Why is the Seneschal's Pack higher priced?

[Pietrastor]

I must say you would make a great politician. To say so much and not answer the question.

 

Yes I understand you guys can make the price whatever you want.....So....Just say that. lol

Seriously "it's higher cause it's higher" response literally cracked me up

[Deewe]

Seriously "it's higher cause it's higher" response literally cracked me up

Made me think of the following pic

[Arkerus]

Seriously "it's higher cause it's higher" response literally cracked me up

 

They answered the topic on hand. They made a decision to make the price higher.

 

That's it. They need NO other explanation. Deal with it. They don't owe you or anyone else a glimpse of their internal business plan.

[OddballEasyEight]

They answered the topic on hand. They made a decision to make the price higher.

 

That's it. They need NO other explanation. Deal with it. They don't owe you or anyone else a glimpse of their internal business plan.

 

Dude, we asked why they lowered the price on the other packs, and then raised them again.

 

Their answer was "because".

That's hardly a satisfying answer.

 

Do they owe us an explanation?

No, but if that's the best they could come up with, they'd be better off not answering at all.

[Tsillah]

Hey folks,

 

I talked with our team to get an answer to the adjusted price. The first thing to keep in mind is that our pack prices can fluctuate, both up and down. Even within a specific shipment, each pack is subject to its own pricing. In this case the pricing of the early packs in the shipment were at a reduced rate. Even though the price of the Seneschal’s Stronghold Pack is 300cc per pack, this is still cheaper than the standard pack pricing we had previously at 320cc per pack. I apologize for any confusion around pack pricing.

 

-eric

 

With all due respect, but we ask why the prices fluctuate and you answer by saying it's because they fluctuate.

 

You actually needed to speak to your team to get this answer?

 

Honestly, I am trying to not be rude here but I hope you understand why people aren't entirely impressed with this answer here.

[Sangrar]

With all due respect, but we ask why the prices fluctuate and you answer by saying it's because they fluctuate.

 

You actually needed to speak to your team to get this answer?

 

Honestly, I am trying to not be rude here but I hope you understand why people aren't entirely impressed with this answer here.

 

to be fair he probably checked with the team just to be sure and because it was their decision

[Arkerus]

Dude, we asked why they lowered the price on the other packs, and then raised them again.

 

Their answer was "because".

That's hardly a satisfying answer.

 

Do they owe us an explanation?

No, but if that's the best they could come up with, they'd be better off not answering at all.

 

I have NEVER in my life walked into a store, saw the price on my favorite product went up by a bit and demanded to speak to a manager.

 

That's ridiculous and the same applies here. Yes. Consumer expectation can be altered when a price drops and companies risk some loss in sales when they raise prices but they don't owe us a single damn explanation on their internal reasoning for WHY price went up.

 

Asking for that is absurd.

Edited October 16, 2014 by Arkerus

[Drockter]

For the people asking why... I would be surprised if they answered the question... even more surprised if they did that you would accept any answer (short, of whoops, it was a mistake, here take these coins back).

 

Very few, if any, companies fully disclose out their pricing strategy. I can give you some great jargon on how we determine prices at my company... but in the end... its just that jargon. I will not disclose how the final number is achieved, nor will I openly disclose my costs to deliver the product in question. Except to investors, and only detailed line item costs to those who have NDA's and such in place. Customers, are not investors.

 

Instead of demanding answers, simply DO NOT BUY THEM AT THE CURRENT PRICE. This will speak many more volumes than anything said on the forums.

 

As I said earlier, or more eloquently by another poster, If you do not perceive the value at the cost, do not buy it. If people do not buy, they will be forced to go back to the table, and offer a sale or some other incentive to buy and make them rethink their pricing strategy for future packs.

 

However, if you complain... but buy anyway... your complaint is just empty words.

[Arkerus]

For the people asking why... I would be surprised if they answered the question... even more surprised if they did that you would accept any answer (short, of whoops, it was a mistake, here take these coins back).

 

Very few, if any, companies fully disclose out their pricing strategy. I can give you some great jargon on how we determine prices at my company... but in the end... its just that jargon. I will not disclose how the final number is achieved, nor will I openly disclose my costs to deliver the product in question. Except to investors, and only detailed line item costs to those who have NDA's and such in place. Customers, are not investors.

 

Instead of demanding answers, simply DO NOT BUY THEM AT THE CURRENT PRICE. This will speak many more volumes than anything said on the forums.

 

As I said earlier, or more eloquently by another poster, If you do not perceive the value at the cost, do not buy it. If people do not buy, they will be forced to go back to the table, and offer a sale or some other incentive to buy and make them rethink their pricing strategy for future packs.

 

However, if you complain... but buy anyway... your complaint is just empty words.

 

I like your newsletter and would like to subscribe. I have one similar.

[Drockter]

That's only partial true. Bioware can have a rather strong influence on the pricing in the GTN by adjusting the rarity and droprate of said items.

