Stores - interesting news

[Guest]

Some interesting news for the future of stores posted on the blog today:

<blockquote><hr>

Luc said,


on January 25th, 2008 at 12:36 pm

We are planning to make the stores much more interesting. some ideas:
1) enable the store to be open with no one in it, so you can play the game while your store is opened.
2) new objects that will make managing objects easier. the users might buy copies rather than the actual objects.
3) higher limits on # of objects in stores
4) advertisement for stores in map view and in web services.
Greg will share a write up on this soon.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'm really looking forward to the the first one.

I'm wondering if the second point means that you put out one chair and people buy a copy of the chair, rather then the original? I hope so. This will be great for reducing inventory and also allow stores to go with more of a themed look - they won't need to place 6 chairs lined up in a row.

And yay for higher object limits \o/

Polly

 

[Guest]

wow!
All of those sound really cool. I would consider opening a store when these changes take effect.

 

[Guest]

This was added a few minutes later:
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5) web services to tell you how your store is doing

[/ QUOTE ]

 

[imported_SimTripps]

That's awesome! I love the idea of higher object limits! Thx for the blog update, Polly!

 

[Guest]

Oh this is very good news, indeed! Love it that they might increase the number of objects in stores. I can not count the number of times I've hit object limit in mine

 

[Guest]

Wow that sounds really wonderful! I would be able to open my private store to the public and not feel strapped to it...I love it!

 

[Guest]

<blockquote><hr>

1) enable the store to be open with no one in it, so you can play the game while your store is opened.

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I have pros and cons on this idea.

Will the owner (if online and not on lot) be sent an alert letting them know that someone is on their lot?

I rather have someone at the lot who can help me in person. It was your choice to run a store lot.

If not being on your lot is your cup of tea..an interesting idea I just thought of it. Maybe when creating a store lot, each lot needs to be open a specific numbers of hours a day, lets say 8. (sim time). When creating, a box is opened and ask you to pick a time when your store would like to be opened...like from 9-5. When logged on, you have to be at your store during those hours. After the 8 hour shift (it doesn't have to be 8 hours...it can be 3 or 4, of 5...), you are free to roam about the city and skill or do what you please. Your lot will be opened like stated. When someone lands on your lot, an alert is sent to you, maybe a pop up window. It says, "someone is on your lot, would you like to help them in person?" You can click yes and it will send you to your store. You can click No and it will send you via PM to the person at the lot to assist them.

 

[mike1977]

Also, anything that can produce trash, like the rejection of the gift giving interaction, needs to be disabled when owner or roomie isn't there to see what's going on.

 

[Guest]

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4) advertisement for stores in <u>map view</u> and in web services.

[/ QUOTE ]

Please, God - no.

I'm begging.

 

[Guest]

wow can't wait for these options to be added sounds really cool to me. finally store owners get to roam the city and still sell things!

 

[Guest]

There are so many changes that need to happen with stores. One being the fact that stores can't put out more than one item at a time and prices can't be set more than one at a time. I love the Ctrl and Shift buttons when working with more than one item in other programs...

pitweston: "I rather have someone at the lot who can help me in person. It was your choice to run a store lot."

That's a nice comment toward store workers... it was your choice? I'd say a feature should be implemented allowing the store people to show they are not attending or they are attending. Like you mentioned.. if they are attending they could be sent a message allowing them to pop to the store or PM the customer.

How many people realize how boring it is to hold a store open and sit there for hours? Most people don’t say “hi” even if the store person says “hi”. Then if we don’t say “hi”… one person in 5 hrs might notice and say something or ask for something. And those are the odds for a store that IS in the top 10 of the popularity list. BORING!!!! Let’s work on that feature. Let us keep our stores open without needing to sit our sims there.

Then if we want to meet and greet and deal with rudeness as sims ignore us.. we can. If we want to ask for special requests and hang out there waiting for the occasional person to stop in and need something that isn’t out… we can.

The retail catalog needs to be reactivated. What does retail really mean if the prices can change every hour and no one actually has to pay retail?

 

[Guest]

As far as having somebody to actually help you at the lot...things won't be much different than they are now.

I think it is good of EA to accept the fact that running a store is boring. I like that they are accepting this and implementing ways for stores to continue to exist without boring the owners to death. I have no doubt that there will be stores that continue to operate non-afk, just as there are now. They might charge a little more, but it's kind of a mirror to real life.

Go to a Super Big Zombie-like Department store and get what you want, get it cheap, and get out. OR go to the mom 'n pop shop down the street and get helped with a genuine smile. You might pay more, but that's the nature of small business vs. large business.

 

[Guest]

<blockquote><hr>


pitweston: "I rather have someone at the lot who can help me in person. It was your choice to run a store lot."

That's a nice comment toward store workers... it was your choice? I'd say a feature should be implemented allowing the store people to show they are not attending or they are attending. Like you mentioned.. if they are attending they could be sent a message allowing them to pop to the store or PM the customer.



[/ QUOTE ]

Thank you. I thought it was a nice comment. Before this idea was mentioned, people who decided to own a store knew how boring of a job it would be. They knew they would have to sit there, do nothing and wait for people to show up.

I think the whole store category could use a major fix. People have said before about how stores like to fill up on just about every object there is in the game. Can this chnage to just picking one or two different item categories? Like some stores can only offer furniture and decor? Others can only offer electronics?

