Undercutting

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Originally Posted by Parodine

Gonna be blunt, but I usually try to price things below the lowest current item on the MB because I want things to sell quickly. Time is money, as they say. ..

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Time is money, and little time = little money. So the impatient will do this and get very little and they complain when the next impatient one undercuts them. So price it higher, try second lowest, you'll be surprised how often that sells very quickly too. So then you can step to 3rd lowest. And before you know it, you really understand what time you like and money you like. If find if I always put things at lowest, I am out of stuff to sell fairly quickly, and I really don't want to fill up 40 slots (20x2retainers) selling 20 gil, or heck 200 gil items. The time spent pricing them and putting them on the board is also overhead, and I am better off farming or crafting some bigger ticket items.

If demand exceeds supply, you have nothing to worry about. The undercut product will sell, and so will yours.

If supply exceeds demand, you will need to lower your price. The so-called "undercut" price is now the new standard, and you're going to have to adapt.

NO price for ANY product is too high, if the product sells. The act of the product being purchased justifies the cost. Buyers who complain about the things they want being too expensive are whiners, nothing more, nothing less.

By the same token, if your product does not sell at the price you desire, you are trying to sell it for more than it is worth. Any seller who complains about undercutters are whiners, nothing more, nothing less.

It's all very simple; I'm really not sure why people have so much trouble grasping it.

What I find the most amusing is the amount of complaining that was going on around here with regards to housing prices. So many people don't have Gil but that's probably because so many undercutters don't seem to mind killing the price of anything worth selling as long as theirs sells first. "Well, I may be getting 80% less than what it was initially worth, but at least my stuff sold." Congratulations you're homeless.

If you craft something and post for 2000 profit what right do you have to demand I do the same? If I'm OK making 1k profit per synth, then you are not 'right' nor am I stealing from you. I just decided of my own will to do your job for half the price.

This means either:
1: i have a cheaper/better source of acquiring materials (your just not as efficient. Sucks to be you. Crafter PvP point to me)
2: i value my time differently than you (you craft 1 min to make 2k, i do the same for 1k)
3: I'm doing a fire sale and just dumping (you should buy and resale or wait out the flush. It's temporary)
4: im stupid and don't realize I'm selling at a loss. I'll eventually burn out since I'm bleeding Gil or wise up.

1 and 2 you gotta man up and compete or get out of the market. They are doing no evil or wrong so put up or shut up. 3 is a temp wave you just ride it out or flip their product. 4 is rare and people to stupid to actually make a profit crafting either give up or get wise pretty quick.

No one is stealing your gil. They are just out competing you or dumping inventory. Get smarter or keep making QQ threads, your choice. But I prefer you keep making QQ threads because they are hilarious and i keep my markets since you guys refuse to compete with me and keep posting stuff higher making my undercuts look so good by comparison everyone buys it asap. I should be thanking you guys! Much obliged!

It's like some of you guys never managed competing prices in a live market before.

If someone is willing to sell something at a lower price, you either wait for the price to go back up or you make a strong competing offer.
Supply and demand.
Risk and reward.
Economics are fluid.

whats really stupid is when a seller puts up their crap for 1/2 the history sale price, ultimately killing any profit from it.

i don't care if you want to undercut, but do it while using your brain.

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Originally Posted by Squa11_Leonhart

whats really stupid is when a seller puts up their crap for 1/2 the history sale price, ultimately killing any profit from it.

.... using your brain.

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I think the brain should tell you that there is a really good way to double your money about now if you see something like that. 10 days ago, some clown did that with erudite picatrix of healing with the right mats melded and was selling it for 1/2 price. I bought the thing and sold for double that at 250K netting me 125K. I wish I can find more flip opportunities like that.

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Originally Posted by Squa11_Leonhart

whats really stupid is when a seller puts up their crap for 1/2 the history sale price, ultimately killing any profit from it.

i don't care if you want to undercut, but do it while using your brain.

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If the material/labour cost outweighs the selling price then I completely agree. But in this thread's case, it was a drop. Whether the undercutting guy sold it for 1.2 mil, 120k or 12 gil, it's still a profit. Was the seller oblivious of the worth of the item, maybe. Either way, profit is profit.

There's no "killing profit" in rare drops. Link between profit and loss only applies to crafted items.

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Originally Posted by DefendPopPunk

"Well, I may be getting 80% less than what it was initially worth, but at least my stuff sold." Congratulations you're homeless.

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1000x this.

What most people fail to understand is that the buyer for your goods is not going to find it immediately, but rest assured, they ARE coming, and if your item is at the lowest price when they seek it, they're going to buy it.

If an item sits on sale for 3 or so days and yet is the lowest price and STILL doesn't sell, sure, mark it down. Until that happens, the only thing you're doing by undercutting is ensuring the product will sell to someone looking for idiots who are selling things well below their cost to relist them for what it's actually worth.

Seriously, we have SALE HISTORIES for a reason...

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Originally Posted by DefendPopPunk

What I find the most amusing is the amount of complaining that was going on around here with regards to housing prices. So many people don't have Gil but that's probably because so many undercutters don't seem to mind killing the price of anything worth selling as long as theirs sells first. "Well, I may be getting 80% less than what it was initially worth, but at least my stuff sold." Congratulations you're homeless.

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This makes zero sense at all. Because someone undercuts they have less money? The amount of gil in circulation doesnt change, it just gets spent on different things. I undercut all the time and I have plenty of gil. That is like saying walmart doesn't make any money because they are selling everything for 80% of what they could sell it for. I'd rather sell 2 at 80% then 1 at 100%. I don't care if my margins are less if I am selling much faster.