Marketplace Suggestion

[Love*]

Here's a little fact that I have noticed these past few days.

I have hardly bought anything from the Marketplace since the fire-sale because there are hardly any choices because only very few people sell.

Yesterday I have bought 3 packs from another forum because their marketplace gets new sales each day, & there's plenty to choose from too.
From my point of view, it is because their marketplace is free, so it is easier for the seller to have new things for sale.

I just want to suggest, to lower the marketplace fee, to $2 or something even just for a few weeks to get the sellers going again.
After the fire-sale everyone has been left with very little money in their paypal, & since nobody seems to be buying nowadays, the sellers just don't want to risk losing the $5.
Perhaps if it was less than that amount, sellers would start selling again.

I would love to see new stuff for sale in the marketplace, but nowadays it is just so dead.

It doesn't have to be forever, just for a few weeks.. :balloon:

[Andrew2]

Greg can't actually lower the price right now and he's said in the past that if he could he probably wouldn't.

But I agree, a smaller fee would be great :( It's just a wish though that probably won't come true.

[Love*]

Why can't he lower the price though? :(

[Andrew2]

Because he doesn't have control over it at the moment.

[Love*]

Oh I see, that's just too bad then. :red_indian: It would be awesome if it was lower though, people would sell more, & since they have money from selling, they'd buy more too.. LOL So the marketplace becomes more busy. :santa:

[Christinax]

The Marketplace is dead now your lucky if u make the fee back!!! :(

[Andrew2]

I've had no trouble making money in the marketplace, as long as you spend a second or 2 to figure out what people want at a quality they'd find attractive.

If you post a marketplace thread with 300 glitters and 100 album covers you're gonna have trouble.

I myself want cool/quality music skins but nobody is selling any.

[Love*]

Yeah, nobody is selling what I want.. :( errr, or nobody is selling anything at all LOL..

[CharmRoyal]

Yeah I just wasted $5 :alucard:

iQuit iFail iSuck

[Christinax]

why do you want music skins?
you cant get better music skins then the ones u make=P

[Andrew2]

I want different styles, and right now I'm on a piece of crap laptop that limits anything I do and I don't have any brushes.. so right now, I want music skins >:-O

[Love*]

LOL @ CharmRoyal, I only got sales on my last thread when I lowered the price for the first 2 buyers. LOL I just wanted to make the $5 back. :ninja:

[CharmRoyal]

I don't want to lower the price, I feel stupid when I do that

I guess that's what people wait for now a days cause that's what people end up doing

:yawn:

[Greg-J]

If you have something people want, they'll buy it. If what you're offering isn't selling, it isn't worth buying at the price that's been set. The Marketplace fee isn't going to be removed to offset this.

I don't mean to sound like an ingrate, but can we stop making new threads about the Marketplace fee every month or two?

[CharmRoyal]

I'm sure she didn't know how many threads people make on this since she is sort of a "new" member :stuart:

[Greg-J]

I'm sure she didn't know how many threads people make on this since she is sort of a "new" member :stuart:
True.

I need to implement a feature that checks for possible duplicates and notifies you if they exist before posting your thread.


Hmm....

[Christinax]

Do you think the fee will ever be lowered?

[Greg-J]

Do you think the fee will ever be lowered?
I doubt it, but I won't make any guarantee's.

[Love*]

I'm sure she didn't know how many threads people make on this since she is sort of a "new" member :stuart:

Yeah, I thought I was the first "brave soul" for having brought this up. LOL! Now I feel stupid. :P

& Okay Greg-J, gotcha! ;)

[Nora]

Dislike the marketplace, then don't post there.. if nobody sells anything anymore because of the $5 fee then whoever controls the marketplace will have no choice but to bring the price down. :ninja:

[Christinax]

Dislike the marketplace, then don't post there.. if nobody sells anything anymore because of the $5 fee then whoever controls the marketplace will have no choice but to bring the price down. :ninja:

That sounds good... ;)
I have stopped making thread's in the Marketplace i just don't think its worth it anymore..

