Model needs help!

[starlight]

Hi guys, I am posting on here, but not sure if I have the right category.

Basically I am in need of some advice, now the natuer of my concern may seem unusual and strange but it is my business and proving quite a success.

Basically I am a fairly well known model and provide a service to fans where they can buy "webcam chats" with me, nothing seedy of course, lol, occassionally there may be the odd posing, stuff like that, but all innocent fun! This is proving quite a successful part of my business as you can imagine and fans just love being able to buy time with me and get my full attention. I know people instantly think of p*rn when you mention webcams and models, but that is not the case, they just appreciate the live chat to see and hear me live. Plus the buyers know know my rules.

Now my problem is this, people buy chat sessions from my store under paypal "product listed as online service", or I ask them to send payment to my email address and obviously I have no control who can buy my chat sessions, so a lot of people dont have paypal accounts, just c cards.

Anyway, the majority of the time it works fine, but on four occassions now, idiots have actually cancelled their payment after they have had their time with me! You can imagine how angry and was totally shocked I was when paypal simply gave them back the money, as I am not protected under paypals seller protection!!! I have a business account too!! The reason being is that I am not sending a product in the post, and cant provide proof of a product being delivered!! Therefore there is no proof. unbelievable isnt it!!! Also most of my transactions say "ineligable" next to seller protection as the buyers have "un registered emails and postal addresses", of courst they dont, they want privacy and why would they give me their address.

Plus these idiots could actually make up stories that I sell an adult service (when I do not) just to black mail me and jeopordise my business account on paypal.

So, can any of you guys advise on what I should do to protect payments once I have provided an online service. Im sure solicitors have protection when people buy "online professional advice, via email etc", this is basically the same, but I am providing a service via various messengers.

Also, I have a wishlist, where fans like to send me gifts and they also send me paypal donations, a few have sent me hundreds of dollars, which is so sweet, but the odd few times, I have received emails from paypal saying "so and so had cancelled his payment" once again, leaving me not knowing if that money is mine or not!!! unbelievable isnt it? I just hate this uncertaintly of hoping customers dont cancel payments, its just so stupid.

Or can anyone advise on a payment processor that will cover me more? even covering an adult service to protect me even more, just incase some idiot does say this.

Any advice would be greatly welcome right now as I am nervous everytime I get paid.

Many thanks!

[matt_15]

I assume you could record the messenger chat? But this is useless because I dont think you would be willing to take your customer to court? You could get them to aggree to a contract, but again that is pretty useless unless you are going to take them to court for cancelling the payment. Maybe you could just instantly transfer the money from paypal into your bank account, and then give the "chat" after you have the money in your bank account.

[MH1]

Look at Nochex.

[stevejohnson]

Well its good business where lot of money is invested on this E-commerce category.

[SocialMediaUncovered]

Hi,

Take a look at ccbill - and if you'd like to promote this service for free in some other channels, drop me a IM.

Thanks.

[Crystal_Global]

Dear Starlight, looks like you are on the right forum. We do have this service where clients can accept credit card or debit card even western unnion payments over the internet. Please drop me a note or give me your email. We can discuss about this anytime.

[willitbe]

Is this a wind up?

[quikshop]

Dear Starlight, looks like you are on the right forum. We do have this service where clients can accept credit card or debit card even western unnion payments over the internet. Please drop me a note or give me your email. We can discuss about this anytime.

Avoid any service like this which offers western union payments over the Internet, puts adverts for other websites down the centre of its home page and has no contact details other than skype.

[Crystal_Global]

Avoid any service like this which offers western union payments over the Internet, puts adverts for other websites down the centre of its home page and has no contact details other than skype.

Dear Quikshop, not sure what you mean.
We do have contact email, which if written here, may not be approved by system admin.
However to prove the point and hope would not be banned by system admin.
wilson at crystalpayments dot biz


By the way, blogging is part of marketing in the internet.

Regards.

[boho]

Dear Quikshop, not sure what you mean.
We do have contact email, which if written here, may not be approved by system admin.
However to prove the point and hope would not be banned by system admin.
wilson at crystalpayments dot biz


By the way, blogging is part of marketing in the internet.

Regards.

The issue is you have no contact details on your website, nothing which proves who you are, where you are, or even if you are regulated by any kind of financial authority such as the FSA, which other payment providers are, you use only a skype number for a contact telephone number. Your site itself, whether you want to give that impression or intended to give that impression or not screams scam, the reason being it is handmade, unprofessional looking and littered with adverts.

This is what was meant by quikshops post. I think giving an email address on here isn't really relevant, its the business site that is the issue. Based on that I doubt many people would recommend you as someone for Starlight to use. You need to consider carefully the impression you are giving as this is obviously losing you potential business if all is above board.

