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Credits & Micro-Payments


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Making money with our software

Our software suite offers a fully-integrated Micro-Payment Accounting service - basically a "Credits" based e-commerce system built into all community services. Credits are a community’s unit of currency. They are the mechanism by which for-profit systems can charge for additional or premium services. Not-for-profit systems can use credits to regulate user activities.

These 'credits', used a micropayments for services, are the key to creating a successful revenue-generating online community. It essentially allows you to charge for everything a member does!

How it works

A user maintains an electronic wallet (in the form of 'credits' applied to their account) and uses this currency across all community services. Credits are drawn down automatically from this account for any fee-based services used on the system.

For example, a member can deduct credits to place an ad in the classifieds, deduct some more to purchase a product from the mall, and finally deduct another amount to download a special file from the File Libraries - all without having to pull out a credit card each time.

Every service has built into it options for surcharging: Charge for a special event chat with a celebrity, participation in a special forum, even sending an email - the options are endless. You can even reverse the process, and pay users for their participation!

Service Examples

All of our services are designed to provide opportunities for surcharging. We'll outline a few examples below so you can see how other products miss the boat when it comes to making you money.

Service

 Benefit
Chat Room
  • You can set the number of times a user can talk per session if he does not have enough credits. A powerful way to draw new members in. Get them engaged in exciting talk with other members, then impose a restriction and prompt them to sign up!
  • Limit new members ability to speak at all in the chat room. When they try to speak, they are prompted to sign-up (pay).
  • Allow only paying members to have private one-to-one chats with other members.
  • Allow only paying members to create private chat rooms.
  • Allow only paying members to use Action commands or play chat games.
  • Allow only paying members to have special chat room entrance and/or exit messages. People will pay to feel special.
  • Optionally allow your chat room moderators to "post" credits to a new member's account. Great way to draw new users in with the benefits of being a paid member.
File Library File Library allows your users to share program and document files. There are plenty of opportunities for surcharges here as well.
  • Allow members to "see but not touch" files in a library - until they've paid. Let them see what they are missing out on.
  • Restrict members from even seeing a library area until they've paid.
  • Charge a user every time they download a file.
  • Charge a user based on the file size, per 1,024 bytes of each file.
  • Pay users to download a file! You can set a negative charge for downloads, paying users for downloading files. One possible reason would be if you were promoting the distribution of shareware or documents produced by your company.
  • Offer Upload Royalties. Allow your members to share in the profits from popular files they've uploaded. Whenever someone is charged for downloading a file, royalties are paid to the user who originally uploaded the file.
  • Sub-Lease File Libraries. You can assign someone as a Lib-Op of their own file library area.



Credits increase a community’s e-commerce throughput

  • People are more inclined to spend “intangibles” ("Credits" they've already paid for).
    Using "credits" puts less risk on the sale as the decision point is less dramatic than pulling out a credit card.
  • Credits can be pre-purchased, allowing you to profit from the float.
  • Risk of sale loss is reduced as the customer decision-point is less distressed, as a “real” credit card is not involved.
  • Lower credit card transaction fees. A customer can fill his electronic wallet with credits through a single credit card transaction, and subsequently purchase items free from nickel and dime transaction charges.

Credits enable vendors and marketers to establish E-centives programs, accumulating points for members who perform desirable activities. Customers or prospects can be rewarded for various activities by using credits / points for discounted or free merchandise.


Applying Credits to User Accounts

Credits can be applied to user accounts in many ways:

Manually Your staff can manually post credits from the remote sysop menu. You might do this, for example, if a member sent in a check for services.
Automatically The system can automatically give a new user credits when he signs up. For example, a portal might give first-timers a small amount of credit. To make it interesting, the system could let them view but not participate in chat and forums, and view but not download the offerings in File Libraries. That way, first-timers get a teaser of features and benefits of the system.
Account Management System Members can purchase credits to spend on premium services or products from the system's "Credit Store", "Cashier", or "Coupon Manager". This is a great convenience to both the host and the member. The member benefits from 1 payment being able to be used across many services, and the host receives pre-payment for services.

  • Credit Store - Credit Store is used to allow users to purchase credits on the system which are immediately applied to their account. This module displays a simple web form user can fill out to purchase credits on your system with a credit card.
  • Cashier - Online Cashier is used to allow a user to select from a list of pre-packaged purchase options for any combination of credits, class upgrades, and access keys. The list of purchase option can be restricted based on class and/or key. Keys and Classes can be set to expire after so many days. Cashier supports single purchases as well as recurring billing (weekly, monthly quarterly, semi-annually, or yearly)
  • Coupons - The Coupon Management System is a powerful solution to drive traffic to your web site. CMS allows users to enter coupon codes in exchange for class upgrades, credits, and/or keys. Best of all, it provides an affiliate program by allowing selected users (via Key/Class) to request X number of coupon codes (possibly for a fee) to be assigned to them. They, in turn, can distribute these codes to other users in exchange for royalties (in the form of credits).
By Service Various web services can optionally post credits to a member's account. For example, the Polls service can post credits upon completion of a poll. The File Library can reward members with credits for submitting files.
Through Transfer Members can transfer credits to other members. This is a powerful Viral Marketing technique as users encourage and enable others to participate in premium service areas.
Via External Processes The "Credit Deduction" functionality code logic is replaceable. This allows you to integrate with physical loyalty card programs or databases.

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Gamification enables web experiences that influence user behavior in astonishing and unparalleled new ways. Click here to see what we mean.