Alts & Blackmail & Griefing, Oh My!

I think pretty much everyone is fairly familiar with the above graphic, which is sadly correct all too often. But what happens if you take an already mentally unstable SL user, give them an alt account with even less accountability?  I got a crash course over the last few days which I will now share with you to serve as both warning and entertainment.

It started innocently enough three days ago. I got a fairly standard offline IM from a customer who'd purchased a couple skins from me. She wanted me to give her my shape, which I don't do. I get asked fairly regularly and I just don't give it out. Never have, Never will.  Keep in mind there is NOTHING anywhere in my store, profile, or land to indicate otherwise.  Below are the chat records of the ensuing conversation spread out over three days. (Note my first few responses are not verbatim, but they are close. I try to treat my customers with utmost politeness and courtesy, unless they prove to be completely mental. I didn't know at the time this was going to end so badly so I didn't save my own text.)

scarrlette LeSuere:
hey Starley =) i bought 2 of your skins, i think they are gorgeous! but im needing some help because my face shap isnt the same as whats advertised so i was wondering if you could give me the numbers on the face...eyes nose mouth etc...

Starley Thereian:
Hi Scarrlette! Glad to hear you like your skins but I actually don't sell any shapes. The one shown on the ad is just my own personal shape and I don't give it out, sorry for the misunderstanding.

scarrlette LeSuere:
oh np hon could i go ahead and sell the 2 skins back then?

Starley Thereian:
Sorry, the skins are "No Transfer" and thus non-returnable.

scarrlette LeSuere:
oh okay well this is an alt i have another that ive played for over a year who is a dj and knows alot of people ...i will be sure an advertise your hospitality to all of my friends who will tell all of your friends thus everyone will know

scarrlette LeSuere:
tell all of their friends*

scarrlette LeSuere:
that your a rip off artist

scarrlette LeSuere:
have a beautiful day :) 

I admit at this point I should have just muted & banned her and carried on with my life, but it reminded me of the alt encounter Elika had a couple of weeks ago. It makes me wonder if this is some new scam going around. "Make an alt, buy stuff, ask for refund, act like an asshole to see if you get your way." And I decided I really don't have to take that from someone. Let's see... She admits she's been in SL for over a year. If that is true, she has no excuse for not reading the signs. In her first message to me she says the skins are "gorgeous", so obviously she does not have a problem with the merchandise. She wants her money back simply because I won't give her my shape. Nowhere, anywhere inside my store does it say the shape is included, nor is there any allusion that I will give it out after purchase. She certainly could have checked the contents of the boxes or IMed me to ask beforehand if she was unsure.  If you've been in SL for a year, you know how to check the contents of a box. And also, after purchasing one and finding that the shape was not included, why would you buy a second if the shape was what you really wanted? So anyway, I wrote back. The rest of the conversation is as follows:

Starley Thereian:
Oh that's classic. So you are an older resident yet you somehow didn't know you couldn't transfer items marked as "no transfer"? Brilliant.

Starley Thereian: Well don't worry, hon. I have a lot of designer friends and I'll be sure to let them all know you are a scam artist as well. Have a nice day. :)

Starley Thereian:
Maybe you wanna let me know the name of your main so I can pass that around too? :)

scarrlette LeSuere:
lol ill get right on that...your a greedy little theif who likes to advertise something your not selling and im going to make sure my money was well spent

scarrlette LeSuere:
whether its no tran or not you should do the right thing and return my money...but keep it lil welfare recipient

scarrlette LeSuere:
fucking skank

scarrlette LeSuere:
i could wipe my ass with $1250 per day and never feel it but thats not the point the point is your advertising and selling a product that doesnt exist

scarrlette LeSuere:
and by the way skank..lie to your friends and say what you will about me..but im no scam artist im a paying customer who expects to actually get what im paying for

scarrlette LeSuere:
enjoy my money cause soon you'll be buying your lindens- if you can afford them lol

Now she's muted, banned, and ARed -- the griefer trifecta! You know, if she would have asked, I would have been more than happy to help her adjust her own shape, or at the very least sent her some LMs to some shape shops. But she jumped right in with the threats. It's actually pretty comical, and I do wonder if the alt was created for the sole purpose of harrassing me, since it seems the  first thing she did upon creation was come to my store and start trouble.

