theodor

I would not, but I do feel like the 'donors being protected thing would still be an issue. Would there be a way to combat this, if donations were added?

3 hours ago, Fauwcks said:

Isn't there an option within paypal to force the refund? If the exchange is not through email ask them if you and them could continue it through email 'because it's easier for you' (even if it's not the case). Then see if the email they use matches any of the payments in paypal, if it does force the refund and then block them. It's really not worth the stress and your wrist needs to rest.

There is, if its within the time frame!

My paypal doesnt show anything on the details except names, so I need them to give me the name on their account. The commission purchased was via a batch and they are all the same amounts. I dont want to ask them which is theres, as I would have to give out peoples names. I confirm people pay, but I dont wrist down any details elsewhere for privacy reasons.

I again asked for their email to refund, and they said they would wait. They wouldnt give their details for a refund. I will keep them in my queue for now, but I am worried they will 'put me on blast' once I complete the artwork. They gave me a week ultimatum with their original post. 'I'm willing to give you like... maybe a week? two if you legitimately have a good reason"

I have fractured my drawing wrist and have posted updates to my customers all month. I have also beed extremely ill. One of my customers asks for updated and I reply every time about being ill/the wrist. I have been working through it the best I can, but I am delayed, obviously. But the customer has not come to me and has included overtones that they dont believe me, and is accusing me of taking on more work while not completing the old stuff. I have provided them all my WIPs, and my small amount of posts this month, but theyre rejecting proof from IRL sources about the illness and wrist (and the rejection of my health care). They dont want a refund, but are insisting on an ultimatum 'If I have a legit excuse', but wont accept the proof. I dont have their exact info to force a refund and they dont seem to want one.

I have never been in a situation where the customer DOESNT want the refund but doesnt want to wait. What do I do?

I would open the case, and do NOT close it until you get your art and extra. If they do end up doing it, you can always resend the money if the case sides in your favour before they do it.

Paypal.me is just paypal. It's the same as sending money via email.

If you wanted to use paypals built in refund feature (Which is the way refunds should be given if possible, as it refunds fees too) You could have looked it up with the name provided on paypal.me. (My paypal history shows only names, not emails)

I wouldnt.
Or, ask for a payment after completion. If the artist really wants your money enough to go to YOU, they'll be willing to wait until after, especially if you feel they might scam.

I have a patreon that has stopped replying. They havent OKed their last patreon reward, and its about time for the next. Ive tried to get in contact on discord (their preferred method) and patreon itself. Theyre still a patron, they just arent replying to ANYTHING.

If they dont reply, how long do I hold on to their reward slots? Should I force boot them from patreon?

I blacklist people via blocking if they request refunds without an actual reason. If Ive fallen behind, or they've got an emergency I dont. But it's very annoying to have to constantly refund someone, and I dont want to take the risk that they ask again. It's not something against the buyer, but moreso a protection from me, because as an artist I have wasted my time setting up a commission just for someone to cancel. That takes away from time I could be working, or getting another commission.

Took a commission from someone mid may. They originally ABed a YCH  stating they could pay in 3 or 4 days. But they wanted a bunch of edits and because I dont do that for YCHs, I told them to order a normal comm. It was finalized 16/17th of May.Then, they said they could pay half on the 1st, half on the 15th. (Later than their original pay date)

My last two notes have remained unread. I left a shout and they replied they were busy. A week after I left another shout, and now both shouts have been deleted without any reply. I sent a final pay or cancel note. I did not start any artwork, but I wasted a lot of time on notes back and fourth. I have had issues with the user in the past, for bidding/ABing YCHs but never actually buying them due to lack of refs, or content issues. But I had one successful one last fall from them, so I thought it'd be okay.

EDIT; I realise not a normal beware, but more a caution post as I have seen posted a few times.

Telegram also will tell you the last time someone logged in, there is no way to hide this. It will either show an exact date, or a general timeframe. Click on their name/pic to bring up their user info. If it says "long long time ago', than they havent been on, or you're blocked (If you can see their pic, you arent blocked). If it says anything else, they have been online within 24 hours, or the date it says.

Try their paypal email, and give an ultimatum if they dont reply, but be prepared to fight for a refund, as it's very obviously theyre lying about the Telegram ban, and it seems like a way to get out of art/talking to customers.

Sending via f&f now charges me over half of the transaction amount, sometimes more. I tried to send $5, and it wanted me to pay $10 total. I usually use ko-fi for tips. Or if its an artist I know and trust, include it ahead of time.

Do a beware. Trades are still 'paid' work. The currency being art instead of money.

My commission prices include my time answering notes and marketing (journals and whatnot); I charge a private fee for clients that dont want their art posted because I lose out on that marketing.

But, you are not spending any money (or time) on a SINGLE thing that you will not be able to reuse (aka like violent pink fur, or a neon yellow marker, for example) so digital artists should NOT be charging kill fees when no work had been done. Computer parts are 100% write off on taxes (if its a work pc). You dont really 'lose' that money.

