Would you pay a one time fee for your perfect parcel?

[Arwyn Quandry]

Currently, being able to select a specific parcel is a Premium Plus only feature which is highly desirable. Some folks who are on monthly Premium plans have upgraded to PP in order to pick a parcel, then downgraded the next month. Others have tried this with a yearly premium plan and found themselves accidentally locked into a yearly PP plan. A few more are Lifetime Premium users and can't upgrade at all unless they want to go to lifetime PP when slots are available. 

I think LL should consider making a parcel selection available for a fee to Premium users. Rather than having the hassle of upgrading and downgrading, or being totally locked out by Lifetime Premium, a fee for parcel selection would simplify the process and bring this highly desirable feature to more users. 

I'd be happy to pay between $25 and $40 USD a pop to pick my perfect parcel. What about you?

[Leora Greenwood]

Yep, in a heartbeat...........

[Nika Talaj]

Meh. For me, it's no big hassle to do an upgrade/downgrade of a random avatar that is not on a yearly Premium plan.  The bigger hassle is getting the really nice parcel on the right avatar, one I want to be Premium long-term.  It turns out that often that avatar is tied up with a Linden Home that I want to keep for a while more, but isn't my PERFECT parcel.  I would definitely pay $25-40 to switch a LH on one alt to another.  DEFINITELY.

(But I assume LL would never allow swapping a parcel to another alt, because of the potential for abuse).

Edited July 16 by Nika Talaj

[Lyric Demina]

The problem with "the perfect parcel" is that the parcel never stays perfect.  For one reason or another, things will inevitably change (not necessarily a bad thing!), and so another perfect parcel is desired in a matter of time -- is my experience, anyway.  A parcel is perfect until it is not perfect; and then I'd like to have the option to choose another perfect parcel; which is why the PP works just perfectly for me and I'm really glad it's available.

[AzureWaves]

I would pay for swapping homes with my own avatars, and I would pay for concierge home selection. There's 0 chance of abuse because SL already knows who your alts are.

[Lyric Demina]

3 minutes ago, AzureWaves said:

I would pay for swapping homes with my own avatars

For sure, I would also.

[diamond Marchant]

So... when the Lindens created Bellisseria, I believe (and have never heard it denied) that the point was to offer an easy path to home ownership. You go to the website, click the button... select your theme... pay if you need to... and TP to your new home. Assignment by algorithm is fundamental to this model. It is easier for LL and easier for noobs, who get a house  in a landscaped neighborhood without even knowing how to walk or buy stuff. Note that this model assumes that every single Linden Home is loveable by someone.

My opinion is that they made a mistake when they invented the PP perk of "choose your own home". It broke the existing model of how to get a Linden Home. I assume they did it because they wanted to boost revenue via PP subscriptions and they figured PP residents were more experienced and could handle the additional complexity.

The reason residents want this option is because, obviously, some Linden Home in each theme are preferred. Part of the "Games of Homes" is learning how to stalk newly released regions and buy quickly when the houses first become available. Even that is a crap shoot but at least you can narrow in on a general location.

Residents do have a remedy... 5 picks a day (if you do it right). And PP people can't reserve future houses, so they don't have complete priority over non PPs. The primary consideration for me is fairness. That is, premium users should not feel they have to live in not-so-good homes because those with more cash are in the good homes (parcels). Bellisseria, by design, is not supposed to be like that.

My recommendation is to not go down the path of "money talks". The PP perk is a done deal, so let's just go with that. Hopefully, most PPers will be in a 2048 anyway,

 

Edited July 17 by diamond Marchant

[Persephone Emerald]

It's not something I'd do, but I think being able to get a specific parcel would have more value to users than being able to change their name. LL should make this an option for a fee.

[Persephone Emerald]

13 minutes ago, diamond Marchant said:

So... when the Lindens created Bellisseria, I believe (and have never heard it denied) that the point was to offer an easy path to home ownership. You go to the website, click the button... select your theme... pay if you need to... and TP to your new home. Assignment by algorithm is fundamental to this model. It is easier for LL and easier for noobs, who get a house  in a landscaped neighborhood without even knowing how to walk or buy stuff. Note that this model assumes that every single Linden Home is loveable by someone.

