Most people in Neopia are quite familiar with the Island Trading Post, and
have used it on occasion to trade items with other users. For those of you unfamiliar,
this Trading Post is located on Mystery Island, and you can put up to ten items
in "lots" that people can offer items and Neopoints for. How do people know
what type of items you want? The answer is quite simple: The wishlist. This
seemingly small factor in the Trading Post can make or break your success as
a trader. I have compiled below a few helpful hints and tips to make YOUR wishlist
a success:
1. Be honest: Often times, people will put certain terms and phrases
in their wishlist in order to get more bids. Unless you REALLY want to sell
your item for 1 NP or to the first bidder, I would recommend not including these
in your wishlist, because often times when people DO bid first or DO bid 1 NP,
they get quite angry when you don't accept their offer. Most of the time, it's
better to leave these terms out unless you really mean it.
2. Be realistic: It is of utmost importance that you realise that this
is a 'wishlist', not a 'wishful thinking list'. What I mean is, if you have
a bitten red apple, don't ask for 4 Dark Faeries and 2 map pieces. People won't
bid on them, AND you may wind up finding several Neomails in your inbox informing
you that you have no idea what you are talking about when it comes to prices.
This is quite unpleasant, and I would avoid it at all costs if I were you.
3. Do your homework: Know how much your items cost before you write
your wishlist, that way you can avoid asking for too much or too little. Trades
should ideally benefit both parties equally, even if the values in NPs aren't
exactly identical. realise that if you know your value, it is much easier to
get a ballpark range of what people should be giving you for it.
4. About including prices: A hotly debated topic is whether or not you
are more successful including the actual prices of what you have in your wishlist,
so the bidder can know about how much to offer. In my experience, I have found
4 circumstances when this would be recommended:
~ When dealing with very costly items
~ When dealing with items that have fluctuated in cost recently
~ When dealing with items commonly confused with less/more common items
~ When the values of the items in your lot vary by a lot.
A tip when including the cost of each of the items is to use the lowest shop
wizard price, since it is often what the person bidding could sell those items
for. Also, don't just have the prices, because that's boring and not eye-catching.
We wouldn't want to be boring, now would we?
5. About links: If you are really serious about trading, don't advertise
your guild in you trades. I've done it before, and not only does it NOT attract
attention to your guild, but you get no bids. The same concept (in general)
goes for beauty contest, personal Web site, etc...... If you want to advertise
these, your shop and chats tend to work better. This does not apply when it
comes to links to your other trades. If your original trades are decent, you
will generally get a lot of traffic on your other ones, which is good!
6. Attitude: Be polite. NOBODY wants to bid when someone says, 'Hey,
I'm not stupid like most people. Bid a lot or your bid will rot. If you don't
know what these items are, don't bother.' While I do realise that people do
tend to offer disproportionate amounts of items at times, there's no need to
be snippy. Try to be flexible, and use 'happy' phrasing and try to include a
'have a nice day'. It sounds cheesy, but not only does it work, but you could
make someone's day.
7. Be specific, and use catch phrases: Know what you want, and come
out and say it. "Good Stuff" and "Faeries and P/Bs" and "Dark Faerie and Speckled
Paint Brush" are all very different versions of part of some wishlists I found
on the trading post. I would use either of the latter two, depending on whether
you NEED the Dark Faerie and speckled p/b or if you just want something of their
value. Also, as long as you really mean them, these phrases tend to be quite
effective:
"All offers considered"
"Check out my other lots"
"I am really want to get rid of these items"
I hope I haven't bored you too much :) I hope that these tips on making your
wishlists excellent have helped, and good luck on the Trading Post! If any of
you have any comments on what I have written, please feel free to send me a
Neomail! | 
