Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Can or should?




Since I'm getting a few more comments than I'm used to and questions relating to older posts I've set up an email address for this blog. Should you have any questions regarding older posts, something I haven't covered yet, or just questions in general feel free to drop me a line at theahpile@gmail.com and I'll do my best to help you out. In the mean time, if you have a question regarding the current entry I've written go ahead and keep commenting there. I'll be checking the email daily and if I find a good one, I'll make a post here about it.

Naturally I'd like you to include a name of some kind so I don't refer to 50 different anonymous for the sake of clarity. Also the more specific you can be the better. Please don't send me questions regarding how to get rid of a camper as the only thing to do for that is time and money. I'll respond to as many as I can that I think I can help with and any that happen to be particularly interesting will be posted here.
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A lot of people want to know if they should invest into this or that. Others want to know if they have the means to get into X market and, if they do, should they. Well, I don't have an answer for ya. Sorry folks, move along.

...Still here? Well crap, thought I might get an extra day off >_<


There's a lot of things that you can do in the AH game no matter what you have access to or not. I've made many posts on what you can do with an inventory or a flat amount of gold to work with. Hell my from the ground up project already has me decked out in epic gems, every i245 BoE and 5k flying the week I hit 80 and is over 15k gold. That just goes to show that I CAN do it. You can do it too, but should you? That's the philosophy behind this entry. Identify why something should be done, and not just the possibility of it.

That's the thing about "can be" and "should be." Such as you CAN get gold capped by dailys, you CAN win a WSG by a mindless zerg tactic, or you CAN drive your car with your knees, that doesn't exactly mean that it SHOULD be done. The thing is not many people like to improve something that works, even if its only worked a single time or even if they have no clue at all why it worked. See any AV "zerg the general strat" that wins and loses. Then see which one has a seriously geared tank with a pocket healer or 3 and which face plants into a quick and embarrassing loss amidst name calling and a sea of QQ.

Yet with as many groups that fail at zerg's they still do it because it's easy and familiar. If you just follow a step by step guide without thinking first if you should do something you can easily wind up in a bad spot. Then you'll complain and wonder why it didn't make you rich over night. Well if the average price of an abyss crystal for you is 50g and Berserking scrolls sell for 200g... no you should not get into that market. Even though I always say how great enchanting is. In other words, use your head.

What about the glyph business, could you? Should you? Well sure you can do it, but depending on the goblins and campers and trolls (oh my!) around your server it might not be a thing that you SHOULD do. But none the less, capability will always be around to tempt you with all things shiny. It's a well known fact that glyphs can get you gold capped fast but I ask again; should you take that route to do so? Do your research, see who sells what and how much. See what the material and buy in prices are going to be. And once all that is done, you and only you decide if it should be done.

You can also put this whole thing into the perspective of wants and needs. You want your new alt to get to 80, but to you need to? If it isn't a need, then there's no reason to drop a huge amount of gold into the leveling process. What about that nifty BoE purple that costs 10k gold. Do you NEED it to help secure a boss kill or keep a raid spot? I kind of doubt that. Or do you just want it to have a higher gear score. You have the funding for it and barely the gold to repair and afford flasks and keep up your AH game. You could buy it, but should you?

To relate this to a more likely scenario think of can or should in terms of entering new markets. If you're still building up your financial empire across only a pair of markets, could you slow that down and invest into starting another one? Of course and I'm sure it would be a lot of fun. But should you? If you don't have a steady and stable income it wouldn't be a great idea. When you spread your gold out too thin it becomes harder and harder to keep up with any demand. However if you have a good stokpile of materials plus pre crafted goodies for one market and have the gold to do so then by all means you definitely should invest into another market. So long as you think before you act you will do well.


Thanks for stopping by!

8 comments:

  1. should i buy a hyacinth macaw pet for 15k gold? I can, but i definatly shouldn't. BUT I WANT TO. ahhhh.

    another great post :)

    anaalius xoxo

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  2. Can I buy that Battered Hilt for 9500g that I can afford and still leave me money? Well yes, and I did. Should I have? Well, now that I found that the quest chain involves visiting 3 instances to get a weapon that I do agree is a great piece for my character but I probably didn't need beyond saying that I have one and that I don't like to instance anyway.

    I am regreting buying that now. I wish I hadn't but now I have I am going to have to force myself to randomly group to get through them all. Serves me right and that will be my punishment.

    But you are right. Sometimes more thinking is required before just doing something.

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  3. This whole thing comes down to market research, experimentation, hussle, and problem solving. These are the characteristics of an entrepreneur. There is no one size fits all solution to any marketplace, be it in the virtual world or the real one. Each server is in itself its own economy and has it’s own problems to solve. Will “X” sell? Who knows? Have you tried? No? Why not?

    * Is the item relevant for the current content or is it a niche?
    * Is the item consumable or durable? This determines the volume you should produce.
    * Is there competition? Is it a monopoly? Does it require vast amounts of face time with the auctioneer?
    * What are the material costs? Are they rare or common? Overpriced?
    * How is the competition pricing compared to the cost of the materials?
    * Are you able to make a reasonable profit for the time and investment involved?
    * Can you reasonably afford to be in that market? Would the investment bankrupt you and prevent you from doing your normal things? Do you have the guts?

