Premice
As a creator, people sometimes ask me if I can make a model for them. I always find it interesting to have these demands, and I am often able to help. Now that the crowdfunding tab was unveiled, I think it could be nice to have a similar thing, but for on-demand models.
In more detail
- What I imagine is a button next to the creator’s description (or on his page) that allows the user to send a detailed request (and eventually an amount that he is willing to pay).
- The creator would then receive a notification on a button located next to or in his message section.
- The creator would then make a suggestion and/or accept/or refuse.
- …
- Finally, the creator sends a link to the user to finalize the transaction.
The idea would be similar to the Fiverr platform, except that the models wouldn’t necessarily belong to the user, instead, the creator would simply publish the model once finished on his account (with eventual credit in the description if not already imagined) with an agreed license. Both options could be left available as well but pusblishing it would have the advantage of earning the BL points like a regular model would.
Money could be involved, and Bambu Lab (BL) could eventually take a small percentage, for example. The creator could, for example, choose to receive the full amount of money in regular BL currency or a lower amount (after BL’s cut) in exchangeable BL currency, for example.
My own special usage of this
As 3D printing is my hobby, I wouldn’t ask for money, but this would be a great way to share some modeling ideas. I would want to have the option to do it fully for free (no BL money cut, use a percentage and not a flat fee, for example), and would try to keep the license as open as possible (ideally CC-BY). So please don’t force exclusivity models on this as well.
Impact on creators
Creators that have visible specialties could benefit from this, as users could simply want a similar model to what they already made in the past. Please leave the option to disable this button in the settings, however, as not every creator would want to be bothered by this. Seeing the on-demand button on the creator’s page would mean he encourages it, and thus users could feel less intimidated by this. This button could lead to an in-between page with the creator’s preferences, for example as well.
Relation to crowdfunding tab
A tab similar to the crowdfunding tab could regroup all the creators who accept these user suggestions. It could be a nice way to be discovered as well. The idea is to have a grid of creators, maybe some of their models (pinned or most downloaded if none) underneath, a price range, …, that users could scroll through to find a potential match for their needs.
Future
Finally, in the future, a similar idea could be implemented, but instead of Fiverr, it could be an Etsy-like feature where users could arrange to sell physical prints, furthermore transforming MakerWorld into a big hub for everything 3D printing.