[Anne]

Sales are slow right now because of the economy, and the fact that it's summer. People are outside more, spending more time with family, doing stuff that does not involved being online. This is the slow season... It will come to an end.

When the weather starts turning colder, more people will be inside. Thus more people will be online. So you will see more traffic on your site, your ad revenues will increase, you will have more money to spend and so you will be buying more graphics and layouts.

The holiday season is a BIG HUGE TREMENDOUS boost for graphic sales. Use this slow period to learn new techniques, and get those holiday packs ready!

In my opinion, and you know what they say about opinions, the MarketPlace fee does not, and should not, play a factor in what get's sold and therefore what gets bought. Quality, unique products will always get buyers.

[tacoflavoredkisses]

good advice anne =]

[JordanSDMF]

Same here, I just wasted $5.00 trying to sell a website layout.

I would have been selling stuff long ago if it wasn't $5.00.

I was actually in this forum to suggest we have like.. an Ice sale. Haha, you know, like the opposite of a fire sale, and in the dead of winter, like January. I was just thinking how the marketplace is dying, but the fire sale made it go whacko, and everyone was making money.


Soooo anyone for an Ice Sale?
Or for all you people from cali, a Slightly Colder Than Fire Sale.

[Nora]

Same here, I just wasted $5.00 trying to sell a website layout.

I would have been selling stuff long ago if it wasn't $5.00.

I was actually in this forum to suggest we have like.. an Ice sale. Haha, you know, like the opposite of a fire sale, and in the dead of winter, like January. I was just thinking how the marketplace is dying, but the fire sale made it go whacko, and everyone was making money.


Soooo anyone for an Ice Sale?
Or for all you people from cali, a Slightly Colder Than Fire Sale.
Doubt it.. looks like people really have no money left after reading the republican thread.

Those that do sell are selling on different forums where it's free so the market here is only going to keep slowing down. I do understand why Greg doesn't mess with the price so I'm not trying to argue that. I just think that the whole Myspace webmaster niche is changing and like any business, communities like MSP need to adapt to those changes.

[John]

Same here, I just wasted $5.00 trying to sell a website layout.

Its a risk you take really, depends on what your selling.

[gowanstl24]

Lowering the thread $$ would be awesome. I've lost the $5 a couple times, and It's also kept me from selling stuff on here a few times. $2 would be great. $3 would be good too. It's too bad he can't control that right now.

Also, I don't think we need more sales. 3 out of 4 forums I know of have had, are having, or are planning a sale. While graphics are moving on another forum right now thanks to a sale, it's cheapening our time and effort when it comes to our products, because nothing has been moving since the fire sale. People complain about how prices are too low. They will stay low if everyone keeps holding out for a sale, and at this rate, there has been one about every two months.

</rant>

[John]

$5 dollars can get you a McFry, Mchicken Sandwich, Soda, Ice cream, Chicken Nuggets. MANNNNN

[JordanSDMF]

$5 dollars can get you a McFry, Mchicken Sandwich, Soda, Ice cream, Chicken Nuggets. MANNNNN

right on

can anyone point me in a direction of other marketplaces? I want to look around at other... "stores" for more content. I will still probably post my content here if I sell though.

[minnseoelite]

Unfortunately the fee won't change, as the economic crisis effects more people things will continue to slow even the "free" marketplace sites will begin to feel the pinch as more buyers run short of money (and it's the buyers that drive the marketplace not just the sellers paying the $5). But nothing can last forever and once the economy picks back up so will sales across the board as buyers will have more free cash to spend. Also don't forget about tax time, many buyers here will get their refund checks and go a little crazy in the marketplace so designers should be sure to plan for that.

[JordanSDMF]

What IS the purpose of the $5.00 cost?

[Nora]

What IS the purpose of the $5.00 cost?
Obviously income.. it does prevent scammers too but since the marketplace belongs to someone else I think it's 99% about the money.
I don't blame Greg though.. most people would have done the same thing. Just multiply all threads by $5.

