Tips for KittyCats Sellers

[Tad Carlucci]

1) MAKE SURE IT'S FOR SALE!!!

I know you just did that. Do it again. Be thorough. It won't sell if it's not marked for sale. Remember: pulling in from the Dock and changing mode (to or from low prim, to or from image) clear the price and For Sale.

2) Check the shop out before renting.

Press ESC twice to reset your camera, then try walking along every edge and into every corner, and slanting across each area. If you have problems moving, so will your customers. If you can't see the entire room when standing in the center and spinning your avatar, neither can your customers. If they can't see it, or can't get to it, they'll give up and leave.

3) Check again after decorating.

Repeat this after you decorate, or make any changes. If your super-cute sofa blocks them entering, they won't enter. If it blocks them so they can't leave, they'll teleport out, never to return. Remember: customers have an amazingly long memory for bad experiences .. if your sofa trapped them, even after you moved it, you'll forever be "that shop which trapped me, don't go there."

2) Pay attention to your landscaping.

That plant may be pretty. But look at the box next to it from straight-on. Does your mouse click hit the plant? Unless it's an exceptionally interesting cat/box, purchasers won't fiddle. If they hit the plant instead of your cat/box, you just lost the sale. Ctrl-Alt-T shows transparent textures as red semi-transparent. Live/box cat images will be red .. look for more red coming from your landscaping and either move the plants or move the cat.

5) Set Home!!!

So you cleverly hid your dock behind and under your shop. You just pulled in a dozen cats and artfully arranged them in your shop. You come back tomorrow and .. NO CATS! Remember that clever hiding place? Yep .. you have a pile-o-cat. Remember: when a cat goes to sleep .. EVEN IF WALK IS TURNED OFF .. it teleports Home. If you didn't set Home, it will be where this instance of the cat first appeared in-world. That is: where you dropped it from inventory, you dock, where you changed prim mode, etc.

So, when you're going through every box and cat to be sure it's For Sale, Set Home to be sure the cat sleeps where you put it.

6) If you can't do it, have a friend who runs their Viewer "balls-to-the-wall" .. every graphics option enabled and set to max. Make sure you/she can actually SEE your cats!

It never ceases to amaze me when Charm wanders around and there are shops with wonderful glowing landscaping, poofers, light sources, and full-bright textures everywhere. The shop sure looks pretty .. from a distance .. and it's definitely eye-catching .. but when she gets close .. WHAM! .. white-out .. all you see is the glow.

If the customer has to down-grade their experience to look in your shop .. they won't look in your shop. Simple, no?

7) Oh, I can go on but that's enough for now.