Merchant Archive
Thread: So, how's the price war meta game going on your server?
Parody
Sun Mar 27, 2005 9:27 pm
#27
Mystyrys wrote:
LOL Alcen! Me too!
Funny! Maybe people will be (re)discovering some of the loot items.
FWIW, I poked through a few pages of the Bodysuit section of the global search last night. Was disappointed to see that there's a nearby Tailor Vendor offering them for a tenth of what I am. That's how it goes, though.
Mystyrys
Sun Mar 27, 2005 10:05 pm
#28
Alcen. I found out long ago not to "price check" other crafters. Not in the guild/city, nearby towns/shops, nor bazaar. It makesone crazy and stressed out. I imagine the same could be said for any crafter/merchant. One cannot fathom why they do what they do. One should not try. It causes wear and tear on the Zen of Fun.
To further reduce my stress, I specialize. I don't do BE clothes. Every time someone asks me about BE clothes... I mail them *your*waypoint! 
*hands stress-inducing type customers to Alcen*
*hands stress-inducing type customers to Alcen*Anyway...
I factor my costs on a base of 3 cpu + factory time (maintenance & power costs) + other overhead expenses + 5% profit margin for my *Time.* (Time = collecting resources, running factories, stocking/restocking vendors, handling mails, etc.) If my base costs go up or down, my prices will go up or down. I'm certainly not going to operate at a loss just to compete. I'd close shop before I submitted to that. Nor will I outproduce and price slash to compete.
Admittedly, the new galaxy search has the market on a merry-go-round. Up and down and all around. Give it time. It will settle down. It always does.
RamondChappell
Mon Mar 28, 2005 8:01 am
#29
Believe it or not, I don't believe that price wars are actively being participated in on my server, or any server for that matter. This is not because people aren't trying to undercut each other or lower prices to make a profit, I just feel that with the GWVS implemented the way that it was, it is rather difficult for customers to compare and choose the lower of the items.
Now, I know what you're thinking. You can easily sort by price, thus making an informed decision on who is the cheapest. That is true, but it is only going to happen for the first couple hundred people listed on the GWVS in any given catagory.
I am a resource vendor. I don't craft anything. I mine grind level resources and sell them at 2cpu (ore has recently been raised to 2.5cpu due to various architects buying me out the day after restock). I've used the method of spot hunting other resource dealers and using the GWVS to check others prices on grind resources. I can honestly say that I have only found one other person who stocks as much as I do who sells at a lower price (but he only sells in 100k stacks, as opposed to my '10x10k' stacks). Since the implementation of the GWVS, I haven't seen a new customer. It's not a price thing. It's a "I only have 1 listing on the first 3 pages, and that's a 10k stack of copper" thing.
I believe that most crafters are falling under this as well. Sure, there may be a guy selling 4x80% comp chest plates at 35k each, but if he's on page 10 (which is a mix of things from page 1-10), people will buy them from the guy on page 1 that has them at 55k.
Now, I know what you're thinking. You can easily sort by price, thus making an informed decision on who is the cheapest. That is true, but it is only going to happen for the first couple hundred people listed on the GWVS in any given catagory.
I am a resource vendor. I don't craft anything. I mine grind level resources and sell them at 2cpu (ore has recently been raised to 2.5cpu due to various architects buying me out the day after restock). I've used the method of spot hunting other resource dealers and using the GWVS to check others prices on grind resources. I can honestly say that I have only found one other person who stocks as much as I do who sells at a lower price (but he only sells in 100k stacks, as opposed to my '10x10k' stacks). Since the implementation of the GWVS, I haven't seen a new customer. It's not a price thing. It's a "I only have 1 listing on the first 3 pages, and that's a 10k stack of copper" thing.
I believe that most crafters are falling under this as well. Sure, there may be a guy selling 4x80% comp chest plates at 35k each, but if he's on page 10 (which is a mix of things from page 1-10), people will buy them from the guy on page 1 that has them at 55k.
DocSavag
Mon Mar 28, 2005 8:09 am
#30
RamondChappell wrote:
Believe it or not, I don't believe that price wars are actively being participated in on my server, or any server for that matter. This is not because people aren't trying to undercut each other or lower prices to make a profit, I just feel that with the GWVS implemented the way that it was, it is rather difficult for customers to compare and choose the lower of the items.
Now, I know what you're thinking. You can easily sort by price, thus making an informed decision on who is the cheapest. That is true, but it is only going to happen for the first couple hundred people listed on the GWVS in any given catagory.
I am a resource vendor. I don't craft anything. I mine grind level resources and sell them at 2cpu (ore has recently been raised to 2.5cpu due to various architects buying me out the day after restock). I've used the method of spot hunting other resource dealers and using the GWVS to check others prices on grind resources. I can honestly say that I have only found one other person who stocks as much as I do who sells at a lower price (but he only sells in 100k stacks, as opposed to my '10x10k' stacks). Since the implementation of the GWVS, I haven't seen a new customer. It's not a price thing. It's a "I only have 1 listing on the first 3 pages, and that's a 10k stack of copper" thing.
