This might be slightly off topic, but I think it applies.

 

I'd like to see Brickpicker charge for premium level services, including access to the daily deals, premium content, price guides, and a certain number of free listings.  I know most people don't want to hear this, but the service you guys provide is incredible and shouldn't be free.  Think of Morningstar where they offer some basic mutual fund information to the general public, but if you are a serious investor and what more valuable information, you pay for it.

 

I wouldn't mind paying $50 per year if that meant I had exclusive access to the best deals, the best information, and the best resources in the Lego investing community.  If all the power users and most knowledgeable investors were posting to the premium forums, I would pay for that.  When certain users post deals or post comments, I listen.  I know Brickpicker has saved me well over $50 this past month alone on deals based on tips in the daily deal threads.  If you threw in 20 free listings, that would make the premium service even more attractive.

 

I guess I'm just a firm believer that if you provide a service worth paying for you should charge for it.  Just my $0.02.

 

Sure that is a very nice idea. Like anything we will see where it goes.  People just want everything for free, it is human nature I guess.  Whatever the end result will be, it will be a good product at a good price. It really is up to the individuals to see whether it succeeds or fails.

What I would personally think its cool is allow everyone to have like 3 or maybe 5 free listings and then if you want more you pay monthly/yearly fee 

 

Something like:

 

5 listings per member free (must have over 100 posts or authorized by personnel) 

Then go into tiers or something....

 

Small investors and sellers, will not really participate actively, if you will instantly go into tiers of monthly subs or entry fees...

 

Atleast thats how I see/feel it.

Well I did say that the first tier could be like 10 active listings would be free.  Remember, it's not just 10 listings then your done.  It's an ongoing 10 concurrent listings, then another tier would be 100 active listings.  If you sell 10 items, then post another 10, if you feel that you are going to go from 100 to 200 then you would go up to the next tier for a small fee.

 

The goal Ed and I are trying to come up with once the classifieds are in full swing is to obviously generate revenue to back into the site.  We need revenue to market the site to get more new users to see your listings.  If we are too cheap, then how can I do Google and Facebook campaigns or offer affiliate programs to other sites.  There is a lot to this.  

 

Remember, this is down the road, there will be an ample beta period for everyone to get a feel for the site and to get it set right.

What we want to convey to members is that the small seller will not be punished under our system, but the large seller can be rewarded with cheaper fees.  The one thing we do not want happening is some yahoo posting sets at very high prices.  This is not eBay and the success of the Brick Classifieds will depend upon members charging reasonable and fair prices for their sets, so the seller and buyer are buyer are both satisfied.

I think that having a subscription system gives you (as site founders) a better chance of forward planning - as you will be collecting revenues for the whole of the year you know what the minimum income levels will be from the start. If it is setup as a per-transaction setup, you could end up with a small and volatile pot of money to play with if it doesn't work quite as you'd hoped or needs improvements.

Affiliate schemes and marketing won't be cheap but at least you'll know your baseline, and new shop setups or upgrades will only increase your options.

 

From a seller user point of view, it seems you already have all the bases covered as the tiered structure you propose would only work out at a percentage of what you actually sold - though no-one like shelling out money upfront

The only way it might be a problem is if you take out your subscription and then have a change of circumstances that affects how much time you have to list - but if you are just upgrading each time you sell that should still work out fine.

 

(sorry if I've just rambled on and made no sense - it's been a long day and I'm tired)

When is this projected to be released?

Well I did say that the first tier could be like 10 active listings would be free.  Remember, it's not just 10 listings then your done.  It's an ongoing 10 concurrent listings, then another tier would be 100 active listings.  If you sell 10 items, then post another 10, if you feel that you are going to go from 100 to 200 then you would go up to the next tier for a small fee.

 

The goal Ed and I are trying to come up with once the classifieds are in full swing is to obviously generate revenue to back into the site.  We need revenue to market the site to get more new users to see your listings.  If we are too cheap, then how can I do Google and Facebook campaigns or offer affiliate programs to other sites.  There is a lot to this.  

 

Remember, this is down the road, there will be an ample beta period for everyone to get a feel for the site and to get it set right.

I think this is a good approach. You and Ed should keep the payment system simple. That way you can focus on site developments instead of figuring out each nickle and dime from percentage based payments

I think that having a subscription system gives you (as site founders) a better chance of forward planning - as you will be collecting revenues for the whole of the year you know what the minimum income levels will be from the start. If it is setup as a per-transaction setup, you could end up with a small and volatile pot of money to play with if it doesn't work quite as you'd hoped or needs improvements.

Affiliate schemes and marketing won't be cheap but at least you'll know your baseline, and new shop setups or upgrades will only increase your options.

 

From a seller user point of view, it seems you already have all the bases covered as the tiered structure you propose would only work out at a percentage of what you actually sold - though no-one like shelling out money upfront

The only way it might be a problem is if you take out your subscription and then have a change of circumstances that affects how much time you have to list - but if you are just upgrading each time you sell that should still work out fine.

 

(sorry if I've just rambled on and made no sense - it's been a long day and I'm tired)

Good post.  There are many fees involved with a successful marketplace on the internet.  We have some solid ideas about promoting the Classifieds, but like I stated earlier, a lot will depend upon members prices and their ability to deliver the goods in a quick and proper way.  Regardless, we will give members ample opportunity to give the Classifieds a try for free.  

When is this projected to be released?

Before Bricklink 3.0.

When is this projected to be released?

 

If things go right, I hope to be in Private Beta in about 3 weeks.  I will ask the mods and some members that we know sell a lot and have inventory to help populate the site.  I will listen to feedback and make changes where possible.  Then open it up to everyone else.

So who is the target audience? Are we opening it only to BP members with the Bata/trial version or are we are opening it to any person with some money to spend?

