Annual Memberships (with discounts!)
Added 2020-08-19 16:15:09 +0000 UTCLooks like Patreon added another new feature recently: annual memberships. I have just enabled it for Long Live the Princess, with a 2-month discount.
What is an annual membership? It's for when you are feeling extraordinarily generous (or have a ridiculous amount of faith in me as a creator) and want to support me for a full year in one go instead of paying monthly. An annual membership will give you a 2-month discount (so you'll be paying for 10 months instead of 12) and is available for any pledge level. You'll have access to your chosen tier for an entire year.
I'm not sure what kind of interest there is in this kind of thing, but the option is there now for those who might want it. This is also a good time to remind you all that, while LLtP's main story is coming to an end, there is a lot of other content remaining, so development of the game will continue into 2021.
Here is some helpful information from the Patreon crew on how to upgrade from monthly to annual memberships:
For existing patrons the following steps will help you switch over your pledge to annual.
- Log in, hover over your profile icon in the top right corner, and select Manage Memberships
- From your Active Memberships page click Edit next to the pledge you want to change
- You’ll see a familiar checkout page where you can select Annual
- Click Update. Note: you’ll be charged upfront for the discounted price
New patrons, visit my Patreon page where you’ll see the option below the “Join” button of your chosen tier.
Check out this help center article if you have any questions about how it works.
Comments
Can always call the difference bonus — that's what I've been doing. Do the annual, and just manually bump it to monthly × 12.
Isaac Dansicker
2020-09-04 04:43:02 +0000 UTCBelle I should also add thank you for the offer. Your dedication to your work and patrons is appreciated.
hisstoryman
2020-08-21 21:04:59 +0000 UTCThe default and maximum for annual memberships is 2 months off, so I kept it that way.
2020-08-21 04:07:55 +0000 UTCI mean...it's not cheating her if she's the one offering the discount, which I assume she is considering the support page she linked for us doesn't say anything about discounts for annual memberships.
Anonymous010
2020-08-21 04:01:13 +0000 UTCMy contribution to your work many be small but I wont cheat you out of two months patronage.
hisstoryman
2020-08-21 03:38:45 +0000 UTCJust as it is no ones business how I do mine. :) The patreon model already has quite a few disadvantages for supporters and this one does not help with it.
DA22
2020-08-20 07:38:19 +0000 UTCGlad to hear it. Whatever way in which you choose to support me, and whatever sum, it's appreciated. :)
2020-08-20 06:44:40 +0000 UTCDifferent people have different motivations for supporting a Patreon campaign. Some of my patrons think of this as buying a product, and that's perfectly fine. Others simply want to support me. If someone does support me monthly for an entire year, that is obviously better for me than if that same person decides to go for the annual option. On the other hand, if I get a new patron who subscribes monthly, I have no idea if that patron will be around in 12 months, or even 2. An annual subscription makes things more predictable. Having said that, this isn't something I was pushing for or felt was necessary. It's just another option that I don't really see any harm in offering for those who find it appealing. Several patrons have already gone from monthly to annual pledges, so there's at least *some* demand for it.
2020-08-20 06:43:35 +0000 UTCI believe this has been in beta for a while, so I don't think it was triggered by the lawsuit. Besides, from what I understand of that case, and from what I've seen in discussions with other devs, Patreon is in no real danger.
2020-08-20 06:40:27 +0000 UTCThanks for the offer! I'm actually really open for annual subscriptions; I prefer one-time donations to monthly subscriptions, and it saves money on processing fees. Until Patreon falls down, I am comfortable with the service, your dedication, and my small part of it.
Isaac Dansicker
2020-08-20 02:57:55 +0000 UTCI'm sure some people will go for it, but I personally don't see how this helps anyone other than Patreon. I get that you're not pushing for it so we're already cool, but just wanted to share my thoughts.... 1) I am basically donating money to a worthy cause. Why would I want a "discount"? If I want to take away 2 months of your income I'll just not give you money for those two months. 2) It creates small but unnecessary risk. The developer might lose the money (divorce, a lawsuit, bad decision-making, etc), Patreon might fold, etc. Giving a stipend to a creative person seems a lot more reasonable. 3) I'd rather make small steady payments than be hit by a large bill once a year.
Dubsington
2020-08-20 01:53:55 +0000 UTCGiven that Patron is potentially facing millions of dollars in upfront arbitration fees, this strikes me as a desperate bid to raise money and makes me worried for Patreon's long-term viability. It might be a good idea for creators to make sure they have an alternative available if Patreon goes down.
Curtis S.
2020-08-20 01:16:00 +0000 UTCDon't see why there's a negative reaction. Most developers on Patreon don't give out their game you're supporting the game development as well as paying for it. It's a full-time job for most. Your getting access to the game for a year how a dev manages there finances is no one's business but the devs
gamersglory
2020-08-19 23:42:11 +0000 UTCThis is how I expect most patrons to think, and it's completely fair. I like giving people options.
2020-08-19 19:11:29 +0000 UTCPersonally I will not sign up to any of them, unless a dev will give a great reason why they need an upfront cash injection. Besides when I am supporting a dev I do not wish a discount. If it was just for the game I would buy it when released after all if not just play a pirated version.
DA22
2020-08-19 18:51:43 +0000 UTCThank you for the prompt response; I do appreciate it. You're almost certainly right; it's just that new features of online payment interfaces always make me nervous, because if someone messed something up, it can come out of my wallet. LLtP is worth the risk, though.
Daniel Vanciae
2020-08-19 18:50:48 +0000 UTCYou're charged annually. They probably just copy/pasted something without double-checking it.
2020-08-19 18:27:14 +0000 UTCI signed up immediately, but I'm a bit concerned about this. It's probably just a typo/oversight on Patreon's part, but the price of the annual membership is listed as being charged monthly. I took a screenshot and can email it to you for reference if you like.
Daniel Vanciae
2020-08-19 18:20:00 +0000 UTC
