Neopet Peeves - The Trading Post Wishlist Edition

This particular article has to do with the Trading Post wishlist. I deal with the Trading Post all the time, and have seen many a wishlist in my lifetime on Neo, as have a lot of other Neopians, so I thought it would be a suitable introductory article to start off the series and spark some interest. I suppose there aren’t many Neopet Peeves I have regarding the wishlist (because how many aspects of a wishlist are there really), but I can certainly speak in depth about the ones I do have. So, without further ado, here are the things about the Trading Post Wishlist that irritate me.

None:

What do we have here? A subtitle labeled none. It’s kind of unsettling, isn’t it? Its unknown characteristics make you want to navigate away from this page, don’t they? Well, that’s how I, and probably many others, feel when in the trading post and Wishlist: nones dominate the lot page. I like very detailed wishlists, in my opinion. I know a lot of users may disagree with me due to the fact that if they are not asking for anything specific and would prefer surprises, you’re free to bid whatever you want. But to be quite frank, I almost NEVER bid on those. They are far too vague and I’m not going to waste my time. And ironically enough, in my experience, the users with a blank wishlist tend to be the pickiest when it comes to what you’re offering.

There are a few potential things you can put into a wishlist. You can put items or the amount of (pure) neopoints you would like for your lot. You can even combine the two, asking for a specific item plus an amount of neopoints. You can say that you would like your offers to be in ETS (easy to sell) items, or HTS (obviously, hard to sell) items. If there is a trade where more than one item appears, you may choose to say “neomail for separates”, as someone may not want all of your items. You may also choose to include information promoting your items. Saying when the items will provide an avatar is recommended as it will attract attention and different crowds.

Whenever I get or come across an item I am not familiar with, I check to see how much it goes for on the Shop Wizard or Trading Post. If there are none there, I check the Auctions as well. If there are STILL none there, and I am very unfamiliar with my item, I will not put it up for purchasing until I know exactly what people are paying for it. This is plainly because I want to get what it is worth. Nothing more, nothing less (actually the nothing more part is a blatant fib). Anyways, this becomes difficult when every lot says none. As in none price for you! This can become a serious issue when most of the lots have no price or any hints on what it is worth. It can result in pricing an item at random, by instinct, and by greed, which can skyrocket inflation.

Regardless of the fact that you may not know what you want for your trade, or you may not know how much it is worth, try to always say something in there. It really helps. Besides the trades of users under the age of 13, of course, it would be ideal to always see a wishlist.

Free:

Free? What’s free? Where? ZOMG! ...Oh, oops, sorry. That was pretty childish of me.

From time to time, you’ll see a user posting a trade with a wishlist that says FREE, or TAKE THESE; I DON’T WANT ‘EM! This could be true. I know I get a lot of junk I just never want to see again. I am totally fine with free lots. They help out users who are trying to get the Packrat avatar, or have a collection of some sort. They are especially good for the newbies just starting out that need an extra couple of items in their inventory and neopoints in their bank. HOWEVER, I cannot stand to see a lot that says, FREE! No junk items, I will block! Umm, last time I checked, free meant without requirement of payment. And since at least one item must be traded in order to make an offer, one would assume offering only junk would be sufficient. It confuses me to pieces.

I suppose there must be a strategy of some sort used by Neopians who write FREE in capitals all over their wishlists. I don’t suppose it’s very effective, though. Sure, you get tons of attention, but this comes with tons of noob offers of 1 NP and a junk item. Of course, the noobs are the victims this time, though, because you specifically stated your item was up for free. Anyhow, this annoys me to no end. Every time I see a “free” trade, I just want to neomail them and say, “Nothing’s ever free!” But I don’t, because that would be harassment. *pokes glowing halo* Heh.

DO NOT BID, MY STUFF:

There isn’t a necessity to put your items all over the trading post just to keep them safe. There is a Safety Deposit Box for this as well as a Gallery Feature if you’re the kind who likes to show off their stuff. I guess this allows more people to see your special items because they don’t have to go looking on a user-lookup. To some, it's a little in-your-face, but fine. However, I regard it as spam and it makes me want to offer and withdraw over and over. *snickers* But that would be wrong...

In conclusion I would like to say that this article is all in good fun. I’m not really bitter or sour like this suggests I am. Also, if you have an idea of another Neopet Peeves Article (and would not like to write about it in your own way), drop me a neomail with your suggestions.