 

A good example would be the Vrook Lamar Chestpiece. It was the one item I was looking forward to obtain for my Jedi-Guardian, yet I can hardly get it. It's 3,5 Million credits on the GTN because it apparently drops rarely. If Bioware would adjust the rarity and let it drop more often, the price would go down.

 

Actually, it is fully true... Bioware actually has no mechanism in place for me to buy a hypercrate, open it... and sell each and everything in it at the base number (not increasing for rarity)... They would not stop me. They would not email me saying "Hey Drock, you really need to post that for more creds". I choose the price... now, that being said... yes... like other GTN posters of items, I choose a price close to what others have posted the same item for... but make no mistake... Bioware does not have the final say there... I can certainly post it for far less.

 

The other players who received that item have set the GTN price, and other GTN posters followed suit. Bioware has absolutely nothing to do with it costing 3.5 Mil on the GTN.

[Icestar]

I'm not sure you understand how the real world works. Trust me when I say the first two packs didn't have a lower price because of "fun". Bioware creates "fun" and products that people want to play. That is how they make money. But they didn't lower the price on the first two packs because some guy burst into a board room and said "HEY, LET'S JUST GIVE THEM SOME FUN!!!!"

 

I teach at a university so I pretty much know how the real world works. That said, if a community is happy and find the prices reasonable they buy more, It is a known fact. If not they simply do find it worth their while they do not buy.

 

If they have reasonable priced cartel packs and the reward will be atleast rare then it is ok, but these super rare items it breaks the fun in even try to get a pack. Packs are all about the "instant gratification" theory, you buy you gamble and you get a result very quick. But even that theory has its flaws, and many of them to say nicely.

 

The key here is making the players happy and spend more money.

 

Anyway I am sure this is way out of Biowares reach, I am sure they would have done it differently. It is all about someone "knowing the market" and acct accordingly and see what happens.

 

This round, they got their answer from most of the playerbase.

 

I am sure they will do the same misstake again, making us spend 10K+ CC to get a special item, thing is will it work once more or did they burn the marked with thisone? A very relevant question asked.

Edited October 16, 2014 by Icestar

[Reno_Tarshil]

I teach at a university so I pretty much know how the real world works. That said, if a community is happy and find the prices reasonable they buy more, It is a known fact. If not they simply do find it worth their while they do not buy.

 

If they have reasonable priced cartel packs and the reward will be atleast rare then it is ok, but these super rare items it breaks the fun in even try to get a pack. Packs are all about the "instant gratification" theory, you buy you gamble and you get a result very quick. But even that theory has its flaws, and many of them to say nicely.

 

The key here is making the players happy and spend more money.

 

Anyway I am sure this is way out of Biowares reach, I am sure they would have done it differently. It is all about someone "knowing the market" and acct accordingly and see what happens.

 

This round, they got their answer from most of the playerbase.

 

I am sure they will do the same misstake again, making us spend 10K+ CC to get a special item, thing is will it work once more or did they burn the marked with thisone? A very relevant question asked.

 

It's true, I woulda bought more packs if the prices were still at the reasonable prices of the previous two packs.

[Arkerus]

I teach at a university so I pretty much know how the real world works. That said, if a community is happy and find the prices reasonable they buy more, It is a known fact. If not they simply do find it worth their while they do not buy.

 

If they have reasonable priced cartel packs and the reward will be atleast rare then it is ok, but these super rare items it breaks the fun in even try to get a pack. Packs are all about the "instant gratification" theory, you buy you gamble and you get a result very quick. But even that theory has its flaws, and many of them to say nicely.

 

The key here is making the players happy and spend more money.

 

Anyway I am sure this is way out of Biowares reach, I am sure they would have done it differently. It is all about someone "knowing the market" and acct accordingly and see what happens.

 

This round, they got their answer from most of the playerbase.

 

I am sure they will do the same misstake again, making us spend 10K+ CC to get a special item, thing is will it work once more or did they burn the marked with thisone? A very relevant question asked.

 

Honestly, I couldn't discern a real point in any of that. I don't want to get off track or insult you so I will move on. If you care to comment on how a corporation pricing strategy works, by all means, please do so. It is apparent to me that some folks (not all, as I mentioned above) seem to believe that Bioware owes them something when that couldn't be further from the truth.

[Deewe]

they don't owe us a single damn explanation on their internal reasoning for WHY price went up.

I tend to agree and was even more surprised when I saw it was Dulfy who asked the question, considering her support to the game.

 

Still while they don't owe players any explanation, and was even way more surprised they even attempted at delivering one, I think there's a bit more at stake here. And my guess is by answering on the forums they proved they got that part too.

 

First lets stipulate that it was nowhere written that the packs price would stay the same or should I say, would not change. Although it's understandable some people had expectations based on the late trend.

 

Then whatever the pricing policy set by BioWare, and sky is the technical limit, it's far from a free for all decision.

As stated many times in this thread, there's a perceived value tied to the packs. Now by lowering said price in the last 2 and adding a deco in each pack they created a new standard in the players mind.