I would not buy from anyone who has any kind of fee for unstarted work. Thats a red flag for me.

In digital media, there should be no percentage kept for unstarted work. There is nothing to buy which would require some sort of deposit, like a fursuit.

Even if it was tangible, %50 is insane.

Artist cancels = full refund

Client cancels = partial refund. (unless work has not been started)

Obviously theres a bit more than black/white but thats generally the best moral code.

As a Canadian, I've done chargebacks.

Post it now

You cannot charge customers the paypal fees. Plus, 8% is way higher than paypals actual fees. I dont know the legallity of charging your bank fees to your customers, but my bank has no transfer fee for either party. Charging a paypal fee to your customers can have your account shut down.

EDIT; It's kinda phrased like Im saying you're charging it; I know youre not. I would avoid anyone that wants legal info and paypal fees tacked on.

I was going to leave it because the artist said they would do it after we talked. But it's been a week and this is the response I got;

I absolutely would not do work for them. I do not know of taxes ANYWHERE that need personal information for sales. I frequently talk taxes with artists all over to the world, but none have said they do. I know for sure in Canada, it is absolutely not needed.

To prove your income you just print out the list of paypal transactions. Thats all they wanted here, and I know another US friend had to do the same.
The person above makes a good suggestion that, the artist personally, may need that info due to something that happened to them, legally, and they need to provide that info, not that the state requires it.

I would never buy from anyone requesting my personal information.

I would ask for a refund. It is a huge red flag, and will likely lead to more. Missing a deadline, or forgetting a commission (but immediately rectifying it when asked) are not so bad on their own, but it just seems like you will have a hard time getting your work.

If you want the artwork, make sure you get a WIP, as they said it was being worked on.

On 2/21/2019 at 2:27 AM, Mortymaxwell said:

I have a question.  What are the badges made of?  Are they purely traditional or do you ever use programs like Photoshop to clean them up or add features, like sparkles or text?

If I were creating badges and didn't want to worry about shipping, I would advertise the commissions as "mixed media badges" with a combination of "traditional and digital" techniques.  I would state that the finished product would be a cleaned up version in Photoshop and that the traditional work might be available for at con pick up only. 

By presenting it this way I'd be able to give my client a finished product that didn't rely on me shipping anything. And I'd also get them excited about the digital version, so they didn't feel disappointed about only getting a scan of their commission if they couldn't do pick up.

They are purely traditional work.

I will not be doing them as it seems not shipping out missed pick ups would just come back on me. Thanks though! I might try this way of doing it if I ever attend a con again though. Its a good suggestion.

6 hours ago, Mortymaxwell said:

Honestly? I think mistakes were made on both sides. The artist sounds inexperienced.  They should have remembered they owed you art and sent you their commission information to make sure you agreed with it.  And I think you should have asked to see their price sheet and terms of service. Just going off the quote you gave when you wrote to them, it sounds like you should have been clearer that you wanted animation.  I've learned even if something seems obvious, never assume and be explicit about what you want.

I would suggest writing to the artist.  Tell them everything you have told us here and explain why you got confused.  It would also be a good idea to suggest they post their commission info in a clearer spot.

I would ask the artist if you can work something out, because you got confused and never saw their commission info.  Perhaps you can get them to agree to do animation or maybe they'd be willing to give you permission to take the art to a friend to animate it for you.

They had no price sheet or TOS. I looked for it. There was no info anywhere. The reason I didnt say 'I want an animated one' is because there were only animated one. There were none that were static, and I specifically asked about that image type; it was drastically different from anything else in their gallery.

Ive been in contact with the artist the entire time, and trying to explain what I've been saying here; that there were no static samples and I didnt order off a price sheet or anything.

Ive had some people look at the art samples + what I got and it seems very rushed with no details, so I think Im just going to count it as a loss if the artist and I cant reach an agreement.

I came across an artists gallery from the front page,; they had these really cool under/in the water animated pieces, and I sent a note asking for one. The exact note I sent was; " Hello, I really like your water commissions, and I was wondering if I can buy one with fish inside the water with my character.
I would like the fish to be a pokemon though, is that okay? "

All was good, with a minor mishap of them forgetting they actually owed me art when I asked for an update, and I got a WIP, paid, and finally got the finished piece yesterday. Except the image is not animated. I asked about it and they claim they are not normally animated and I needed to pay extra. I did not order off a commission list, or a journal. I just sent a note. None of the samples in the gallery are static, they are all animated. They are saying I needed to pay extra, and that I had to tell them I wanted it animated. They are basically saying its a misunderstanding, and that sample was static and linked me a commission sheet I had never seen.

Am I at fault? Do I count it as a loss?

I honestly, never would have commissioned them if it was static.