My opinion is that they made a mistake when they invented the PP perk of "choose your own home". It broke the existing model of how to get a Linden Home. I assume they did it because they wanted to boost revenue via PP subscriptions and they figured PP residents were more experienced and could handle the additional complexity.

The reason residents want this option is because, obviously, some Linden Home in each theme are preferred. Part of the "Games of Homes" is learning how to stalk newly released regions and buy quickly when the houses first become available. Even that is a crap shoot but at least you can narrow in on a general location.

Residents do have a remedy... 5 picks a day (if you do it right). And PP people can't reserve future houses, so they don't have complete priority over non PPs. The primary consideration for me is fairness. That is, premium users should not feel they have to live in not-so-good homes because those with more cash are in the good homes (parcels). Bellisseria, by design, is not supposed to be like that.

My recommendation is to not go down the path of "money talks". The PP perk is a done deal, so let's just go with that. Hopefully, most PPers will be in a 2048 anyway,

All the homes are good for newbies who just want a home to call their own. The Game of Homes people are willing to pay more to get specific parcels, but doing so won't keep newbies from getting nice parcels too, because there are plenty of nice parcels. If some users want to give more money to LL to get specific parcels, let them.

Fair enough is fine. SL is not a perfectly egalitarian utopia, nor should it try to be. People with more money get better mesh bodies, more clothes, bigger houses, and better computers. As long as people with less money can still enjoy SL, it's all good.

[Raspberry Crystal]

11 hours ago, Lyric Demina said:

The problem with "the perfect parcel" is that the parcel never stays perfect.  For one reason or another, things will inevitably change (not necessarily a bad thing!), and so another perfect parcel is desired in a matter of time -- is my experience, anyway.  A parcel is perfect until it is not perfect; and then I'd like to have the option to choose another perfect parcel; which is why the PP works just perfectly for me and I'm really glad it's available.

This is very close to how I feel. Being able to swap homes with little consequence is a huge benefit of PP, and I find that I tire of even the loveliest spots so it would be irksome to keep having to pay an extra fee.

If I can't get something I am interested I will cancel my PP, leave SL for a while and play a game instead and wait for new choices to appear in the rotation.

If the home selection process worked better, and I really could get five proper random choices from the pool I would stay in SL more, and spend more money that way.

 

[AzureWaves]

Fairness and equal are not the same thing. The process is transparent and fair. Can people with different priorities/means also have EQUAL things? Not in this game, other games, or the real world. Companies will cater to the people that would like to pay for some extra convenience and perks, like being able to skip the line at a theme, or access to something first.

[diamond Marchant]

4 hours ago, AzureWaves said:

Fairness and equal are not the same thing

I agree. Linden Homes are not fungible. Perhaps I should address this in terms of "marketing" rather than "fairness". Second Life has an onboarding problem. We are not sticky... people try it and immediately depart. To partially address this issue, Bellisseria was created to present a low barrier of entry to home ownership and object permanence. It also happened to be a very good deal, providing land baron tier rates for 1024sqm and no cost or LI hit for the home itself. This is such a good value that oldies flocked in... at the moment I own 4 Linden Homes.

The initial proposition was that you got a home and if you didn't like it, you could trade it in for another. So far so good. Then it turned out that the allocation algorithm is bogus... it keeps giving you back the same homes you don't want.

When PP added the perk of being able to cherry pick the "more preferred" homes, the proposition becomes even less attractive. From a marketing perspective, the "Bellisseria Product" has changed. Even if it is just perception, the product has become less effective at satisfying an initial goal, which was to onboard new people. If they think (perhaps incorrectly) that Linden Homes are always picked over by established residents, they may not even bother.

11 hours ago, Raspberry Crystal said:

If the home selection process worked better, and I really could get five proper random choices from the pool I would stay in SL more

Exactly! Fix the algorithm. Please vote for this here https://feedback.secondlife.com/ldpw/p/change-linden-home-selection-process

Edited July 17 by diamond Marchant
usual typos

[Nika Talaj]

12 hours ago, Raspberry Crystal said:

If the home selection process worked better, and I really could get five proper random choices from the pool I would stay in SL more, and spend more money that way.

