Topic

What are the greeters?

From what my friends have told me and what I have read, I understand that:
greeters are companions to new players

That's about as far as my knowledge goes... What else is there to it? I would love to become "qualified" to become one (even though I have only played for the last three tests) and was wondering how to do this. 

Thanks in advance!

Posted 17 months ago by Djoe6897 Subscriber! | Permalink

Replies

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  •  I played this last test and a couple days of the test before so I am fairly new. I don't recall having a greeter, however, I had Princess Fi, Reilu, Rascalmom, Acreditando (goodness I hope I spelled your names correctly)  amongst many, many other players too numerous to mention,  that were absolutely lovely to me. Everyone gave me hugs, kiss's and gifts! I so appreciate the food and drinks especially; because first thing I learned is that Mood and Energy is crucial or I would go to hell!
    LOL thank you, I have so much more to learn and I know I can call on you all for help! LOL I think? (as she scratch's her butt,<smile>)
    Posted 17 months ago by Joy Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Hey all, 

    I just wanted to pop in and let you know I am here,and listening :)  Yes, greeters are real!  Greeters are also not bots, but they *really* love it when they are accused of it, ha! 

    A new player will automatically assume our Greeters are bots, because they are so good at what they do!  Being called a bot, really, truly is a compliment, even when it doesn't necessarily feel like it. :)

    We are currently testing the Greeter Program, heavily.  We are working really hard to find out if it can be scaled to the amount of new members coming in, now, and in the future.   I have worked on and built several Greeter Programs in different products, but, find in this scenario, a game vs a strictly social arena, there are more challenges.  Greeters don't need a 'job', there's plenty for them to do when they aren't greeting- this means we need a LOT more Greeters, or another way to make a new player feel welcome.  We never want a Greeter to feel like they HAVE to help, we want them to enjoy it and do it when they feel like it. 

    In the past, before players even knew there was a Greeter Program, we relied on recommendations from Greeters on the team,  now that more people are hearing about it, we are working on the details,  while testing how it can be scaled.  I can give you an idea of what qualifications you need, but realize this is a beta project inside a beta world.

    "Our Glitch Greeters are friendly and playful. They understand and appreciate Glitch ideology, and can maintain a professional, welcoming manner when greeting new players. Glitch Greeters are included in the group by the Community Team when they have shown they have what it takes to be the first Glitch a new player meets! Our Greeters help form the first impression of Glitch. They are engaging and comfortable introducing new players to the social interactions of the game. Our Greeters provide the first delightful experience for our newest Glitches!"

    I absolutely adore that players want to be a part of the Greeter Program, it delights me when I see players on the 'first streets' aiding in the acclimation of a new player.  The Glitch community makes me smile.

    Thank you to everyone that makes this project so much fun, and thanks too, for the interest!
    Posted 17 months ago by Pepper Rose Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Actually it all way, way back in a thread far away. Where shrimpburger,, then chickenburger, decided that we needed to go out and physically help noobs because there was a lot of confusion and which resulted in www.wherecanigetsalt.com. A whole load of us signed up and stoot thought it was awesome so we left organizing the idea to him because its his game and all. 3 months later Jdawg tracks the people who had signed up down at asked if we still wanted to greet.

    I also have 3 noobs who wanted to sign up the minute they heard about greeting.
    Posted 17 months ago by Ani Laurel Subscriber! | Permalink
  • It sounds like an awesome concept. I hope it meets or can be adjusted to meet the need.

    Official greeting program aside, any of us can pay it forward, lend a hand, extend a welcome to newly hatched or inexperienced (relatively speaking) hatchlings if we choose. 

    If you're a little bored or lacking focus or just need a change of pace, I recommend wandering around and engaging random others whose paths cross yours. I do not presume or expect a specific or any response. I do it just because. It makes the joyful responses received incredibly rewarding.

    Oh...and one lesson I learned...hugging n00bs may not be the best approach. It can be intimidating or uncomfortable for others who don't expect it and haven't encountered it in other games. I'm less cautious about players who have been around for a while, but try to remember that even as laid back as I am, I felt a bit uncomfortable when I was hugged and kissed by random players when I was a n00b.
    Posted 17 months ago by g33kgurrl Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Also for n00bs who don't yet have an emotional bear, you can jump around for joy and introduce them to that particular bit of nonverbal Glitchian communication.  
    Posted 17 months ago by jasbo Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Thanks for bringing that topic back up, Aniloverl. Strange to think it's been 5 months since Stoot posted the idea of the (at that time, internal) Greeting program and it's barely changed since. :) 

    In fact, we're coming up to exactly 100 days since the Greeter program was unveiled to us (as in, started Greeting). So great :D 
    Posted 17 months ago by Hburger Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Completely off-topic, but this made me smile:

    Agreed Amy--I wish there was both, a help channel and a global chat channel.Posted 5 months ago by Gabi | Permalink
    Haha, mission accomplished :D

    Anyway, yes. It IS an awesome concept, g33kgurl, and very fun to be a part of. 
    Posted 17 months ago by Cupcake Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I think that sounds pretty cool - I would love to be a greeter :)  
    Posted 17 months ago by CeanaRose Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I'd love to be a part of this; I remember how overwhelming it was getting started, but also how friendly everyone was :)

    I'm currently UK-based, but may or may not be permanently moving back to GMT+4 so I could very easily be online at decidedly non-US times :)

    -Cole
    Posted 17 months ago by Cole Frehlen Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Sounds really cool being a greeter, and help is very fun. Actually, I love when a newbie knock my door just exploring, last test it happened many times :)
    Posted 17 months ago by acreditando Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Rilu was my guardian angel. Thank you Rilu!
    Posted 17 months ago by Joy Subscriber! | Permalink
  • my greeter was picture picture. she helped me alot with the game. i only played for one test. i hope at least after a month or so, i can become a greeter!
    Posted 17 months ago by GiaTori Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I do not remember my greeter - if there was one. If i ignored it or done something not nice I'm sorry. :D
    Posted 17 months ago by Lilla My Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I'd love to be a greeter. I know that I may not seem like the warmest person on the forums, but I'm probably not at all the way many people see me.

    Anyway, it's in my nature to be helpful to those less knowlegable or fortunate, and to be altruistic. That's why I'm a clinical social worker and former advice columnist, ahaha.

    EDIT: Also, it would have been in my nature to complete any greeter I had because I'm almost positive that if someone had tried to interact with me when I ran into the game I either would have been too distracted by all the new shiny things or I would have felt that there's no way anyone could be talking to me since no one knew me back then. :P
    Posted 17 months ago by Cerulean Subscriber! | Permalink
  • To belong to this warm and brilliant welcome community would be an honor!
    Feels so good to know we are welcome and that if we need, we have someone to clarify some doubts! Melodious: thank you so much! :) And be able to give it back is even better! Feels like building something that truly worth it!
    Also had no idea that there are "professional" greeters but it seems a nice idea!
    I know it might not be possible, but are you considering selecting players with the same language? I know that English is the universal language, but there's nothing like clarify, speaking maternal language. When the game opens, there will be many players who have not master english to laugh as they should about the messages that appear in the game! And if it were possible to select players for the greeters of the same language, it would be even more cozy! There are pros and cons?
    Right now, I don´t feel prepared to be a greeter, but in a month or two... who knows :)
    Posted 17 months ago by mira gaia maia Subscriber! | Permalink
  • During the madness of signing up and trying to jump the queue I used 2 email addresses... just a couple weeks ago I was a bit confused to see an invite from Glitch! Then I remembered that I had indeed signed up twice. I decided to not look a gift invite in the face and started a second account. 
    I can't remember when I originally started playing but it was Alpha. I didn't have a greeter. It wasn't to hard to get started IMHO. When I started my new character I decided to get the full experience and have a greeter. WOW! The Greeter Program is AWESOME! I can't recall my greeter's name but she was VERY kind and I can see how this could make the whole process so much easier for people. 
    Great job Greeters!!! Thank you TS for having a game intro that really fits the mood of the game :)
    Posted 17 months ago by Niknik Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Oooh, good feedback, Niknik....
    Posted 17 months ago by RM Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I started playing glitch at the very end of April.  Three months and there is so very much MORE to the game!  I didn't have a greeter but I had a lot of friends who helped me.  I LOVE helping newbs and would love to be a greeter.  I try to engage as many lower level glitches as I can.  Some almost seem scared to interact, or don't know how Local Chat works.
    Posted 17 months ago by Marla Subscriber! | Permalink
  • We've asked about this in the past, and there were no plans for Glitch to officially support any language other than English.  Some greeters do speak other languages, so we have been able to accommodate some testers with poor English skills, but I don't know how well they fair after they leave the start streets, since the rest of the game is in English.

    If you're thinking of becoming a greeter, please be aware that, while it can be gratifying to welcome a friendly new player, it is basically an unpaid customer service job, and is not always pleasant.  You have to enjoy helping others, but you also have to have a thick skin, as some people are rude, whether intentionally or otherwise.  Also, other than the aforementioned gratification, there are no real perks... our powers are extremely limited.  That said, we are still looking for new greeters, so if you're truly a "people person," please do let us know.  Probably the best part of greeting is hanging out with the other greeters, who are a lot of fun. :)
    Posted 17 months ago by glum pudding Subscriber! | Permalink
  • It would be nice when we invite friends to play if we could have the option to greet them if we are online.

