Fake, Counterfeit, Knockoff, Illegal, Garbage, Crap Set & Minifigure Thread: PLEASE READ BEFORE POSTING!

[Val-E]

Meet the moderating team.

[Ed Mack]

13 hours ago, Val-E said:

Meet the moderating team.

He's a member.

[junkrigger]

I would like to take this opportunity to suggest considering making BPer a paid member site. It seems in the time since I joined a lot has changed, perceptions of lego investors, knockoffs, rereleases, swaths of new members who have no interest in doing any serious research and just want to be spoon fed. I would also suggest it is perhaps time to give something back to the members who provide data to the site, you know the important data on what sets are not hoarded and are ripe picks.  I like the idea of brickfolio, however recently I have begun using it a little and fully began to realize how valuable providing this info is if many members do. Perhaps incentivizing this in the form of exclusive membership that would grant some access to this information.  I also realize how valuable this website is to myself and investors and want to acknowledge that and show my appreciation somehow perhaps monetarily, but feel the value of the data also needs to be recognized. I imagine this is not going to be a popular post but am suggesting anyway.

Edited October 15, 2016 by junkrigger
clarity

[Guest TabbyBoy]

13 hours ago, Val-E said:

Meet the moderating team.

That reminds me, I also need to get my Tabby a new scratching post:

11 hours ago, junkrigger said:

I would like to take this opportunity to suggest considering making BPer a paid member site. It seems in the time since I joined a lot has changed, perceptions of lego investors, knockoffs, rereleases, swaths of new members who have no interest in doing any serious research and just want to be spoon fed. I would also suggest it is perhaps time to give something back to the members who provide data to the site, you know the important data on what sets are not hoarded and are ripe picks.  I like the idea of brickfolio, however recently I have begun using it a little and fully began to realize how valuable providing this info is if many members do. Perhaps incentivizing this in the form of exclusive membership that would grant some access to this information.  I also realize how valuable this website is to myself and investors and want to acknowledge that and show my appreciation somehow perhaps monetarily, but feel the value of the data also needs to be recognized. I imagine this is not going to be a popular post but am suggesting anyway.

I agree, I'm more than happy to pay to be a member or at least have a paid "elite" forum.

Ed/Jeff... If you do that, will you then spill more of the beans? ;-)

[KShine]

8 minutes ago, TabbyBoy said:

If you do that, will you then spill more of the beans? ;-)

[Val-E]

29 minutes ago, junkrigger said:

I would like to take this opportunity to suggest considering making BPer a paid member site. It seems in the time since I joined a lot has changed, perceptions of lego investors, knockoffs, rereleases, swaths of new members who have no interest in doing any serious research and just want to be spoon fed. I would also suggest it is perhaps time to give something back to the members who provide data to the site, you know the important data on what sets are not hoarded and are ripe picks.  I like the idea of brickfolio, however recently I have begun using it a little and fully began to realize how valuable providing this info is if many members do. Perhaps incentivizing this in the form of exclusive membership that would grant some access to this information.  I also realize how valuable this website is to myself and investors and want to acknowledge that and show my appreciation somehow perhaps monetarily, but feel the value of the data also needs to be recognized. I imagine this is not going to be a popular post but am suggesting anyway.

A year ago I would have disagreed but times change and one has to adapt. A premium section of the site is certainly not a bad way of weeding out the cloneboys as they are the last to want to pay for anything.

[LegoBro]

12 minutes ago, TabbyBoy said:

Ed/Jeff... If you do that, will you then spill more of the beans? ;-)

I'd pay a premium for this beans or not.  I think this would also help people make a decision on how serious or not they are about investing.

[Val-E]

[Phil B]

3 hours ago, Ed Mack said:

He's a member.

He sure is a d*#k.

[Rodeogeorge]

I like this thread

[Zelgazra]

I had a bunch of quoted replies from my recent comment in the old thread. Haven't visited in a couple days, and now the thread is gone. Guess I'll never know! 

 

 

I'd pay an annual subscription for this site and the Brickfolio alone. Especially with the upcoming overhaul that Jeff has mentioned recently. I think it would indeed weed out anybody who isn't serious. That said, I don't think the site should be locked off to the public entirely. Just don't allow them to reply or make an account without paying the subscription first. There's a truckload of highly useful data on these boards, that a smart, serious entrepreneur could (and I think, should be allowed to) make use of without the need to ask questions. Heck, I suspect most of us that are serious about this game did just that before ever making a post. Just weed out the riff raff posts looking for the hand-fed treatment by forcing them to cough up some cash first. 