Unfortunately the fee won't change, as the economic crisis effects more people things will continue to slow even the "free" marketplace sites will begin to feel the pinch as more buyers run short of money (and it's the buyers that drive the marketplace not just the sellers paying the $5). But nothing can last forever and once the economy picks back up so will sales across the board as buyers will have more free cash to spend. Also don't forget about tax time, many buyers here will get their refund checks and go a little crazy in the marketplace so designers should be sure to plan for that.
I'm not so sure the economy will pick up again. If it's really as bad as people are complaining about, they need that money to buy food for their families instead of graphics/layouts etc. By the time the economy does get better, I think a new site will have come along that users will be more interested in than Myspace..

[JordanSDMF]

damn greg is smart
I am sure it would be smart to lower it to $2.00 or $2.50 because it may be a lower price, but there will probably be twice as many threads. I know I would be selling stuff almost every day if it was lowered. He would probably make even more money.

[Nora]

damn greg is smart
I am sure it would be smart to lower it to $2.00 or $2.50 because it may be a lower price, but there will probably be twice as many threads. I know I would be selling stuff almost every day if it was lowered. He would probably make even more money.
I doubt it.. it really does look like people are having a hard time with the economy. Most users here are kids and people starting out with resource sites, the big money makers probably get most of their content elsewhere. The lower fee will only cause more marketplace threads full of content with no one left to purchase. :/ (waste of time and money)

[erkstuh]

Im ok with the $5.00 fee. Its not TOO bad, as long as you take your time on what you are selling. You're almost guarenteed to make the $5.00 back, so no loss. I've never lost money on a thread. Yet. :/

[Nora]

Im ok with the $5.00 fee. Its not TOO bad, as long as you take your time on what you are selling. You're almost guarenteed to make the $5.00 back, so no loss. I've never lost money on a thread. Yet. :/
But you're not earning what you should be earning either..
People spend a lot of time working on content to sell just so they can make back the $5 it took them to make the thread. Something isn't right about that.

[Andrew2]

Yep, and (random) I wish the owner would of actually sent me something he said he would.. I think he scammed me.. Fool me once shame on you, Fool me twice shame on me. I don't know how much more of this neglect and excuses I can take anymore. :( Lowering the marketplace fee would be ideal, The only reason to not lower it is because of the fact that the money goes straight into someone's pocket, With a 1.00 fee you would be having the same "no crap" effect as a $5.00 fee.. There's not any marketplace competition with very few sales and it's beginning to not be worth that $5.00 anymore, it's a waste of money because it really adds up. Those who rarely post marketplace threads have no place to complain but when you wanted to pay for a vendor account months ago and you're told "too bad, They aren't available" it's just gas money coming out of MY pocket. Forget the Paypal fees I already deal with, the $5.00 just gets plain old annoying. Sorry.

[Love*]

Yep, and (random) I wish the owner would of actually sent me something he said he would.. I think he scammed me.. Fool me once shame on you, Fool me twice shame on me. I don't know how much more of this neglect and excuses I can take anymore. :( Lowering the marketplace fee would be ideal, The only reason to not lower it is because of the fact that the money goes straight into someone's pocket, With a 1.00 fee you would be having the same "no crap" effect as a $5.00 fee.. There's not any marketplace competition with very few sales and it's beginning to not be worth that $5.00 anymore, it's a waste of money because it really adds up. Those who rarely post marketplace threads have no place to complain but when you wanted to pay for a vendor account months ago and you're told "too bad, They aren't available" it's just gas money coming out of MY pocket. Forget the Paypal fees I already deal with, the $5.00 just gets plain old annoying. Sorry.

I totally agree 100%. :cool2:

[Enigmacsg]

But you're not earning what you should be earning either..
People spend a lot of time working on content to sell just so they can make back the $5 it took them to make the thread. Something isn't right about that.

I agree...but in this case it would have to do nothing with the $5. It would have to do with the type of quality work they provided.

If your graphic work is subpar, you going to have a hard time perhaps making the $5.

What I THINK the marketplace should have, is a automatic refunding cycle. For example you posted a topic, but nobody was interested in buying, you get your money back automatically after a certain period of time, like one month (30 days).