Comedy aside, this sort of behavior is really a shame. While my return policy is officially "No transfer = No return", I do evaluate every case. One of the things I consider is the age of the player.  It sucks because this kind of situation makes me skeptical of all newbies and that much more unlikely to help those that really need it.

That's all for today. Go buy a L$60,000 ladder. Hurry, there's only one left.

Comments

[Twiddler]

I wipe my ass with $4 worth of wet-wipes a day too! :D hehehehe *hugs* That skirt needed a solid karate chop.

[Aislin Korvin]

as a long time customer and veteran sl shopper i know you stand behind your products and are a wonderful reputable vendor. For every one idiot you have hundreds of happy people praising your quality. LOL let her tell all her friends, the rest of us will tell our friends the truth.

[Six]

Bah!!! You totally wont remember this but when I was little nooblet I messaged you with the most TRIVIAL bullcrap issue ever.. I was having problems adjusting my avvies butt to match the shading of my passport skin.. you tp'd me to where you were , tried on my shape and gave me a few adjusted butt versions ROFLS.. and you treated me so kindly about it all. I get people like this lady you speak of here messaging me on a DAILY basis , especially lately - the bitchy alts are out in droves !! Well thanks for the heads up on THIS particular rude noob as they wont benefit from my noob hair program , for SURE.

[elika]

Yay, I love the rude customers....it keeps me on my toes for sure lol. I find it really interesting that people feel that threatening is the only way to get what they want. Like designers are sooooo concerned with hoarding as many customers as possible that they would bend their own rules to win them over.

I've learned myself that you can't please anyone...and for someone to expect me to change the rules for them....perhaps isn't a customer worth having. I prefer to keep the customers that are honest and honestly enjoy my work.

And another thing, I personally give out my head size when asked as far as hair...but nothing else. I gave out my shape once a looooooooooooong time ago...and have not done it since. Sorry, but just like real life...I don't want to look like anyone else...cause I'm me.

If this person has been around for a year....I'm sure they know how to tweak a shape. And I challenge her to show me a skin vendor that sells their shape along with the skin. She's perma banned from my sim....she probably wouldn't come anyway as I have a no return policy as well.

[Nalirra]

ROFL!!! Thanks...I needed a little laugh..was kinda bored.

Anyway...I think I actually like this Scarrloony chick...Considering I've only been in SL since february...I mean..think about it...without idiots like her, who would make us average folk look brilliant?

This reply
"and by the way skank..lie to your friends and say what you will about me..but im no scam artist im a paying customer who expects to actually get what im paying for"

followed by
"enjoy my money cause soon you'll be buying your lindens- if you can afford them lol"

screams
"I'm pissed off because you were smart enough to realize I was trying to scam you". In an I'm a two year old and I'm not getting my way so I'm gonna throw a temper tantrum, screaming and kicking on the floor kind of way.

And what's with all this skank business lately? I just don't get calling someone you don't really know a skank...unless they act in a skanky manner...(from urban dictionary) implying trashiness or tackiness, lower-class status, poor hygiene, flakiness, and a scrawny, pockmarked sort of ugliness. May also imply promiscuity.

Do these people not know that calling a skin designer a skank because she won't give up her not-for-sale shape is trashy, tacky, and lower-class behavior? Well..hmmm..now who's the skank?

[Garbage Prototype]

Starley, its time for you to use that samurai sword again :} ill hold her, you just go ahead and stab her :D! Haha, stupid alt accounts ah well Take care!

[Eternalynn Calliope]

If she was in SL for more than a year, shouldn't she also be smart enough to notice when a shape is not in a box that sells only a copy of it's contents? Geez.

[Shinesse Madison]

That's freaking hilarious. Especially considering how nice you are. It always amazes me how stupid people can truely be online.