Though there isn't that many people grinding up spawn blocks it seems that every time I try to sell these items I Get some terrible results. Its either someone can't afford the item or someone that wants it ridiculously cheap saying that they can make it anytime they want. Well their was a discussion on how valuable items are on the forum. Someone smart (I don't remember who) said that the true value of an item is how much the producer believes how difficult it was to get . So if someone wanted to sell an enchanted sword that cost 46 levels to accomplish, but knowing that for them it was easy to complete, is it wrong to sell it 500% cheaper then the next leading seller? For the sake of competition I believe that its better to stay as close as possible to the other suppliers for a fair marketing. But at what cost? Enchanted Items vary from thousands to even tens of thousands of rupees. It's not my place to say what people are willing to pay for such items. I would change my prices for those members that wouldn't normally be able to afford such items, but what is stopping these members to go and sell them for a huge profit? I had an idea to sell enchanted items cheap for those that cant afford them. But really needed them. Sure there isn't that many items like these that members really need, but they would help if that member was trying to complete something that is creative and fun for the community, which is my wish to help the community to be as creative as humanly possible as easy as possible. If everyone had a infinity I efficiency V pickax how much items would be available for those that want to create something special? What I am asking the EMC community, is what is your opinion on this matter?
You're right, while selling enchanted items for cheap to people in need is a noble cause, you will always get the people that take advantage of the low prices to make a profit. As far as the pricing goes, enchanted items are worth as much as the purchaser is willing to pay. You also have to keep in mind how much profit can be made by using an enchanted pick. Picks with the fortune enchantment can be used to turn a profit pretty quickly by adding extra diamonds to your harvest. Picks with silk touch can also be used to turn a profit by selling diamond ore blocks, which (on smp5 at least) go for about 150-200 per block. Also, pricing based on how many levels you put into the enchantment doesn't really make sense. Let's say it's possible to get the same enchantment with 15 levels and 30 levels, what's stopping the seller to say they spent 30 levels on it, even though they only spent 15? There is no way of knowing how many levels were spent on an item, so selling based on this isn't really a good way to go.
Sell items for whatever price you want. If you want to sell items for very cheap, do that. If others are unhappy you are selling cheap they can either lower their price to compete with you, buy your stock and resell it for profit, sell something else instead. Enchanted items sell for high prices because people are willing to pay high prices. I sell my silk touch picks at 10,000 rupees. They might not always sell right away, but they always sell. 10k was cheap at one point, and when I started my shop it was with a desire to give people good deals but people would buy my enchanted items and auction them on the forums for profit. So while I understand your desire to help people who have less rupees, keep in mind that if you do sell cheap items, people will take advantage of you and often your hard work will just go to making someone else richer.
I tend to auction any enchanted items I get, because setting prices can be hard. For example, I can spend 35 levels for Efficiency III on a diamond pick. Now, if told it cost 35 levels ONLY, the unassuming bystander would probably pay more than if I had only told them that it is a Eff. III pick. So I get several people in a auction room and let them bid it out, because the lowest price someone is willing to pay can usually easily be matched by the next guy, driving up the price. On especially demanding items (like Silk Touch) the bidding can get ferocious, and really high. But I just tend to keep in mind that if they buy a pickaxe for 5000r, then they wanted to pay that much, as it was their choice to bid and I did not set the price.
The only way I can think of solving this problem is watching over the forums and chat so I can tell personally who will not sell my items again. I know no matter what I do there will always be people that will get a profit off of it, but I can always try to make it harder for them to buy items off of me without making it hard for the people I really want to sell items to.
I had an idea of making a waiting list, like people tell you they want such and such an item but they can only request one thing at a time and if they resell it they're banned from the waiting list. Next time you get this item, you go through the list and if they still want the item they get it other wise you go down the list and at the end if no one wants it it goes into the shop.
Good question. It would have been easy enough when forum auctions were allowed, but a bit more difficult now. I guess you might notice a pattern, if you get suspicious you could visit there residences.
First off, I hope this doesn't come across sounding like a lecture, more like this is just my sharing some of my experiences. Firstly, I think it's important to realize that we're lucking in here to be able to have our own residences, where we set up shops and such, and they become points of references for customers, who can return again and again having achieved satisfaction. It's nice to again be playing a game where we can have our own space and people will associate good memories and return if they have future needs. I've always tried to craft/run businesses in online games by the basic principle that you sell stuff based on whatever prices makes you feel better about yourself in the end. You can't really control people who are in the game to try and make easy profits through re-selling your items. Certainly there are ways to try and keep it under control, i.e. hopping on each server and trying to see, and then visit, the residences of your customers. However, that just seems like a big waste of time to me (not that it's any less frustrating mind you, just that I can always think of things I'd rather be doing). I am like the OP in that I really do enjoy the feeling of being able to help out others, especially those who aren't lucky enough to be able to be financial supporters (and thus get a bigger daily rupee bonus) and those who are new to the game. I will always slant my prices towards the lower ends just from the satisfaction that I get from thinking that I'm helping out others. That being said, there will always be people that try and take advantage of that. So you are left with a choice as to whether you want to try and run around and ferret those people out, or whether you just want to remain oblivious and THINK that what you are doing is being beneficial. As I've gotten to be an old fart now, I've found that the latter choice is certainly one that I am happier having made. My advice? I do keep track of contemporary prices, and sure I'll sell for a lower price (volume sales > higher prices), but in the end, I'm always trying to remember what it's like those first few days on EMC and how much it means to get help from people. Work harder, work SMARTER, and take satisfaction from that. Cultivate relationships with those who are appreciative and grateful and don't worry about prices. Before you know it, your bank account will be full anyway.
Yeah, I stopped caring if people resell on auction. I mean, as GameKribJeremey says, there's really nothing wrong with people buying and selling for profit. On the other hand, you can sell or not sell to whoever you want. There are other ways to help out others besides selling things cheaply. You could sell them at market prices and use the money you get to help fund the prize pool of some of the cool events that are run. At the end of the day, we're not helping starving children, it's about having fun and sharing that with others, maybe encourage them or help them have fun too.
