NEW Contributor Program - PERSONAL SHOPPER (preliminary feedback needed)

Same here. I work from home for myself and am on disability so I have no set schedule, no minimum number of hours to work on other stuff, etc, and have 95% of my time open in terms of scheduling, etc. Plus, what I do on a day-to-day basis is not terribly time-consuming at this point in time, so I have a lot of time to play with. Plus, with such a minimal income, if the compensation does end up being cash, it'd really help me out immensely. (Disability pays nothing, trust me). Anyway, suffice it to say that this is something I could make myself available for pretty much for any length of time needed and at any time needed. less

Ok, just want to address something here that I saw mentioned a number of times.

Assisting most customers, will be simple enough for anyone familiar with the site. I would imagine that all of you know where to look for things, know what's available as far material safety pages, ratings, reviews, promos, etc., and then you all have at least some personal product experience. This should be plenty for most customers.

Of course, having a team of product specialists in many categories, available 24/7 to answer any question imaginable would be great... but I have a feeling we will probably start out pretty simple, and expand gradually based on the programs activity. less

Hello everyone,

We are working on putting together a new program that will allow you - the contributors - to directly assist our customers in their selection of products (via chat client). Participants will be compensated for their participation. Right now we are calling this program 'Personal Shopper'.

What would be a great help to us is to get some basic feedback from you regarding your interest and availability in this program.

Thank you for taking the time to offer your feedback! less

I have thought about the points people have made on this thread and have come up with a couple suggestions.

Compensation:
Scheduled Shift Workers - full commitment to your shift(s) two days in advance. If you miss your shift, you get demoted for a two week period the first time and the second time you are finished. Cash compensation would be offered with the option of taking a portion of it in double points. There would also be a maximum amount of time you can work, this would be fair to everyone else until it settles down and the glitches are worked out.

Drop in Volunteers: This is how you train for the first week. Mandatory participation - for everyone - Edens will randomly plant a couple "mystery shoppers" to test your skills with the clients. If you pass, you have the option of becoming a shift worker or keep trying until you pass. We would have the same log-ins but separate identities & avatars from the site, this would alleviate any chance of recognition or harassment. We could click an account button, same as the 'affiliate/contributor ' button that is already available. Drop in volunteers could be compensated by a small gift card, an opportunity to make 'extra points' on site tasks for the volunteers only and a sales bonus. Not on the dollar amount, but a set amount for each person helped and a set amount for a sale made. You would get for example: .50 per client helped and 1.00 per sale or item sold, no matter if it is a sample lube or a $399.00 realistic human masturbator.

(I do overthink a lot of issues and ideas, but I am very business minded. I own one business that is 15 years old, one business with a partner that is 3 years old, and two internet sites (non-adult or sexual), that are fledglings at 3 months. I have also turned my hobby into a when we want to business on Ebay. Since the economy died where we live, it does take all 4 businesses and our hobby to pay our bills, but none of them have hit the red.)

Oh, Gary, are we going to be 1099'd as independent contractors, responsible for ourselves or will it be taxed wage? less

You bring up a really great idea. I think it would be useful for shoppers to have the ability to choose the gender/orientation of their personal shopper if they want to. That doesn't mean personal shoppers have to provide that information, but those that do can be paired with those seeking a certain kind of perspective and experience. For example, a lesbian couple may want to speak with another lesbian in a relationship. It's a matter of experience but also comfort. Another lesbian couple may not care who helps them shop, as long as they know their stuff. less

Ok, just want to address something here that I saw mentioned a number of times.

Assisting most customers, will be simple enough for anyone familiar with the site. I would imagine that all of you know where to look for things, know what's available as far material safety pages, ratings, reviews, promos, etc., and then you all have at least some personal product experience. This should be plenty for most customers.

Of course, having a team of product specialists in many categories, available 24/7 to answer any question imaginable would be great... but I have a feeling we will probably start out pretty simple, and expand gradually based on the programs activity. less

I have thought about the points people have made on this thread and have come up with a couple suggestions.

Compensation:
Scheduled Shift Workers - full commitment to your shift(s) two days in advance. If you miss your shift, you get demoted for a two week period the first time and the second time you are finished. Cash compensation would be offered with the option of taking a portion of it in double points. There would also be a maximum amount of time you can work, this would be fair to everyone else until it settles down and the glitches are worked out.

Drop in Volunteers: This is how you train for the first week. Mandatory participation - for everyone - Edens will randomly plant a couple "mystery shoppers" to test your skills with the clients. If you pass, you have the option of becoming a shift worker or keep trying until you pass. We would have the same log-ins but separate identities & avatars from the site, this would alleviate any chance of recognition or harassment. We could click an account button, same as the 'affiliate/contributor ' button that is already available. Drop in volunteers could be compensated by a small gift card, an opportunity to make 'extra points' on site tasks for the volunteers only and a sales bonus. Not on the dollar amount, but a set amount for each person helped and a set amount for a sale made. You would get for example: .50 per client helped and 1.00 per sale or item sold, no matter if it is a sample lube or a $399.00 realistic human masturbator.

(I do overthink a lot of issues and ideas, but I am very business minded. I own one business that is 15 years old, one business with a partner that is 3 years old, and two internet sites (non-adult or sexual), that are fledglings at 3 months. I have also turned my hobby into a when we want to business on Ebay. Since the economy died where we live, it does take all 4 businesses and our hobby to pay our bills, but none of them have hit the red.)

Oh, Gary, are we going to be 1099'd as independent contractors, responsible for ourselves or will it be taxed wage? less

Hello everyone,

We are working on putting together a new program that will allow you - the contributors - to directly assist our customers in their selection of products (via chat client). Participants will be compensated for their participation. Right now we are calling this program 'Personal Shopper'.

What would be a great help to us is to get some basic feedback from you regarding your interest and availability in this program.

Thank you for taking the time to offer your feedback! less