QFT!!  I've had two avatars hopping for a nice Fantasseria parcel adjacent to a rez zone for months now.  One of them is holding a not-too-great parcel, the other one will continue to hop until her Premium expires later this month.  They have so far claimed 151 parcels.  Unless my hopper finds a great parcel by next week, both avatars will be downgraded to Basic by September 5th. 

I've identified 38 parcels that WOULD be nice to get, 13 of which have never ever been claimed by anyone.  I'm disinclined to spend a month's worth of PP to get one of these 38 parcels. 

That will leave me with 3 Linden Homes.  I wish one of them could be transferred to Nika, my primary avatar, who is now Basic.  However, both of the Premium parcels I own are in themes that have over 1000 parcels available, so it's unlikely that I could transfer the parcel the old way, by abandoning it and very quickly claiming a parcel in that theme.  (My 3rd parcel is a PP one).

[Katherine Heartsong]

To me the whole LL homes distribution system is incredibly silly. If I had designed it, it would look like this for the Premium accounts assuming you have tier available:

1. Click the shiny "Get my home!" button.
2. Select style of home you want.
3. A map pops open with five locations available. You click one of them, select "This one", agree to any T&C as needed, then voila, your new home. Maybe even TP there right away.
4. Optional for existing home owners: A dialogue box reminding you that you're about to lose your previous home and have all the items returned from it (so basically, go pack up in your usual fashion first, if that matters).

For PP accounts, you get maybe 10 shown instead? While the 5/10 properties are shown in the map window, they would NOT show up if someone else is doing this same thing a few second after you are. That map window would warn you your selections might change/auto refresh after some set time so you can't open the window and leave it open for hours and letting you block those available locations. 10 minutes maybe? Enough time to perhaps TP to each one to have a look around?

Somehow I'd like to see this in world as well instead of just through the web portal, but I'd also like to transfer Lindens via the web portal and not log in, so fixes needed everywhere.

How to test. A group of only six engaged UX test participants will uncover 75% of the bad points in a design. Get six Premium users and let them do the current way then this way in brief A/B interactive test. Get qualitative and quantitative feedback. Iterate/refine new design. Test with another six users. That's now covered over 90% of the iterative fixes needed. Iterate based on second round feedback and launch, gather data, refine as needed via tickets. Or if you find out the old way is preferred, use the feedback gathered to improve that UX.

Edited July 17 by Katherine Heartsong

[Istelathis]

On 7/16/2024 at 1:43 PM, Arwyn Quandry said:

I'd be happy to pay between $25 and $40 USD a pop to pick my perfect parcel. What about you?

Nah,  I wouldn't stand in the way of other people doing it though.  I spend most of my active time out of my Bellisseria home, unless I am watching a movie in SL or in my skybox tinkering around, so it does not make that much of a difference. When I am in my home, typically I am just afk and browsing the web.  I think if I were to spend upwards of $40 USD I would just swap to premium plus yearly expense, then I would have more space in my skybox to tinker with, free image uploads, more lindens to purchase things with and upload mesh with, it would for me and the way I use second life make more sense. Even then, I would rather play the house lotto for a 2048 than spend the extra money.

I like the suggestion both @Raspberry Crystal and @Katherine Heartsong brought up.  Having a select few chances (I think it is five, it has been almost two years for me now) with often getting the same house when you do try for another location and are scouting the area can become a pursuit of frustration.  Instead, having several options at once would make the process a lot less of an ordeal.  

I do think your idea would probably be a good thing though, for people to be able to purchase the option though, LL would get some extra cash, the people that want the service would have it, both parties would be happy for it.  It would probably stir up the forum for a bit, but, eh, what doesn't? 😋🪿

Edited July 17 by Istelathis

[AzureWaves]

3 hours ago, Katherine Heartsong said:

To me the whole LL homes distribution system is incredibly silly. If I had designed it, it would look like this for the Premium accounts assuming you have tier available:

1. Click the shiny "Get my home!" button.
2. Select style of home you want.
3. A map pops open with five locations available. You click one of them, select "This one", agree to any T&C as needed, then voila, your new home. Maybe even TP there right away.
4. Optional for existing home owners: A dialogue box reminding you that you're about to lose your previous home and have all the items returned from it (so basically, go pack up in your usual fashion first, if that matters).