[Ed Mack]

4 hours ago, junkrigger said:

I would like to take this opportunity to suggest considering making BPer a paid member site. It seems in the time since I joined a lot has changed, perceptions of lego investors, knockoffs, rereleases, swaths of new members who have no interest in doing any serious research and just want to be spoon fed. I would also suggest it is perhaps time to give something back to the members who provide data to the site, you know the important data on what sets are not hoarded and are ripe picks.  I like the idea of brickfolio, however recently I have begun using it a little and fully began to realize how valuable providing this info is if many members do. Perhaps incentivizing this in the form of exclusive membership that would grant some access to this information.  I also realize how valuable this website is to myself and investors and want to acknowledge that and show my appreciation somehow perhaps monetarily, but feel the value of the data also needs to be recognized. I imagine this is not going to be a popular post but am suggesting anyway.

Well, I agree.

Affiliate money is decreasing and costs are increasing.  All your points are valid.  First the update...then we can work on your points.  The new update looks very slick.  The Brick Classifieds will be brought directly to this site and that looks stunning.  We are going to have a huge LEGO store with hundreds of retailers.  We have been discussing all these options.  There is a ton of data out there to be had and in order to share it, we will probably charge for it.  

 

[Voltron]

The subscription idea sounds like a good idea, until everyone buys the subscription, and all of the "potential" sets are no longer any good as too many people know about them.

So I would say no to the subscription idea. That info should only be available to Ed and Jeff who made the website, but maybe they can throw us some scrap every now and again

Edited October 15, 2016 by Mhd747

[Voltron]

24 minutes ago, Ed Mack said:

Well, I agree.

Affiliate money is decreasing and costs are increasing.  All your points are valid.  First the update...then we can work on your points.  The new update looks very slick.  The Brick Classifieds will be brought directly to this site and that looks stunning.  We are going to have a huge LEGO store with hundreds of retailers.  We have been discussing all these options.  There is a ton of data out there to be had and in order to share it, we will probably charge for it.  

 

Whilst I would love too see some of the background data on the brick folios do you not think by providing a large amount of people this info it will do more harm than good?

Say for example the first tip we get is Brick Bank is the least owned of the current Modulars in production.

By letting people know this info, I think it is only going to be a negative because everyone will go out and buy Brick Bank, which will lead to it selling out and most likely more production runs.

Now the people who done their research on what set to buy because it is rare, exclusive minifig, unlikely to be redone etc, all of that research will be useless because the so called "sleeper" or not horded set is now known to the masses, leading to the set most likely not to perform as well as there will be a big supply bought by mostly resellers.

Don't want to sound negative, i just felt like I should play devil's advocate. 

[Guest TabbyBoy]

Here's my 2p (1.9c worth)..... I think the fairest way to approach this is ensure that brickfolios and the amount of each set hoarded by BPers in total are kept confidential. If we're all told what's out there based on probably inaccurate information (my brickfolio is inaccurate!), it could really throw a spanner in the works. I'd rather not know what's hoarded and what's not as it's easy to get an idea of which sets are popular and which ones aren't. For obvious reasons, I do have some "special" sets that I am hoarding right now and I've never mentioned them or put them in my brickfolio. Remember, some of what we are typing now is currently public information and we're all competitors, right?

However, I'm happy to remain a BP member and willing to pay for it in the hope that the trolls amongst us go elsewhere.

[Poly 30286]

Can I pay my subscription fee in studs? You guys know how crazy I get over a couple bucks. If the fee is steep enough to keep the basket of deplorables out, it might me too much for the little guys like me.

[exciter1]

I think the most popular reasoning for the fee idea is to keep the little guys out.

[Ed Mack]

There are always two sides to every story and free or fee is a difficult decision for Jeff and I to make.  I wish that affiliate advertising was through the roof so it wouldn't be a question, but it is not.  eBay and Target has cut their affiliate programs to practically nothing.  TRU never gave anything.  Plus there is competition from dozens of other sites.  Everybody has links.  The data is expensive.  Server costs and fees paid to other programmers/services suck up the rest.  We might not have a choice.  Anyway, I'm not here for sympathy, just being honest because the topic was brought up.  

On a positive note, the new version of the site looks wonderful.  New price guide page with all sorts of data.  New Daily Deals.  The Classifieds looks tremendous.  It all just pops.  Jeff is getting better with age.  