[boho]

Looking further I see you have to scan around on the webpage on your profile before you even get to what I assume is the intended site http://www.crystalpayments.info/main not that it filled me with much more assurance really, still no actual contact details, I assume from the $ figures you're outside of the UK, and as there are legal requirements in the UK for sites to provide contact details and company registration information on the website the lack of it on a foreign site would make me even more wary tbh.

[sirearl]

Anyway, the majority of the time it works fine, but on four occassions now, idiots have actually cancelled their payment after they have had their time with me! !

Distance selling regulations.

If your not happy with the goods you can send them back up to 7 days later and get a full refund.

Earl

[boho]

Distance selling regulations.

If your not happy with the goods you can send them back up to 7 days later and get a full refund.

Earl

Not if

"the supply of goods which by means of their nature cannot be returned"

is the situation, which would apply in this case as the service cannot be returned.

The simple thing is to ensure some terms and conditions are read which have to be ticked proving the customers acknowledgment of the fact that this is a non returnable service and cancellation rights do not apply, and using a reputable payment provider such as Worldpay or Protx and implementing the full 3D secure/Verified by Visa and Mastercard Securecode service, that way the details are captured and most people will be in a position of having to go Cardholder Authorised to complete the transaction - any not authorised you then have the ability to refuse a service to...and you have some chance of being able to fight your corner unlike Paypal who will just take the money first and ask questions later.

[sirearl]

Not if

"the supply of goods which by means of their nature cannot be returned"

is the situation, which would apply in this case as the service cannot be returned.

.

Well the buyer could say they never recieved the goods in the first place or the alloted time space was not adhered to.Paypal are the buyers friend.

Earl

[Spiderden]

Distance selling regulations.

If your not happy with the goods you can send them back up to 7 days later and get a full refund.

Earl

Try doing that to Sky if you're not happy with the last Pay per View program you watched!

[boho]

Well the buyer could say they never recieved the goods in the first place or the alloted time space was not adhered to.Paypal are the buyers friend.

Earl

Quite agree - exactly why I would never advocate Paypal for this kind of service.

But plenty of services like this exist, so good legal terms, and a proper regulated means of booking and accepting the money is required, the issues are exacerbated by the method ie allowing someone to just freely send money without some kind of contract in place for the goods/services.

Particularly the just being given money as a gift, this is never going to be something which you'd win a case with via the likes of Paypal.

[24x7 Exchange]

Is this a wind up?

I thought it was originally, and still do. Hmmnnn... :rolleyes:

[Crystal_Global]

The issue is you have no contact details on your website, nothing which proves who you are, where you are, or even if you are regulated by any kind of financial authority such as the FSA, which other payment providers are, you use only a skype number for a contact telephone number. Your site itself, whether you want to give that impression or intended to give that impression or not screams scam, the reason being it is handmade, unprofessional looking and littered with adverts.

This is what was meant by quikshops post. I think giving an email address on here isn't really relevant, its the business site that is the issue. Based on that I doubt many people would recommend you as someone for Starlight to use. You need to consider carefully the impression you are giving as this is obviously losing you potential business if all is above board.

Dear BoHo,

I wish to thank you for pointing the obvious mistake I have made. Point noted. Thank you.

[matt_15]

The issue is you have no contact details on your website, nothing which proves who you are, where you are, or even if you are regulated by any kind of financial authority such as the FSA, which other payment providers are, you use only a skype number for a contact telephone number. Your site itself, whether you want to give that impression or intended to give that impression or not screams scam, the reason being it is handmade, unprofessional looking and littered with adverts.

This is what was meant by quikshops post. I think giving an email address on here isn't really relevant, its the business site that is the issue. Based on that I doubt many people would recommend you as someone for Starlight to use. You need to consider carefully the impression you are giving as this is obviously losing you potential business if all is above board.

Great point made!

[steve23]

Hi Starlight,

Ok, I know you said what you do is not the same as the 'adult' industry, but its close enough I think for me to be able to draw comparisons etc.

So....

The vast amount of such sites - including girls on the end of webcams - seem to deal via CCBill.

Seems to be the numero uno for this sort of thing, so obviously you need to check them out.

The amount of such sites that take PayPal are almost non existent - probably mostly due to PP own terms etc (no adult sites ?) - but those that do have a waiting period whereby you are emailed confirmation of the purchase etc about a week later - I should imagine this allows time for the money to be moved to a bank account and what have you.

As an aside, if you do come up with some T+C's, dont hesistate to pursue breaches of them - I would be fairly sure that most of your customers are more frightend of ending up in court over this than you are !

Of course Im not saying anything would go that far, but its a good bluff etc.

Final thing though, if no solution is right for you, may be to bite the bullet and just accept that this will happen with the odd customer - a bit like losses from theft are part of a retailers life!

Oh, and one other thing.

When you say you are a fairly well known model, I assume its in a niche outside of the mainstream etc, because if not, you'll end up in the tabloids fast as blink. So give thought to how valuable all this really is to you.

Now dont forget to put your website in your profile :-)

All the best

Steve