For PP accounts, you get maybe 10 shown instead? While the 5/10 properties are shown in the map window, they would NOT show up if someone else is doing this same thing a few second after you are. That map window would warn you your selections might change/auto refresh after some set time so you can't open the window and leave it open for hours and letting you block those available locations. 10 minutes maybe? Enough time to perhaps TP to each one to have a look around?

Somehow I'd like to see this in world as well instead of just through the web portal, but I'd also like to transfer Lindens via the web portal and not log in, so fixes needed everywhere.

How to test. A group of only six engaged UX test participants will uncover 75% of the bad points in a design. Get six Premium users and let them do the current way then this way in brief A/B interactive test. Get qualitative and quantitative feedback. Iterate/refine new design. Test with another six users. That's now covered over 90% of the iterative fixes needed. Iterate based on second round feedback and launch, gather data, refine as needed via tickets. Or if you find out the old way is preferred, use the feedback gathered to improve that UX.

LL needs to hire you. This sounds like a fun casino game.

[Yorkie Bardeen]

It turned into the PC monitor buying game where if you *don't* pay the extra for guaranteed no dead pixels, you're certainly going to get one from the bin of dead pixels. It's a zero sum game, every PP benefit in this area is directly correlated to a deficit for standard P residents. The increased stratification of the residents into classes is a trend that is not a positive one for the community as a whole.

Also, even allowing for the fact that people have different wants when it comes to the homes (proximity to rez is an example), a side question would be why are so many homes apparently undesirable? This is a problem that will live until the final day of SL, something that should have been figured out before the first region was opened.

[Matthieu Quander]

15 hours ago, Nika Talaj said:

QFT!!  I've had two avatars hopping for a nice Fantasseria parcel adjacent to a rez zone for months now.  One of them is holding a not-too-great parcel, the other one will continue to hop until her Premium expires later this month.  They have so far claimed 151 parcels.  Unless my hopper finds a great parcel by next week, both avatars will be downgraded to Basic by September 5th. 

I've identified 38 parcels that WOULD be nice to get, 13 of which have never ever been claimed by anyone.  I'm disinclined to spend a month's worth of PP to get one of these 38 parcels. 

That will leave me with 3 Linden Homes.  I wish one of them could be transferred to Nika, my primary avatar, who is now Basic.  However, both of the Premium parcels I own are in themes that have over 1000 parcels available, so it's unlikely that I could transfer the parcel the old way, by abandoning it and very quickly claiming a parcel in that theme.  (My 3rd parcel is a PP one).

I'm in the same boat, and just demoted an alt to basic instead of renewing him.  I had to let go of a Log Home that I have had for years, but I can no longer justify keeping it.  I have been hunting for an acceptable replacement parcel with my main, but everyone who reads these threads knows how that has been going.  

As for this thread's question, my answer is possibly, but not likely.  If the home selection process allows me to get an acceptable parcel via the normal process, I prefer to go that route.  Of course, it is debatable whether it is possible given how the current process is(n't) working.

[Polenth Yue]

On 7/16/2024 at 8:06 PM, Lyric Demina said:

The problem with "the perfect parcel" is that the parcel never stays perfect.  For one reason or another, things will inevitably change (not necessarily a bad thing!), and so another perfect parcel is desired in a matter of time -- is my experience, anyway.  A parcel is perfect until it is not perfect; and then I'd like to have the option to choose another perfect parcel; which is why the PP works just perfectly for me and I'm really glad it's available.

It'd be unlikely for them to introduce a theme and a spot that I like more than the one I selected with premium plus. The forum tends to attract people who constantly switch, but not everyone wants to keep changing house. I can see why someone could benefit from being able to pay once for a dream home.

On another side of the potential fairness thing, I found premium plus acted as an equaliser. I could afford to be premium plus instead of premium (it was actually a bit cheaper once the tier I paid for my shop was factored in). But I couldn't afford multiple premium accounts to play the system and get the home I wanted. When premium was the only option, I stopped at the first house that was near enough, because it was the best I could do with my finances. Then suddenly there's premium plus, so I no longer needed to be rich. I just had to submit a ticket faster than anyone else.

This could be helped by improving the premium system, so that it cycles through available houses better. Some parcels have never been claimed, despite people trying to get them. It shouldn't need multiple accounts to force the system to move on to the next batch.