    Two friends that I invited joined at different times, I was online when they both started. For the first one I was notified and given the option to go and meet them at the start, which I thought was really neat and naturally did. But when the second friend started a few weeks later I didn't get any notification / option to go and meet them and caught up with them later in the game. 
    Posted 17 months ago by Teena Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @Teena -- Yeah, it was nice being able to sort of mentor Vermilion when he joined after I invited him. :3
    Posted 17 months ago by Cerulean Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I had two greeters, they seemed SO MUCH like bots. Not even just with the Knowing Stuff thing, but the way they interacted with each other seemed like someone made a "Twins" AI to follow me around, lol

    I think maybe I just can't imagine anyone being as cheerful as they were ;)
    Posted 17 months ago by Biohazard Subscriber! | Permalink
  • If there were two greeters, one was more experienced, and the other was in training.  After new greeters have shadowed us for a bit, we encourage them to jump into the conversation whenever they're comfortable.  If the two sounded similar, it was probably because one had been watching the other greet for a while, and learned his or her speech. :) 

    We do need a way for players to find each other without being in the same physical location or chat window.  Hopefully a friend-search feature will be built into the game at some point, but in the mean time, you can tell people you've invited to look for you in the Global Chat channel, and then click on their nicknames to send them IMs.
    Posted 17 months ago by glum pudding Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @Biohazard: By the giants, greeters do try to be just that cheerful:) Really! We're high on Glitch! Life! Purple!
    Posted 17 months ago by RM Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Greeting could be fun, I love having a 'purpose' in-game! Is there a formal application process, or do we just stand here in the middle of the forums frantically waving our raised hands in the air hoping to be called on? ;)

    I started around the same time as Victoria, so I'm not sure if sgjo, who gave me my first bag, was actually doing the greetin' thing or not. (TYVM, BTW!) Or Rascalmom, who let me know what the *heck* was going on when I stumbled randomly onto a project street when I was, like, a level 2. 
    Posted 17 months ago by Jennyanydots Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @Jennyanydots, sjgo is a total sweetie:) And yeah I was a greeter at the time of the projects thing. I sensed your distress call that day (via echolocation, a la bottlenose dolphins); the RM senses were tingling (like Spidey senses but involving less icky cobwebs). At the moment, yeah you do kinda just stand here waving about or you tell someone, etc., etc. I think Pepper_Rose may check this thread now and then, but I'll put your name on the interest list since I'm not sure how often. Cheers! :)
    Posted 17 months ago by RM Subscriber! | Permalink
  • People got greeters? I feel jipped. :(
    Posted 17 months ago by Innie✿, Obviously Subscriber! | Permalink
  • how do you become a greeter?
    i really love it when i get to help new people!!
    Posted 17 months ago by GiaTori Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Bumping. I really am interested in being a greeter. Then again, I kind of do greeting sometimes, already, anyway, ahaha. If I'm in Groddle and I see a new player, I say hello, answer any questions they've developed, give them a gift, add them to my contacts and tell them to let mek now if they need anything. And then I hug them and see them off. :D
    Posted 17 months ago by Cerulean Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @those of you who express interest in here...your buddies are passing along (and Pepper_Rose reads this, too) :D
    Posted 17 months ago by RM Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Hey....Where do members show up?  I can not remember where I was when I came in game. I was totally lost and confused! I would love to help someone new!! Oooohhh Pepper Rose, can you tell me where, please?
    Posted 17 months ago by Innie✿, Obviously Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Innie, for a list of places where new players end up after the start streets, look here: http://www.glitch-strategy.com/wiki/A_Kindly_Act_of_Randomness
    Posted 17 months ago by Millie Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Lelu helped my GF get started.  After seeing that, I've been trying to help everyone I see that has questions, although I'm far from experienced.  As with any game, there's always going to be players that aren't friendly and will give others false information just for laughs.  I suggest there be a thread to point those players out, as there's no positive reason to keep them around.
    Posted 17 months ago by SanVoMiTo Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Oh Millie, THANKS A TON!!!
    Posted 17 months ago by Innie✿, Obviously Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Just to clarify: when you go through the tutorial, the first street you enter, a "start street," is one which doesn't appear on the maps, and to which you cannot return.  If you say "yes, I'd like a greeter" when asked, a greeter will appear on that start street, answer your questions, and perhaps give you some little gifts.  (Most players haven't been greeted, either because we weren't greeting when they started, or because they clicked "no" when prompted.)  After you leave the start street, you can end up on any of nine regular streets (all listed in Millie's link), but you cannot return to the start street.
    Posted 17 months ago by glum pudding Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Recently I've been getting frequent IMs from newer players asking for guidance. I have a even temper and I'm technically literate. I may have to change my Glitch's dress style (how are you handling that, @Rascalmom?) but after the recent EoW party where I found myself guiding players to the event, explaining the concept to new players on the way, calmly standing outside the party for hours making sure as many people had a chance to participate I've begun considering the idea of trying to be a greeter. I believe I've become sufficiently familiar with the game and its mechanics to explain (and justify) it to others. I'm certainly willing to try anyways if there is room for me.
    Posted 16 months ago by Fokian Fool Subscriber! | Permalink
  • You did a good job helping people in! :)