I believe that most crafters are falling under this as well. Sure, there may be a guy selling 4x80% comp chest plates at 35k each, but if he's on page 10 (which is a mix of things from page 1-10), people will buy them from the guy on page 1 that has them at 55k.
That is one of the biggest flaws in the system and one we predicted when it was first announced. The issue with global searching is that its not directed, logical searching. Its really just randomly arranged listings of items on pages of 100ish (currently buggy so half the page is repeated listings). Your chance of finding the best product at the best price are proportional to the time you are willing to spend doing it. (Not much different from before actually) you have to page through more than a 100 pages of items to find them all in many categories. And to compare prices you have to make note of them as they come up and compare them out of game to get the best price. Its not really any more efficient than if the prices weren't there at all. You spend the time sitting in one place going blind looking at listings instead of watching scenery go by as you bike to vendors. Thats the difference.
The inability to sort the entire list instead of individual pages is key to actually finding anything. Text based searching instead of badly implemented category searching would make it actually possible to find something instead of paging through 50 pages of items to find the item you want burried in the middle of the Misc/Generic Item category.
There are so many ways this feature could have been better. Its a pathetic attempt to solve the underlying issue of lack of good advertising skills for merchants in the game.
GraySeven
Mon Mar 28, 2005 12:26 pm
#31
On the first day of the GWS I sold 2 million in product. I have not changed my prices, I'm not the lowest on the GWS, but I have a huge variety of goods.
I sold 2 Tier 4 Chassis before the GWS, I sold 2 the first day of the GWS.
My Organics supplier is having a hard time keeping me in organics.
While I am dropping Shipwright just because it bores me, I've been selling reactors, engines and boosters so fast I can't keep them in stock. Before long, I'd have to buy resources just to keep up.
I've seen nothing to suggest that huge amounts of price gouging is going on, though I have seen prices lower than mine. Of course, I've also seen prices higher than mine.
And, while the interface stinks on ice, its still better than going from planet to planet, vendor to vendor, looking for what I need. Although I have had to use my restock macro while bazaar surfing....
Looks good to me so far...
Ooops, almost forgot, my tier 4 chassis go for 380k credits and has anyone noticed the increase Bazaar price cap? I didn't hear anything about this but I noticed it today...
Message Edited by GraySeven on 03-28-2005 01:28 PM
Maasedge
Mon Mar 28, 2005 12:55 pm
#32
GraySeven wrote:On the first day of the GWS I sold 2 million in product. I have not changed my prices, I'm not the lowest on the GWS, but I have a huge variety of goods.I sold 2 Tier 4 Chassis before the GWS, I sold 2 the first day of the GWS.My Organics supplier is having a hard time keeping me in organics.While I am dropping Shipwright just because it bores me, I've been selling reactors, engines and boosters so fast I can't keep them in stock. Before long, I'd have to buy resources just to keep up.I've seen nothing to suggest that huge amounts of price gouging is going on, though I have seen prices lower than mine. Of course, I've also seen prices higher than mine.And, while the interface stinks on ice, its still better than going from planet to planet, vendor to vendor, looking for what I need. Although I have had to use my restock macro while bazaar surfing....Looks good to me so far...Ooops, almost forgot, my tier 4 chassis go for 380k credits and has anyone noticed the increase Bazaar price cap? I didn't hear anything about this but I noticed it today...Message Edited by GraySeven on 03-28-2005 01:28 PM
You have a restock macro? Could you share it? Unless it is in the FAQ that I havent read yet cause I am a dirty Noob today.
GraySeven
Mon Mar 28, 2005 3:38 pm
#33
Sorry to get your hopes up, its the macro that keeps me from getting booted from the server during the lengthy restock process....
But if your curious...
/kneel;
/stand;
/pause 200;
/ui action toolbarSlot00
Oh, and go /afk beforehand. This should keep you safe from the boot bug. Put it in the first slot on your toolbar, use /dump to stop.
Crimsonsplat
Mon Mar 28, 2005 3:43 pm
#34
You know, I really think the need for that macro is the ultimate proof that Merchant is one screwed-up (and over)class.
Nema0879
Mon Mar 28, 2005 4:11 pm
#35
GraySeven wrote:
Sorry to get your hopes up, its the macro that keeps me from getting booted from the server during the lengthy restock process....
But if your curious...
/kneel;
/stand;
/pause 200;
/ui action toolbarSlot00
Oh, and go /afk beforehand. This should keep you safe from the boot bug. Put it in the first slot on your toolbar, use /dump to stop.