Can the stores higher people to work for them? Instead of doing the diner/robot/dj job, you can be employeed at a store. How it will work, I don't know, but maybe the person can get a comission if they are there when the object is sold?

I am going off topic. Maybe I can post my ideas for the store (I have many) in a different thread or use wikipedia.

<blockquote><hr>

4) advertisement for stores in map view and in web services.




--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



Please, God - no.

I'm begging.


[/ QUOTE ]

I agree. Lets add more clutter to the map view screen. Unless they have a different plan on how it will be advertised.

 

[Guest]

<blockquote><hr>

pitweston: "I rather have someone at the lot who can help me in person. It was your choice to run a store lot."

That's a nice comment toward store workers...

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I cannot believe I am about to say this....surely the Rapture is on the way..

......but I actually agree with him, and I like his idea of store owners having to commit to being there certain numbers of hours per day, and actually BEING there, not afk. I'm not sure how I feel about store owners being able to make money off the things sold in their lot if they are not there, but I do see the need for *someplace* to be open for those who are trying not to support those who are deliberately abusing the category and game features to make money for doing nothing, but really need a particular object since we will no longer be able to buy directly from the catalog even at full price to keep from supporting, and therefore indirectly condoning this behavior. I'd rather see it be EA run stores though rather than having players be rewarded like that for just putting objects on their lot and going about their merry way.

 

[Guest]

<blockquote><hr>

Some interesting news for the future of stores posted on the blog today:

<blockquote><hr>

Luc said,


on January 25th, 2008 at 12:36 pm

We are planning to make the stores much more interesting. some ideas:
1) enable the store to be open with no one in it, so you can play the game while your store is opened.



[/ QUOTE ]So why wouldn't we all make stores if we don't need to keep them open by being there? EALand will be store on top of store

 

[Guest]

<blockquote><hr>

<blockquote><hr>

Some interesting news for the future of stores posted on the blog today:

<blockquote><hr>

Luc said,


on January 25th, 2008 at 12:36 pm

We are planning to make the stores much more interesting. some ideas:
1) enable the store to be open with no one in it, so you can play the game while your store is opened.



[/ QUOTE ]So why wouldn't we all make stores if we don't need to keep them open by being there? EALand will be store on top of store

[/ QUOTE ]
No, because not everyone is going to create a store, or have money to run the store. However, there should be a limit to one store per account, so you don't have one sim running a store and another sim doing whatever they want, that way we can avoid sim monopolies and limit the clutter. So with that, I doubt EaLand would be store on top of store.

 

[Guest]

<blockquote><hr>

<blockquote><hr>

<blockquote><hr>

Some interesting news for the future of stores posted on the blog today:

<blockquote><hr>

Luc said,


on January 25th, 2008 at 12:36 pm

We are planning to make the stores much more interesting. some ideas:
1) enable the store to be open with no one in it, so you can play the game while your store is opened.



[/ QUOTE ]So why wouldn't we all make stores if we don't need to keep them open by being there? EALand will be store on top of store

[/ QUOTE ]
No, because not everyone is going to create a store, or have money to run the store. However, there should be a limit to one store per account, so you don't have one sim running a store and another sim doing whatever they want, that way we can avoid sim monopolies and limit the clutter. So with that, I doubt EaLand would be store on top of store.

[/ QUOTE ]it's a silly idea however you look at it..no one has been forced to start a store, they do so for a reason..to make a profit and there are plenty now that are open by an absentee roomie...I don't understand the logic of keeping stores open without a roomie being there in some aspect...I've never walked into one in rl that had no employees
PS: you've already seen 2 people in this short thread say they will open a new store

 

[turtleface]

advertisements in map view.... I think this would be ok, as long as they weren't visible by default. There needs to be a 'show store advertisements option. Which would make it a little pointless, wouldn't it? Since people could just be clicking on the property bio to see the information as it is.

Why are they spending time working on things like this instead of better things, that many of us want badly and none of us don't want? Like expansions and such?

 

[Guest]

<blockquote><hr>

<blockquote><hr>

4) advertisement for stores in <u>map view</u> and in web services.

[/ QUOTE ]

Please, God - no.

I'm begging.

[/ QUOTE ]

Well, 4 out of 5 isn't bad. I agree, clean up map view, don't make it worse.

 

[Guest]

I wonder if the advertisment for stores, might be like a classifieds directory within the current list options we have in map view? Maybe like a place to write up about about what you stock/specialise in, special offers etc. Might even be something you have to pay a small fee to advertise in.

Perhaps something that wouldn't be visible unless you click on the classifieds tab and choose to browse it?

I think something like that would be kind of interesting and wouldn't necessarily impinge on the current map view at all.

Polly

 

[imported_Gracie Nito]

<blockquote><hr>

I wonder if the advertisment for stores, might be like a classifieds directory within the current list options we have in map view? Maybe like a place to write up about about what you stock/specialise in, special offers etc. Might even be something you have to pay a small fee to advertise in.

Perhaps something that wouldn't be visible unless you click on the classifieds tab and choose to browse it?

I think something like that would be kind of interesting and wouldn't necessarily impinge on the current map view at all.

Polly

[/ QUOTE ]

I suspect that access to advertisements and store offerings will be another "web" feature in the future. The most successful stores will have their own webaccess points and perhaps pay a fee to advertise or link to official EA.com space.