    I didn't have a greeter, but Dagnabbit Rabbit set me up with my first house and helped me get started. She told me to go find someone new and help them get their first house. So, I found a nice shiny new kid and helped them pay.  I thought that was how "greeting" worked in the game- just informal paying it forward. 
    Posted 16 months ago by Feylin Subscriber! | Permalink
  • i remember declining a greeter because i didn't know what one was, really, or how it would effect my play.

    did i then miss out on free stuff?

    i noticed later on i had questions and might have liked an option to have a greeter talk to me when i was ready. i often do not like too many hints and like to figure things out for myself, but some guidance would not have been a bad thing.

    i could have asked questions like "what does it mean when someone rushes up and kisses me?"
    "what's the etiquette when someone comes and gives you something?"
    "what degree of social interaction is polite?"
    "how should i choose the neighborhood where i buy my house?"

    and  "do  i need to hang onto my card-carrying qualification after i get my papers completed?"
    Posted 16 months ago by flask Subscriber! | Permalink
  • i am sorry if this too late but.........

    a greeter is a person who teaches people how to play.
    can teach them how to finish a quest or what a item does.
    i talked to jade 2 test ago and she said that she is picking the greeters.
    to become a greeter you have to help in live help/global chat and have played the game long enough to know alot about it. im not a greeter and im hoping to become one. so that is all i know for now. hope this helps!!
    Posted 16 months ago by GiaTori Subscriber! | Permalink
  • *pouts* I never had a greeter...
    Posted 16 months ago by Some_Random_Guy Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @flask:
    "did i then miss out on free stuff?"

    i noticed later on i had questions and might have liked an option to have a greeter talk to me when i was ready. i often do not like too many hints and like to figure things out for myself, but some guidance would not have been a bad thing.
    "

    On missing out on free stuff:  Not really.  You are given some useful items with which to practice while on the street (example: spinach), but nothing that gives you a significant leg up.  

    on having questions later on:  There has been some discussion about making greeter/mentor types available outside of the start streets, because you are right, at the beginning you are sort of like Donald Rumsfeld--you don't know what you don't know.  And if you didn't get  a greeter to show it to you, on your own you may not have noticed the Live Help chat channel!
    Posted 16 months ago by Nanookie Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Or the FAQ group!  

    When I first started there was some serious annoyance at noobs asking questions in Global Chat.   I didn't KNOW people didn't like that and was scolded both for the asking and for the not knowing.  There was some backlash on the forms here, too,  wishing people wouldn't "clutter" Global up with questions. 

    Someone finally told me to go to the FAQ group, and they are an excellent resource.  I would have asked everything there right off the bat if I knew it existed!
    Posted 16 months ago by Feylin Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @Feylin. Ha ha! Got u to pay it forward! Sweet! Only cuz I know ya from another game u get two :p :p
    Posted 16 months ago by Dagnabbit Rabbit Subscriber! | Permalink
  • If anyone has questions feel free to friend me and ask. I might not friend you back but you can IM me whenever you see me online or you can ask in Live Help. WE are working on making greeting better and your tips (complaints) help.
    Posted 16 months ago by Ani Laurel Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Yeah, yeah, what she said!  Especially since I really don't want to wear that blue vest they are proposing for greeters...
    Posted 16 months ago by Nanookie Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Don't Walmart greeters where blue vests?
    Posted 16 months ago by Fokian Fool Subscriber! | Permalink
  • How about a Greeter armband? Or hatband? Stanley would look dashing in a nice necktie...
    Posted 16 months ago by Jennyanydots Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Many players are not American and would not understand the blue vest concept. Hell, I'm from NYC (only technically America) and barely got it myself. There probably should be a signifier, but I'd argue a blue vest aint it.
    Posted 16 months ago by Helcat Subscriber! | Permalink
  • The issue is the presence of a signifier, not the form it might take (for me and some others)!
    Posted 16 months ago by Nanookie Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @ Helcat LOL!  The whole concept of Greeters in UK stores is pretty alien!
    Posted 16 months ago by ♥joby♥ Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I Loved having a greeter! It is especially great for someone who doesn't know anyone on Glitch yet. They will have at least one familiar name to help them feel at home.
    Posted 16 months ago by Princess Zircon Subscriber! | Permalink
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