[Trading] Why are prices in out of the way places higher instead of lower?

soelslaev · April 12

First, this is on Xbox, so there are no add-ons and any online database is not as good, and the PC database often does not reflect the pricing reality of consoles even tho some folks base their prices on online databases with info culled from the PC game but this often does not work out for the seller. I actually kinda like the market isolation consoles have because it makes the trading minigame/system more authentic. But anyway, on to my question...

Here is my thinking when I price items for sale when my guild gets a vendor in an out of the way place. I go to a main trading hub, I look at all prices for the thing I want to sell from all 5 or 6 vendors. I take the lower price and cut it in half. That is what I list my item for in my far flung trader. I am counting on the folks that enjoy the trading system and/or role-play Baandari to come along, realize I have a bargain listed, and then buy my item hoping to resell it in the big city for a markup. This works most of the time.

I also go bargain hunting on a whim when I roll thru the countryside or get curious while hiding out in a thieves den. But here is what I noticed, folks often over price stuff instead of offer discounts, and I think this is true of most items. And I do not get it. I have checked, and often the overpriced item will have 1 to 3 days left as I expected.

So what is going on? Are people just delusional about the price of stuff? Is there some kind of grift or scam going on in ESO trading that I don't know about? Like, in real life, I have gone into stores that were gawd-awful and yet they persist, and I eventually conclude that they must be some cover for conducting criminal financial activity.

Now, you may be thinking that the mark up is on stuff like potions or food because of convenience, and I fell victim to that myself recently. I was in a hurry in Cyrodiil and out of food, so I just bought from the keep vendor that a guild had claimed. But I am talking items like style pages and motifs. The kind of items that people are going to be shopping around for, not buying in a hurry. Those are way overpriced too. I mean, no one is going to buy them. Why are people pricing stuff like that?

katanagirl1 · April 12

I’m on PS so no addons there either.

I think a lot of players just follow the guidance that TTC prices are valid for console, and they are much higher than prices I have seen. It’s easier than running to capital cities and getting the price yourself, so they do it. Many may also not realize that the PC economy is much more expensive.

I don’t know that outlying areas would be half as much, since I don’t check prices there. Lately the economy is so bad that I only shop at Elden Root, Wayrest, Mournhold, Alinor, and Vivec City now. Going to other cities I find that the traders just don’t have what I am looking for and it’s a complete waste of time. It might be different on Xbox, though.

soelslaev · April 13

Yeah, I don’t expect prices in outlying areas to be half. That’s just what I do to make sure my stuff in outlying areas gets sold with minimal delay.

But it just seems wild to me to see higher prices for non-potion non-food items. Like a style page that is 2k and has 7 days left in major trade hubs being priced at 5k in the middle of nowhere.

I figured that some of the higher prices were from using PC data but I didn’t expect that to be so prevalent. I guess people are lazier than I thought. But like, they went through the trouble of getting a trader or at least went through the trouble of posting something for sale, how can they not just check the price at one major trader on the way out of town? They would immediately see like 5 identical items for thousands less in a more convenient location. That’s why I was suspicious of something else going on.

I remember way back, on PS4 actually, a big trading guild in Vivec had an alternate guild that would sometimes get one of two back stalls there and jack up prices for that stall to make the prices at thier main guild stall seem more reasonable. But that tactic makes no sense if the alternative stall is far away somewhere.

katanagirl1 · April 13

Maybe that sort of thing is happening but I have no way to know.

I shop around before I buy to get the best deal, it really doesn’t take that long. If others don’t want to bother then it’s on them.

PeacefulAnarchy · April 13

This kind of thing is common in real life too. Some people follow your thinking and say "there's not a lot of traffic here, so need to offer good prices to get sales and entice customers" others go with "there's not a lot of people so since I don't have volume I have to make it up on margins, and if people are desperate or stuck enough to be buying here in the first place, they'll pay the inflated price".

To be fair though, the bargains get bought quicker and the overpriced stuff hangs around, so visiting a low volume trader will always show you a high price skew.

LootAllTheStuff · April 13

I can't say I've been to many far flung traders - is there a map guide somewhere?

What I *have* noticed (XB-NA) is that provisioning ingredients have completely bottomed out in the market with the current event. Is it even worth trying to sell the purple ingredients (eg Bervez Juice) at the moment? Also weird what does and does not seem to sell.

soelslaev · April 17

LootAllTheStuff wrote: »

is there a map guide somewhere?

Funny that you should ask this because a few days ago, I was turning off all symbols on the map and the only thing I could *not* turn off was guild traders. Do that on Xbox in any base zone. For example in Rivenspire the trader is bottom center. You will see a far flung guild trader icon.

Or go into an outlaw refuge. They might be in a big city but they are still out of the way that they are low volume.

soelslaev · April 17

PeacefulAnarchy wrote: »

the bargains get bought quicker and the overpriced stuff hangs around, so visiting a low volume trader will always show you a high price skew.

OMG! Of course! Survivor bias! Big forehead slap.

valenwood_vegan · April 17

One part of it could also be that traders in major, high traffic locations, have a lot of competition and are likely to get undercut quickly (either within their own guild, or in the guild right next door) if they price too high.

I'm in a big mournhold trader and a small, out of the way trader, and sometimes I'm actually able to sell common mats for a bit more on the "lesser" trader, because of the lack of nearby competition.

soelslaev · April 17

valenwood_vegan wrote: »

I'm in a big mournhold trader and a small, out of the way trader, and sometimes I'm actually able to sell common mats for a bit more on the "lesser" trader, because of the lack of nearby competition.

Oh! Right. Crafting materials. Someone is out in the middle of nowhere and is crafting so they buy from closest vendor. That makes sense for higher prices.

I’m such a crafting material gartherer and hoarder that I never considered that aspect of trading. Even tho it is probably the most common thing.

I was shopping for motifs and style pages when I noticed inflated prices in low volume traders. And as someone pointed out, survivor bias is going to cause casuals like me to mostly see overpriced stuff because the bargain scavengers have been by already to get the bargains.