So who is the target audience? Are we opening it only to BP members with the Bata/trial version or are we are opening it to any person with some money to spend?

 

When I open it up to everyone, it will be open to everyone.  That's it no more hiding. 

When I open it up to everyone, it will be open to everyone. That's it no more hiding.

Nice, I have a wish list ready to go

Thanks to you and Ed for all of your efforts

I would say that the early days of ebay(early 2000's) were awesome. Fees were reasonable, you were directly dealing with people rather than systems, and auction format ruled the day. I almost always got top dollar. Those days were comics for me, buying and selling. You could pay by check, money order or paypal if you wanted it quick then you ate the fees. Sellers could pass those fees to the buyer. I think a system that is in that vein would do well and be able compete with ebay and amazon.

I like the idea of paying a fee when something sells. I don't think I sell enough stuff to justify paying a larger amount.

I would say that the early days of ebay(early 2000's) were awesome. Fees were reasonable, you were directly dealing with people rather than systems, and auction format ruled the day. I almost always got top dollar. Those days were comics for me, buying and selling. You could pay by check, money order or paypal if you wanted it quick then you ate the fees. Sellers could pass those fees to the buyer. I think a system that is in that vein would do well and be able compete with ebay and amazon.

I think we will offer a more personal type of experience. Jeff and I and the Mods will review all listings to make sure they are credible. People who build up enough good feedback will eventually get to bypass our review. Payment will be up to sellers to designate. Buyers won't be favored over sellers like on eBay and Amazon. We know some buyers are crooks and will review problem transactions.

We cannot guarantee transactions for what we will charge, but between feedback and word of mouth, poor sellers will get the boot rather quickly. You will always have Paypal to fall back on. Overall, the community can help police the Classifieds. Jerks will get the boot. Smart, honest and fair people will prosper.

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Jerks will get the boot. Smart, honest and fair people will prosper.

In short, be nice or we will kick your ass.... with all respect. :aggressive:

One last.thought, i would not regulate pricing if i was you. Markets and price discovery are best left up to natural market conditions. Once you place "reasonable" on pricing you will lose folks. Price discovery is always best left to natural market conditions. If prices are too gigh they won't sell amd if too low they will be snatched up.

I'd like to see Brickpicker charge for premium level services, including access to the daily deals, premium content, price guides, and a certain number of free listings.  I know most people don't want to hear this, but the service you guys provide is incredible and shouldn't be free.  Think of Morningstar where they offer some basic mutual fund information to the general public, but if you are a serious investor and what more valuable information, you pay for it.

 

I guess I'm just a firm believer that if you provide a service worth paying for you should charge for it.  Just my $0.02.

Let's spike it to $0.04. 

 

The thing about the Daily Deals premium limitation is, for many of us the biggest deals come from the thread discussion from what people find, not necessarily that large first post. For it to be limited to premium members only, the chances of good deals being discovered and shared are decreased. For example, we would not be having a TRU triple coupon stack option right now had that one member not posted his accidental discovery of a second $10 off $50 code, and if I recall correctly he/she was a lurker. And what are the chances of someone checking the Target website for a relatively unpopular set, discovering a pricing fluke, and posting it to the Daily Deals if access is limited? (Of course, referring to the Umbaran MHC blowout, above 75% off if I recall, and the fluke only lasted for a day).

 

Also, among other purposes, I believe the purpose of the price guides is specifically to help sellers in the market not over-speculate and inflate prices beyond what they should be going for - premium access would hurt this.

 

That being said, the cost for premium is going to depend on who you want to have premium. For big sellers, it's a no-brainer cost - for small sellers, where every penny is closely tracked, it becomes something that needs to be seriously thought out. Even moreso, once the premium wall is up, it's difficult for those to see the value of the premium content behind that wall. I know on another forum I frequent, there's lots of newbie stuff that clutters up everywhere, but at the bottom of the page there's a mysterious Premium forum. What's in that forum? If I pay, am I going to learn far more than trawling through the regular posts? For me, I've stayed out of it - I simply do not know what kind of value I would get out of premium.

 

I'd like to see premiums as add-ons that aren't necessary for an investor to survive the best they can, and not as a way to exclude people either. Hopefully there's enough revenue generated from other fees across Classifieds for Ed ******' Jeff to stay happy without Premium

 

Anyway, to try and stay relevant to the discussion, I am excited about the information I've read so far. The bits about it being much more personal is great - it's like a Craigslist with people who truly understand LEGO, and  that establishes a great layer of commonality and trust. Not to say there aren't bad eggs out there, but it's nice knowing that if you're buying old bulk with someone through BC, you're not going to be getting a lot that's 20% LEGO's, and 80% mystery gunk.

 

And super glad that lots of the anxieties that come from selling on eBay are being addressed here - especially the issues involving buyer>seller support. Much excitement!

I would opt for a subscription based system. I wouldn't sell very much, but the things I did sell would be big sets. In that paradigm, I would want a fixed cost for the listing. Instead of a variable fee from the percentage.

After the initial free listings, we will run it as a commission based program. After we fill the Classifieds with sets, we will gauge interest in the site and get some feedback. We might then institute some sort of membership or plan based around stores and unlimited listings.

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After the initial free listings, we will run it as a commission based program. After we fill the Classifieds with sets, we will gauge interest in the site and get some feedback. We might then institute some sort of membership or plan based around stores and unlimited listings.

Sent from my iPad using Brickpicker

30 (and more.....) MISB sets are waiting for it ..........

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30 (and more.....) MISB sets are waiting for it ..........

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Brickpicker mobile app

Soon...

will there be a "market division" between europe and Usa/Can?

will there be a "market division" between europe and Usa/Can?

I am not sure what this means. The site will be global.

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