If it provides you with some insight into the mind of someone who does both, I will give very little thought to anything other than wanting to get the most i can for an item. I will sometimes under cut by $1 or even list for $1 more or sometimes even more than that because I know they'll eventually sell and then I just wait. Im certainly not sitting at the broker watching and wondering why something else was bought before mine. If I do monitor something it's only how much I'm being undercut by so as to ascertain the value of something for when I either list another or relist. If i undercut by a lot it's usually because I'm getting rid of something knowing significant undercutting is likely to occur. I will also sometimes list things of my own and then significantly undercut myself to make something look appealing like it's a deal despite the fact they're all mine and I'm playing a bit of a game too illicit a sale. None of this is personal on any level, i doubt many people, if any people sit at the broker with personal vendettas or intended malice, theyre there to make money and as much as possible. People that unnecessarily undercut out of some misplaced sense of moral obligation are doing the broker wrong
Right. You’re talking about feelings of the consumer/customer. Like I said, it’s important for those in charge of sales and marketing to understand the feelings of the people within target market segments in order to be more effective at their jobs. I was referring to the person who suggested those who have problems with the pure laissez faire free market aspect of the DCUO economy are arguing based in feelings and not facts.
Thanks for the insight, but it wasn't really needed. As I said a few times, it's a free market. You can do whatever you want...we all can. And while I wouldn't say it shows malice or a vendetta, the guy I was replying to specifically said if he's undercut, he goes back to re-undercut the other guy...in quantity even...so yeah, at least a few times in that 1st sales lifetime he was 'sitting at the broker' re checking on things he's already listed. To me that's way more effort than it's worth...especially if (as he claims) all those items will sell anyway. Just list all of them at the higher price if you feel they will all sell....that's how you make as much as possible. BTW...if you purposely undercut yourself, you are not making 'as much as possible' by definition...as you'll likely lose that higher item's listing fee. Not that you can't do it...and I've done it myself often...it's a good tactic....but you are either A) losing the higher priced item's list fee if it fails to sell or B) lost 'significant' revenue by not listing the 2nd item as high as the 1st and selling both. That's like getting in a 'across the street' gas station price war with 2 gas stations owned by the same owner. Sure both stations might turn a profit, but not as much if they were the same price. Again, nothing wrong with it, but the sacrifice play always loses something...regardless of how much or how little. That's why it's called a 'sacrifice'. Personally I generally go under by a larger amount, but 1 million or 1 dollar....it's up to the seller...enjoy.
When i list bait items, let's call them, where I'm undercutting myself, it's done while accounting the listing fee of the higher listing, that's a cost of doing business and the tactic obviously comes with some degree of risk in that you'll be undercut and lose out, but it does also equally so work. The types of items I do it on are the ones less frequently listed on the broker that through experience aren't worth remotely anything close to what I'm listing the lowest one for. When that lowest one sells, it will have done so for more than enough money to cover both listing fees and more, so it's a profit, every subsequent one sold during the course of that 48 hour listing of the higher item then continues to increase those profits. It's basically a good way to sell overpriced garbage to people that don't know it's true value by taking advantage of the items momentary absence from the broker In terms of undercutting someone else, I will also do this at times and will even do so again by $1, but it depends. If it's an item for example that I've listed in a gamble, I knew was overpriced for example then someone comes and undercuts me, I might list another for $1 less so that I continue to get rid of the stock I have knowing there's a good chance the earlier listing will never sell. When I have concerns my listing might get undercut and I have multiple copies of that item to sell then I won't list them all at once knowing they'll forever be undercut and never sell, I'll list them one at a time, then wait to list another. This can also be an effective tactic to draw out other people with stock you suspect is out there but isn't listed on the broker yet, cause no one wants to go first and ultimately be undercut, so you almost purposely put just one up waiting to be undercut so you can pounce with another one and sell it instead of them getting the sale at your expense. Again none of this is done with malicious intent, it's done with the goal of getting your own money and sales.
I am Brazilian, I agree with your thinking, but I believe that many who do this may be from Brazil. And I say this not because they do it badly, but because unfortunately in our country this is something common in all retail! In any store I go to, all products are always sold for R $ 1.99, R $ 10.99, etc. This has unfortunately become a culture in the country! That I am personally against, but there is nothing I can do! Anyone who is younger and grew up watching this, doesn't know what the economy was like before this. And it reflects the same in other places ...
I'm agreed with all the methods you reference and have done some or all of them (probably even a $1 undercut...although not all that often). My point was at that time you are not making as much as possible...Even if you build in the loss of the listing fee, if something sells for Item A+ItemB listing fee with ItemB being higher priced...you just as well could have sold Item A for that same price WITHOUT the ItemB bait and subsequent listing fee. Maybe not...maybe so. But you are definitely losing that listing fee...even if you recoup it in the other sale. And sometimes someone will come along and undercut your A and B by 50%, losing you both sales. Anyway...you don't need to explain your methods (even though I agree with them). Not sure why anyone needs to explain why they set a price as they do in an unrestricted sellers market (first off...you are giving out trade secrets hard earned over the years)...but also not sure why an obvious rant post makes some so defensive they feel they need to. Not really talking about your posts...but a few others. Remember...the first rule of broker club is YOU DON'T TALK ABOUT BROKER CLUB... You know the 2nd rule....
Players learn these tricks anyway whether they be here or elsewhere, no skin off my nose, I have no loyalty to the broker club Also if someone learns a trick or two from reading the forums then they deserve to know, most players don't even bother coming here
HA! It's funny you say that. That was one of the numbers I used to use till that guy started doing it (I think I even know who it is but he won't admit it...he stole the idea from me). I actually mix mine up every once in a while....so it might be 444 today, 234 next week, 468 the next. I generally list 80 items at a time on 2 or 3 toons, so I do it so I don't undercut myself if listing the same thing on an alt. The 2 numbers I actually almost never use now are 999 and 888....and 000 of course. And no I'm not 251 either....That's yet another guy, no idea who but he opens a lot of TCs by his stock.
There's an origin as to why things are priced in real life at .99 and .95. and it has nothing to do with undercutting other stores. These days it's attributed to psychological effects, which people see the 99 and think they're saving money. The story I heard, before 2000, was that a major store brand like Macy's or something, back in the the early days found that they were being ripped off by their employees who were making sales and pocketing the cash, so to counter them just putting money in their pocket and pretending to ring it up they changed the price to 99 or 95c to force change to be made. It's an interesting story but no idea if it's true or not.
To the coward that sent me a tell that he was putting me on ignore after we ran an alert, are you in this thread?
Interesting, I didn't know this story! I always imagined that it really was on purpose with respect to the psychological! But I didn't know this story ...
