(Locked) Envato's answer on "prepaid"...

I send support an email and this is what i got for answer:

Subject: [#57094]: [ActiveDen] GENERAL : deposit question Date: Sat, 19 Dec 2009 09:10:01 +1100 CC: From: support@envato.com

Dear JhonRambo

Thanks for your email. Each transaction costs Envato therefore if a member does not wish to deposit funds and use the site on a regular basis, then we charge the one off buyer a fee for making a purchase. So for the regular buyer, the system has not changed. We require a minimum deposit of $20.00 to cover banking fees, and this system works if the member plans to buy with us more than once.

Apologies if this system does not fit your current requirements. Kind regards Roma

Envato Support Team

I then replied:

OK thanks, i do understand. But look at my transactions i did deposit 20$ and i got 10$ left of those 20$. That’s what I’m trying to get an answer for, why i have to pay +2$ dollars when i did deposit 20$? Yes i am a regular buyer, but i cant buy stuff every day. I really want to use up my 10$ before i deposit 20$ or even 100$ more. Just take a look at my transactions, i deposited 20$ and got 10$ left, and i should’nt be paying +2$. What is the problem here? Is it the time between each time i buy an item? Have you set a limit to “2 weeks without a buy” then your account will be degraded from active to inactive?

Quote: We require a minimum deposit of $20.00 to cover banking fees

I did deposit 100$ and 20$. (Check my transactions)

Quote: this system works if the member plans to buy with us more than once.

I have bought many items already and used 110$ already. Is this not enough to prove I’m a regular buyer? Do i need to buy (forced to buy) items each day to prevent being degraded to “inactive”? I cannot deposit money now, but i want to after Christmas, i got 10$ left of 20$ i deposited, and i want to use up my 10$ now without paying +2$ extra for the item. Now you force me to wait till after Christmas or to pay +2$.

Quote: So for the regular buyer, the system has not changed.

Define regular. I believe i am a regular, i visit your site every day, i make comments, i bookmark items, i deposit (whenever i feel like it, not whenever i am forced to deposit). Do i need to buy items each day to be a regular? So what you’re saying is: “I am not a regular” and you want me to buy items i don’t need just to keep my account from being “degraded” from “regular to normal user”.

Quote: Apologies if this system does not fit your current requirements.

This system fits no one. You lose customers because regulars are treated like normal users, and you’re forcing people to deposit. Why cant people use up their amount? (i got 10$ left of the 20$ i deposited…) I don’t require anything, i just want you to start considering your system and how it works, and listen to your customers feedback. When customers deposit 20$ they cover your bank fees… I deposited 20$ (so i covered you bank fees). Now i got 10$ left of the 20$ (you fee is already covered), so now i should be able to use the 10$ i got left without having to pay extra 2$ for items. Please help me make some sense with this system? I know why we have to deposit 20$... This is not the issue. My issue is: When we have deposited 20$, your banking fees are covered, so… when your banking fees are covered, why cant we use the money we got left of those 20$? Your banking fees are already covered, so i dont see the issue. Thank you.

What is their issue? Their costs are already covered by my 20$ deposit, and i got 10$ left and then FORCE me to deposit? That’s how they treat their active customers… Just so you all know!

hmm, if those 10$ are from a deposit, (and are present in your account) there should be no problem in buying the items you want at the normal price. This is also what support answer to you. So probably you didn’t ask support clear enough or probably there’s a bug somewhere.

But you should just buy the item you want, (let say is it has 12$ prepaid price). You should be able to get it as it normally cost 10$(your amount) If is not working, as it should work, contact support and tell them the problem.

But if you want to buy in the “future” without making deposits and not paying 2$, that’s not possible. You need to make a deposit every time you don’t want to pay 2$ for the transaction.

Now I’m with you that the answer provided to you is misleading at least.

They should make clear that:

1. if you deposit (the minimum amount or more you pay the normal price)

2. you use a “rapid” method you need to pay 2$ for your item.

being an old and lovely client of this marketplace have no importance to the price.

they should be more carefully what they write in answering questions.

Thanks for your reply. I doubt it’s an bug. They’re not willing to even look into it. I still have to pay +2$ even though i already covered their bank fees. If i deposit 20$ more, it will not go away, they will ask for 20$ and 20$ and it will go on forever. Imagine i again deposited 100$ (iv done this first time before the prepaid system), and used up 10$ of these, they would still ask me to deposit even though i have 90$ left. Their system is a huge bug benefiting themselves only, or maybe not (as people will stop buy!)? I’v seen posts by authors complaining as well that they get low sales etc because the highest price show up, and “discount”, no way, it’s not an discount at all, items that cost 30$ cost now 32$, if there was an discount they should now cost 28$.

Quote from a forum post: 1$ items cost 3$ – which is 300$ increase 40$ items cost 42$ – which is 4,7$ increase

There’s no logic behind this.

Btw: Merry Christmas in advance!

If you don’t plan to spend more than the $10 you have in your account (at the “prepaid price” .. i.e. an item advertised for $12 or less) then you should be able to buy it using that account balance. If you want to spend more than the $10 you have in your account then you will either have to deposit more funds (minimum $20 … exactly the same as before the new “Buy Now” system was introduced) or use the “Buy Now” and pay the “buy now” price ($12 or more) directly and leave the $10 in your account.

... I still have to pay +2$ even though i already covered their bank fees. ...

Bank fees accrue per transaction, not per buyer. You have covered the bank fees for the transactions you have made to date but new transactions will incur new bank fees. You can’t expect the deposits you made in the past to cover the transaction fees of all future purchases.

You should work for the envato support team, because you made me understand some of this. But there is still an answer i need: Will the “prepay” show up let’s say each month? (to cover monthly fees for examle)? And is there at all any monthly fee if you dont buy anything that month? So if we say it’s each month, lets say i prepay 100$ and dont buy for a month, then i will need to prepay again to cover their banking fees? (Even when i bought nothing?). It doesn’t make sense.

• Why is there no limit to lets say: If you prepay an amount of 50$ then envato will cover your transactions for 3 months, and for 100$, 6 months or so… (When you prepay this much, they should be happy to cover fees, as the fee is not a large amount i believe)

• Exact time (weeks/months/year) your deposit will cover their banking fee? 1 day? 1 week? 1 month? They don’t state any of this.

It’s all a lack of information. That’s why i started this thread to start with.

I don’t want to deposit 100$, and not buy anything for a month, and then be asked to deposit more because those “100$” you deposited only cover the banking fees for 1 month? Ridiculous. For 20$, yes maybe a month would be OK.

I know all this, but this is not what the thread is about. It’s about the +2$ you charge for your active customers. If spending 110$ in 2 months is not considered active i don’t know. If you force me to deposit, then i clearly don’t want to be a part of this. But what does it matter, I’m just 1 of your 250.000 users so why bother considering my feedback.

Quote: 3. Introduction of Fees on Bank Transfer Author Payouts.

Info is just about withdrawals as i can see?

Quote: So if you deposited $100 on Jan 1st 2009, then you deposited $100 on Nov 1st 2009, your total account balance of $200 would now be set to expire on Nov 1st 2010.

OK. Go into my account, check my transactions (should be one in october or november 2009, means it’s active till 2010), and then remove the +2$ for me then?

The blog post does not cover:

• Exact time (weeks/months/year) your deposit will cover their banking fee? 1 day? 1 week? 1 month? They don’t state any of this.

If it is 1 year after your last deposit, why am i still being asked to prepay or pay +2$ then? Can you please go into my account and check my transactions, cause i should not be paying +2$ for the items if this is how it works.