Now I don't know if that would work, I assume the reason for the $5 is because Greg-J is paying for hosting for this forum and those $5 help cover hosting costs? or VB update costs etc I don't know the reason for the fee. But it sure sounds like it's to cover MSP costs.

[Andrew2]

I agree...but in this case it would have to do nothing with the $5. It would have to do with the type of quality work they provided.

If your graphic work is subpar, you going to have a hard time perhaps making the $5.

What I THINK the marketplace should have, is a automatic refunding cycle. For example you posted a topic, but nobody was interested in buying, you get your money back automatically after a certain period of time, like one month (30 days).

Now I don't know if that would work, I assume the reason for the $5 is because Greg-J is paying for hosting for this forum and those $5 help cover hosting costs? or VB update costs etc I don't know the reason for the fee. But it sure sounds like it's to cover MSP costs.

Greg said the money doesn't even go to him, Nobody understands what he did with it or why he doesn't have control over it. He says it's not our business and then the defenders just rant about "if you don't like it then leave". If he needed help with hosting he could just release MSRS2 couldn't he? ;) Money isn't a problem here for the owner, it's the users that it's beginning to cost since sales go down more and more.

[Nora]

I agree...but in this case it would have to do nothing with the $5. It would have to do with the type of quality work they provided.

If your graphic work is subpar, you going to have a hard time perhaps making the $5.

What I THINK the marketplace should have, is a automatic refunding cycle. For example you posted a topic, but nobody was interested in buying, you get your money back automatically after a certain period of time, like one month (30 days).

Now I don't know if that would work, I assume the reason for the $5 is because Greg-J is paying for hosting for this forum and those $5 help cover hosting costs? or VB update costs etc I don't know the reason for the fee. But it sure sounds like it's to cover MSP costs.
vb updates cost close to nothing. I thought this forum was meant to be a support forum for his products, so those would help cover the costs too.
Anyway, the money paid for a marketplace thread doesn't even go to him so I doubt it goes to hosting.

What I don't understand is why people don't just stop posting marketplace threads. If whoever owns the marketplace doesn't get any money, then they're going to be unhappy, then Greg will have to change something to keep them happy by maybe lowering the price of paid threads so more users start buying them again.
Everytime someone posts a marketplace thread they're supporting the system.

Anyway, you could always post WTB/WTS threads in your blog.. nobody seems to delete those. :online2long:

[rufus]

Well back when the $5 was started it looks like MSP was killer with traffic. The Marketplace was jamming and life was good. But today the traffic has taken a massive nose dive to the point that paying 5 bucks these days you will be lucky to get it back in sales. Look at the chart below and see whats happened. As you can see traffic is almost non-existent except for the regs on the site.

http://i33.tinypic.com/s1hocl.jpg

Now take this in comparison. If your a site owner selling links for $300 a month and then in 8 months your traffic tanks you cant keep selling those same links for the same price. There arent as many people seeing your link anymore thus the owner of the site must lower his price cause of the offset in traffic.

[Kasami2k4]

Beh. Quality of the work? Ive seen some people sell some top tier things that nobody bought. Goodman for example. He left the forum right after giving away his badass layouts for free because they wouldn't sell :o

[nsmchris]

Most of the sellers here know of other places where they can list their packs for free. Even at those other places, sales are hurting and not anywhere near what they were like 18 months ago. The niche is in decline, there is no denying that.

The $5 fee is only one of many reasons content isn't selling well anymore.

[barcodeunit]

Most of the sellers here know of other places where they can list their packs for free. Even at those other places, sales are hurting and not anywhere near what they were like 18 months ago. The niche is in decline, there is no denying that.

The $5 fee is only one of many reasons content isn't selling well anymore.

this is why the $5.00 fee should be waived UNTIL the niche is strong again. i have to admit i am finding much better quality work at the "other places".

for the sake of the myspacepros marketplace, i highly recommend greg to remove the $5.00 fee.

[Andrew2]

I'm glad everyone's on the same page for this annoyance.

