way of being courteous to customers so they don't buy from "dead" shops. Suggestion to add made by Alatariel Anwarunya

[aerolyn]

Suggestions/Feedback

How to make suggestions or offer feedback for this thread:

1) Post here. Don't PM.
2) Opinions are welcome.
3) For your suggestion to be added it must make common sense.
4) Repetitive suggestions on what to add will be ignored.
5) This thread isn't about flaming, accusing, or arguing. It's just a simple guide to help people get a long. So keep that in mind when you're making a suggestion.

[twilights7]

bump. you should include a part talking about making phony shops and using art not made by you... ninja some people do that, unfortunately sad

[chopstixluver]

good job!! this is nice, maybe noobs'll stop being............noobs sweatdrop
all we have to do now, is get people to read it xd

[aerolyn]

twilights7

bump. you should include a part talking about making phony shops and using art not made by you... ninja some people do that, unfortunately sad

I kind of assume that people already have read the minishop rules sticky wink Thank you tho---that gives me an idea on what to add biggrin

[aerolyn]

Locks

bump razz

I just needed a reason to ask you. Do you own a shop?

Yes I do...two actually wink

[Locks]

Thought so ^^; most of had some of those type of "customers" razz

[aerolyn]

Locks

Thought so ^^; most of had some of those type of "customers" razz

LOL...yup I have personal experience in dealing with those nutsy people wink

[aerolyn]

Locks

bump

thx wink

[Locks]

bump

So what are yoour shops?

[SHISUI]

Great Job
Really good info here

[aerolyn]

Locks

bump

So what are yoour shops?

Areolyn's Workshop & Kritter Korner wink

[aerolyn]

twilights7

bump (this should be a sticky biggrin )

3nodding Thank you wink