Ya know, its sad ... its never occured to me to do that ... even though I curse every time I get booted and have to log back in .... or rather, exit the game and reload it ...
Elyssa
Mon Mar 28, 2005 4:15 pm
#36
This is mine.
Name it "StayInWorld"
/mood none;
/pause 600;
/macro StayInWorld;
/pause 600;
/macro StayInWorld;
You can run it constantly and not have to worry about dropping to one knee.
10 minutes is sufficient to keep you from timing out.
It will, however, spam your chat window with "mood: none" every 10 minutes.
Nobody else sees it and it's easy enough to work around.
Works in any toolbar slot, too.
cl0kwerq
Mon Mar 28, 2005 4:17 pm
#37
I can say this: My resource sales have skyrocketed.
I don't have time to be on all day, or the desire to stand in Coronet spamming, so I didn't. I made up a nice little post in the forums, and put my vendors on the world map. That was it.
I had about 8 mil worth of "server best" resources for 5 CPU on my vendor for about 2 weeks. This patch hit, my vendor listings went up, and I made 8 mil that day.
I've had a steady flow of people coming in new, and coming back for more. Not buying me out, but keeping my resource business at a reasonable level of profit for me. Now people might think that server best for 5 and grind for 1-1.5 is a bit low, but I've noticed a much more insidious hit to the economy, and that's more MMO's coming out, the time of year (it's warm outside...yes...there is an "out" side) and a bunch of other factors that make people not want to be at their computers crafting.
But none of that really means diddly. If you're not selling anything, perhaps you should re-examine your pricing and location. I know a lot of people who price gouged in the up direction because they had a nice convenient location, and a lot of foot traffic. Now they have to find a new way to compete, or offer something more if they're going to keep their prices high.
To me all this patch has done is enlighten the customer to what there is out there, where as before they had a keyhole view of the amount of merchandise available to them.
Don't get me wrong, I make resources cheap for crafters so they can make a better profit and sell cheaper, and make me rich in the process, or re-sellers come and buy my stock, and make me rich in the process....I don't really care. That's the business of whole-saling. I sell a lot. But for my crafting I don't sell cheap, nor do I recommend anybody else do so. Charge for how much it cost, how long it took, how hard it was, and how good it is. CPU is just a basic unit that I as a resource vendor use for pricing to figure out how much it cost me to get the stuff, and how much I want to make in profit. It should in no way reflect the love put into the crafted item.
So I say - resource prices should drop, and will stabalize. The rest is up to the volume of the economy. I've done my part to help and protect and stabalize, instead of just complaining that people won't let me rip them off anymore.
---and no, there will be no refund of the last 5 minutes you spent reading that, now go away or I shall taunt you a second time!
Ani_cul
Mon Mar 28, 2005 4:22 pm
#38
Elyssa wrote:
This is mine.
Name it "StayInWorld"
/mood none;
/pause 600;
/macro StayInWorld;
You can run it constantly and not have to worry about dropping to one knee.
10 minutes is sufficient to keep you from timing out.
It will, however, spam your chat window with "mood: none" every 10 minutes.
Nobody else sees it and it's easy enough to work around.
Works in any toolbar slot, too.
my antiidle isn't even in my toolbar,
it is bound to 'home' key and /dump is bound to 'end'
I hit home at log in and let it go all day,
I hit end to check time as my window is timestamped.
Parody
Mon Mar 28, 2005 9:40 pm
#39
Mystyrys wrote:Alcen. I found out long ago not to "price check" other crafters. Not in the guild/city, nearby towns/shops, nor bazaar. It makesone crazy and stressed out. I imagine the same could be said for any crafter/merchant. One cannot fathom why they do what they do. One should not try. It causes wear and tear on the Zen of Fun.
Oh, I'm not stressing over it. I do check around every once in a while (about every 6 months or so, or at GrooveFests if I'm waiting around for something) just to see what people are up to. I'm with you that it's not worth spending time and worry on.
Mystyrys wrote:To further reduce my stress, I specialize. I don't do BE clothes. Every time someone asks me about BE clothes... I mail them *your*waypoint!
No wonder they never last long! I'll have to start filling that part of the vendor more often.
Mystyrys wrote:I factor my costs on a base of 3 cpu + factory time (maintenance & power costs) + other overhead expenses + 5% profit margin for my *Time.* (Time = collecting resources, running factories, stocking/restocking vendors, handling mails, etc.) If my base costs go up or down, my prices will go up or down. I'm certainly not going to operate at a loss just to compete. I'd close shop before I submitted to that. Nor will I outproduce and price slash to compete.
I'm with you all the way. I'm not sure why people don't seem to figure some money in for the time they spend doing everything. Price slashing is definitely insane and out of the question.
Mystyrys wrote:Admittedly, the new galaxy search has the market on a merry-go-round. Up and down and all around. Give it time. It will settle down. It always does.
May we live in interesting times...