[strawberryswirl]

I agree. I don't think the marketplace thread should be in effect right now. Obviously with the decline in traffic, the state of the economy, and the growing weakness of this niche...there's no reason for the $5 fee...especially when the number of people who are going to see it has shrunken to almost nothing! :whistling:

[barcodeunit]

yeah a lot of the sellers that used to sell here are now fully switched over to the "other forum"...

this is something that needs to be addressed and looked at before its too late.

[spokenforxx]

I'm looking for new market places :whistling:

[Nora]

I think all of you are forgetting that the money doesn't go to Greg, it goes to another company so changes won't be made unless everybody decides to stop wasting their money on threads. Seriously, give it a month, go over to the other free sites if you do want to sell then come back here and see what happens. He will have no choice but to remove the marketplace fee.
Right now everyone's complaining but most of you still buy marketplace threads on a regular basis, giving him or the company that owns the marketplace no reason to change the system.

http://www.wrensnestonline.com/blog/wp-content/scrooge-mcduck.jpg

[xxsean]

to comment on the first posts..
i would make music skins
but so many people make them nowadays... its deifficult to come up with a completely unique template..

thats probably whats going on here..
there isnt much "new" content to sell in marketplaces since most of it has already been sold...

idk. just an idea

[Anne]

Greg has stated over and over again that he CAN NOT change the MarketPlace fee, and even if he could, he probably wouldn't. That's all there is to it. IF you don't want to pay the fee, don't make a sales thread, plain and simple.

Sales aren't what they were for numerous reasons, and the MarketPlace fee is not one of them. Lowering or abolishing the MarketPlace fee is not going to make your packs sell, it will just lessen the bite if you don't make any sales.

The demand for content has slowed because alot of resource site owners are feeling the pinch and have either stopped buying alot of content, or given up their sites completely. As with all things, this too shall pass. Those that are in it for the long run will eventually start buying more content as their sites get more popular because the nickle and dime sites have dropped off the face of the internet.

You know what they say, patience is a virtue...

[Andrew2]

Well then if anyone knows of other active forums that have marketplaces that are interested in similar content please let me know, You can instant message me..

[Nora]

Well then if anyone knows of other active forums that have marketplaces that are interested in similar content please let me know, You can instant message me..
Start one. ******************.com is still available.. :)

[JordanSDMF]

I think everyone should realize that this probably IS the best forum to sell stuff, and if you put a little extra work into what you make, and really think about what people want to sell, then you will easily make back your $5.00. I have been checking the marketplace every day, and I see the same posts on top.

Just everyone who wants to sell but isn't, just make what you want, and sell it. I am currently making over $400.00 worth of content to sell, and I am going to take about 1 month to finish everything.

Let's get this stuff going again.

And I think the Ice Sale I mentioned sounds pretty good right now.

[barcodeunit]

I think everyone should realize that this probably IS the best forum to sell stuff, and if you put a little extra work into what you make, and really think about what people want to sell, then you will easily make back your $5.00. I have been checking the marketplace every day, and I see the same posts on top.

Just everyone who wants to sell but isn't, just make what you want, and sell it. I am currently making over $400.00 worth of content to sell, and I am going to take about 1 month to finish everything.

Let's get this stuff going again.

And I think the Ice Sale I mentioned sounds pretty good right now.

there is better stuff at the "other forum" in my opinion. and more and more people are starting to sell stuff there.

the marketplace on myspacepros will cease to exist within a year.

[Christinax]

If the 'other forum' was more small and compact like MSP, i would be there all the time.

Its just the ads & the size of the forum kind of put me off.

[belindasue70]

Ditto the Cool/Quality Music Skins.....&& Some NON-GLITTER, PLEASE! :cowboy:
I want to buy, I have the money to buy, but no new sales! =(

I've had no trouble making money in the marketplace, as long as you spend a second or 2 to figure out what people want at a quality they'd find attractive.

If you post a marketplace thread with 300 glitters and 100 album covers you're gonna have trouble.

I myself want cool/quality music skins but nobody is selling any.