 

So in a way they created a precedent. However it would not be of an issue would the players perception be that they're getting a fair trade for their money. Back to your point: they indeed aren't obliged to explain to players their pricing policy at all.

 

Now you'd think they want to build a strong relationship with their customers, even more as MMO are mostly long term investment both for the studio producing it and the player. So the issue I see here, is while they might make more cash out of the packs (and it has yet to be proven), it might have been a wrong move.

Edited October 16, 2014 by Deewe

[Darth_Wicked]

I tend to agree and was even more surprised when I saw it was Dulfy who asked the question, considering her support to the game.

 

Supporting the game and blindly supporting anything Bioware does are NOT one and the same.

Edited October 16, 2014 by Darth_Wicked

[Deewe]

Supporting the game and blindly supporting anything Bioware does are NOT one and the same.

I mean I took it as a concerned player. But I might be wrong.

[SaceDelora]

Remember the psychology of a F2P Cash Shop - They only have to get your money once to get more from you on average than they would had you subbed. So once you make that impulse buy - they know some of us will come back for more, but they're happy enough that you bought something at all, and could honestly care less if you're happy or not with the value you perceive to get.

 

Why is this pack more expensive?

 

"Because you'll buy it." -Bioware

[OddballEasyEight]

I have NEVER in my life walked into a store, saw the price on my favorite product went up by a bit and demanded to speak to a manager.

 

That's ridiculous and the same applies here. Yes. Consumer expectation can be altered when a price drops and companies risk some loss in sales when they raise prices but they don't owe us a single damn explanation on their internal reasoning for WHY price went up.

 

Asking for that is absurd.

 

Well, having worked in stores for 10 years or so, I have had customers (politely) ask why prices have changed when we have done so without any notification.

 

However, this isn't just a case of increasing the price on something.

In this case they had a set price for 2 years.

Then they suddenly, without notification or explanation, lowered it for two packs.

And then they raised it again. without notification or explanation.

 

That's an odd behaviour.

 

And again, who's saying they OWE us anything?

We're just asking. And when they then say "because we can", we get a bit upset because that's a pretty BS answer (and they'd be better off not answering at all instead of giving an answer like that).

[Deewe]

However, this isn't just a case of increasing the price on something.

In this case they had a set price for 2 years.

Then they suddenly, without notification or explanation, lowered it for two packs.

And then they raised it again. without notification or explanation.

 

That's an odd behaviour.

 

And again, who's saying they OWE us anything?

We're just asking. And when they then say "because we can", we get a bit upset because that's a pretty BS answer (and they'd be better off not answering at all instead of giving an answer like that).

This lacked proper communication to mitigate the issue.

 

But guess they knew pretty well people would be upset about this behavior.

[DarthDymond]

I have NEVER in my life walked into a store, saw the price on my favorite product went up by a bit and demanded to speak to a manager.

 

That's ridiculous and the same applies here. Yes. Consumer expectation can be altered when a price drops and companies risk some loss in sales when they raise prices but they don't owe us a single damn explanation on their internal reasoning for WHY price went up.

 

Asking for that is absurd.

Does that hypothetical store have a dedicated message board? One where providing feedback about its products/services is one of that board's specific, avowed purposes?

 

If bringing up "Hey, your prices for this line of products have been fluctuating a lot lately - and in a way we've never seen before. What's going on?" on just such a forum seems "ridiculous" or "absurd" to you... then I think you're the one with some skewed expectations re: customer/provider interactions.

 

Your complaint seems like the equivalent of complaining about customers using 'customer comment cards' in a store to leave a comment about price changes - you know, one of the things they are specifically there for.

Edited October 17, 2014 by DarthDymond

[igorbarc]

They are simply experimenting with pricing, to maximize overall revenue.

 

Revenue= (Number of purchases)x (Price of a pack), but there is inverse correlation between Number of purchases and price of a pack. Making price of a pack higher, reduce number of purchases. Making price lower increase it. So to maximize revenue, they must experiment to find better balance.

[Icestar]

Honestly, I couldn't discern a real point in any of that. I don't want to get off track or insult you so I will move on. If you care to comment on how a corporation pricing strategy works, by all means, please do so. It is apparent to me that some folks (not all, as I mentioned above) seem to believe that Bioware owes them something when that couldn't be further from the truth.

 

I have no claim in Bioware owes me anything. I have my pre-order crystal, my CE decoration statue and even a Taun Fawn that is enough for me.

 

I simply state the fact that I think they dropped the ball with this pack, very expensive and low return.

Edited October 17, 2014 by Icestar

[neum]

I can not believe fools really buy these gambling bags. I do not condone this at all or would ever do it but money wise it is cheaper to buy credits and get want you want from the auction house then waste money on these cash grab bags.

[Reno_Tarshil]

I can not believe fools really buy these gambling bags. I do not condone this at all or would ever do it but money wise it is cheaper to buy credits and get want you want from the auction house then waste money on these cash grab bags.

 

I cannot believe people still think cartel packs are gambling...

[Deewe]

I cannot believe people still think cartel packs are gambling...

It is if you don't resell the content of the packs.