    Because each market is dynamic, there is no such thing as a cookie-cutter one-size-fits-all model that fits all servers. There are basic and sound business principles that should be observed, and that’s about the only cookie-cutter anyone will ever find in the AH business. If you want to know if something will sell, post it. Win or lose, you’ll get a feel for that market segment. That’s the only way you’ll know!

    Side note, last night I picked up the Crimson Charger – the one that has a chance to drop off LK when Shadowmourne is in the raid. Six figures spent, item is now bound to my toon. Should I have bought it? I mean, all that gold! Zomg! Am I nuts!? More important – how long will it take me to make all of that back? I give it 2-3 weeks.

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  4. As I promised yesterday here is a list of Horde vendor recipes...

    [Crispy Bat Wing] Tirisfal Glade Abigail Shiel
    [Lynx Steak] Eversong Woods Landraelanis
    [Scorpid Surprise] Durotar Grimtak
    [Roasted Kodo Meat] Mulgore Wunna Darkmane
    [Smoked Bear Meat] Silverpine Forest Andrew Hilbert
    [Strider Stew] The Barrens Tari'qa
    [Bat Bites] Ghostlands Master Chef Mouldier
    [Crunchy Spider Surprise] Ghostlands Master Chef Mouldier
    [Crispy Lizard Tail] The Barrens Tari'qa
    [Hot Lion Chops] The Barrens Zargh
    [Curiously Tasty Omelet] Arathi Highlands Keena
    [Curiously Tasty Omelet] Stranglethorn Vale Nerrist
    [Heavy Crocolisk Stew] Dustwallow Marsh Ogg'marr
    [Carrion Surprise] Desolace Kireena
    [Carrion Surprise] Dustwallow Marsh Ogg'marr
    [Carrion Surprise] Swamp of Sorrows Banalash
    [Hot Wolf Ribs] Feralas Sheendra Tallgrass
    [Jungle Stew] Stranglethorn Vale Nerrist
    [Dragonbreath Chili] Dustwallow Marsh Helenia Olden
    [Heavy Kodo Stew] Desolace Janet Hommers
    [Monster Omelet] Felwood Bale
    [Charred Bear Kabobs] Felwood Bale
    [Juicy Bear Burger] Felwood Bale
    [Baked Salmon] Feralas Sheendra Tallgrass
    [Lobster Stew] Feralas Sheendra Tallgrass
    [Mightfish Steak] Feralas Sheendra Tallgrass


    I have also compiled a list of recipes that are sold by neutral vendors as well. Some of these are sold by Horde or Alliance Vendors as well. I am putting together this information in a spreadsheet that I hope to have available soon...

    [Big Bear Steak] Desolace Super-Seller 680
    [Lean Venison] Desolace Vendor-Tron 1000
    [Lean Wolf Steak] Desolace Super-Seller 680
    [Hot Lion Chops] Desolace Vendor-Tron 1000
    [Rockscale Cod] Various
    [Barbecued Buzzard Wing] Desolace Super-Seller 680
    [Carrion Surprise] Desolace Vendor-Tron 1000
    [Giant Clam Scorcho] Stranglethorn Vale Kelsey Vance
    [Hot Wolf Ribs] Desolace Super-Seller 680
    [Jungle Stew] Desolace Vendor-Tron 1000
    [Mithril Head Trout] Various
    [Mystery Stew] Desolace Super-Seller 680
    [Roast Raptor] Various
    [Sagefish Delight] Various
    [Dragonbreath Chili] Desolace Super-Seller 680
    [Heavy Kodo Stew] Desolace Vendor-Tron 1000
    [Cooked Glossy Mightfish] Stranglethorn Vale Kelsey Vance
    [Filet of Redgill] Stranglethorn Vale Kelsey Vance
    [Monster Omelet] Winterspring Himmik
    [Spiced Chili Crab] Various
    [Spotted Yellowtail] Tanaris Gikkix
    [Tender Wolf Steak] Various
    [Undermine Clam Chowder] Steamwheedle Port Jabbey
    [Grilled Squid] Tanaris Gikkix
    [Hot Smoked Bass] Stranglethorn Vale Kelsey Vance
    [Nightfin Soup] Tanaris Gikkix
    [Poached Sunscale Salmon] Tanaris Gikkix

    Sorry about the formating but I hope it is readable once posted.

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  5. Wow, that's an impressive list of vendor recipes. I'd dare say a person could hit the title easily with all of those. Time to get to work!

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  6. Oops, just noted that some of the recipes there are listed as Various. These are sold by a variety of vendors and I haven't had the opportunity to narrow down the list further. For example, the Sagefish recipes are sold by most cooking supply vendors in both factions.

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  7. @ Merl
    Thanks for the great list of vendor goodies! I'm sure a few will find it quite useful. As for the hilt, so long as you're actively going to use to and put a few dents into it then I'd say that you should of bought it. So long as you're still financially well off.

    @ Zero
    That basically sums it all up in my opinion. For the charger, with as much gold as you have you should totally spend it on something. It's more wasteful to just let it pile up without using it for something at all.

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  8. @Stokpile

    I think I bought it because I could and it would look nice on the character. True, it would make my character better but I only really do farming or Tournament dailies with him. I don't do end game, I very rarely go into instances and only once been a part of a raid. However, I bought the item, I wanted the sword and now I have found out I need to enter 3 instances, then I am just going to have to go through them as a form of punishment. I think at some point in the future I am going to have to right a post on my aversion to instancing.

    ReplyDelete