[Poly 30286]

@exciter1 Excerpt from the about page:

Jeff and I hope you find our site useful and entertaining. This site is for every LEGO fan out there, from the beginning builder to the hardcore LEGO investor. It is meant to illustrate the incredible value of LEGO bricks, not only from a monetary standpoint, but from an entertainment and educational standpoint. Enjoy...

@Ed Mack Has the mission changed?

[exciter1]

1 minute ago, Poly 30286 said:

@exciter1 Excerpt from the about page:

Jeff and I hope you find our site useful and entertaining. This site is for every LEGO fan out there, from the beginning builder to the hardcore LEGO investor. It is meant to illustrate the incredible value of LEGO bricks, not only from a monetary standpoint, but from an entertainment and educational standpoint. Enjoy...

@Ed Mack Has the mission changed?

I didn't say BrickPicker's reasoning.  I was just implying for those who keep suggesting it.

[Bold-Arrow]

1 minute ago, Poly 30286 said:

@exciter1 Excerpt from the about page:

Jeff and I hope you find our site useful and entertaining. This site is for every LEGO fan out there, from the beginning builder to the hardcore LEGO investor. It is meant to illustrate the incredible value of LEGO bricks, not only from a monetary standpoint, but from an entertainment and educational standpoint. Enjoy...

@Ed Mack Has the mission changed?

It costs money to run this site and the bigger and more detailed it becomes the more expensive it is .. the Macks don't need to keep putting more money into it 

[ravenb99]

Time for exciter to put his time warp machine to good use 

Edited October 16, 2016 by ravenb99

[exciter1]

Time for exciter to put his time warp machine to good use 

My kids live that song, yet they have no idea what it means.

[Val-E]

7 hours ago, TabbyBoy said:

Here's my 2p (1.9c worth)..... I think the fairest way to approach this is ensure that brickfolios and the amount of each set hoarded by BPers in total are kept confidential. If we're all told what's out there based on probably inaccurate information (my brickfolio is inaccurate!), it could really throw a spanner in the works. I'd rather not know what's hoarded and what's not as it's easy to get an idea of which sets are popular and which ones aren't. For obvious reasons, I do have some "special" sets that I am hoarding right now and I've never mentioned them or put them in my brickfolio. Remember, some of what we are typing now is currently public information and we're all competitors, right?

However, I'm happy to remain a BP member and willing to pay for it in the hope that the trolls amongst us go elsewhere.

I don´t believe that sharing brickfolio data on hoarded sets was on the card, precisely because it is only as accurate as "what a lego employee told me".  An improved BF that you can use to track sales as well as current stock and with a longer reach on price evolution would be a welcome improvement.

 

4 hours ago, Poly 30286 said:

@exciter1 Excerpt from the about page:

Jeff and I hope you find our site useful and entertaining. This site is for every LEGO fan out there, from the beginning builder to the hardcore LEGO investor. It is meant to illustrate the incredible value of LEGO bricks, not only from a monetary standpoint, but from an entertainment and educational standpoint. Enjoy...

@Ed Mack Has the mission changed?

It´s the owners´ decision, but I think that much of the site should stay public and only certain more sensitive areas and buying tools would be accessed by premium subscribers. That would give new people and casual viewers the chance to see what is on offer before committing themselves.

In any case, info is only as good as the interpretation people male of  it  and there is no substitute for experience and local market knowledge. A paid pass is not going to turn a rookie investor into George Soros /Emazers overnight. I can say from my own experience, that following (well meaning) advice from people on this site can be worse than trusting a lego employee and your own instincts should always be the final decider.

[Ed Mack]

13 hours ago, Poly 30286 said:

@exciter1 Excerpt from the about page:

Jeff and I hope you find our site useful and entertaining. This site is for every LEGO fan out there, from the beginning builder to the hardcore LEGO investor. It is meant to illustrate the incredible value of LEGO bricks, not only from a monetary standpoint, but from an entertainment and educational standpoint. Enjoy...

@Ed Mack Has the mission changed?

I understand your concern.  This is probably not the correct place to be discussing this, but since we already are...

No, the mission hasn't changed, but the site has to support itself or what's the point of operating it?  Jeff and I are not independently wealthy.  We work for a living...7 days in many cases.  Times have changed.  Competition for affiliate dollars is intense.  We made more money on the site 5 years ago with a fraction of the members and traffic.  There will always be a free component to the site, but there will be a "premium" membership as well...with extra perks and data.  It will be fairly priced and affordable.  Many members have been requesting this for years and this is the direction websites are heading...Pay for access.  It sucks, but we have to adapt or die.