What do you buy most in store and on the marketplace? And what would you like to see most in the market?

[Kimmi Zehetbauer]

2 hours ago, Royce Quinn said:

Markeplace about 99% of the time.  Store owners have repeatedly irritated me enough that I shop online mostly.  Here's why.

• Store owners that think they will make more sales forcing me to walk rather than fly...no sale at all, I find somewhere else to go.

 

Can always use the fly mode in the SL client to override the land's no-fly thing.  If a shop owner gets their panties in a wad and threaten to eject you --- time to hit another shop.

[Prokofy Neva]

On 10/30/2021 at 8:48 AM, 0neEyeMamba said:

I'm curious to know what makes people want to return to their favorite creator or store. And who are your best creators?

Wooden boxes with intricate handles. With blankets on top. Then maybe some tin mugs. A crystal would be nice, but that's gilding the lily. This is perfection, for example, from Thor ($249), currently at Anthem. I already have box/blanket/coffee kind of things from : Merak, Dreamland Design, Madras, and probably dozens of other designers, but they could all make a new one and I would buy that one too. As for "best creators," I have many, and for different settings/occasions/houses. But the best bar none is 8f8 in so many ways. For example look at his latest Oak Master set, also at Anthem, just painfully beautiful. I feel as if I could see my own reflection in those autumn puddles. Trees are hard to do well. And maybe these aren't even the best trees -- it's more about the whole gestalt of the scene put together; Mr. Fundati likely makes the best trees now for the best price but then Hayabusa and HPMD and Nadine Reverie all make excellent trees as well; so does Heart which I use for different settings. Thankfully there is diversity now, not just the Linden trees.

Edited November 4, 2021 by Prokofy Neva

[Prokofy Neva]

On 10/30/2021 at 4:39 PM, Rolig Loon said:

I don't enjoy shopping very much, so I tend to look for something specific, ignore everything else, and leave after I find it (or when I get tired of looking for it).  I use Marketplace like a shopping guide usually.  I do keyword searches to get a feel for who is selling items like whatever I am looking for, and then visit their in world shop. I won't buy clothing without trying a demo first, and I won't buy items that have a higher LOD or L.I. than they need.

I use the Marketplace to search for things like Google, but as in RL I try to go to the real store, not only to see it in reality, even if in virtuality, but to give the full payment to the creator and support them rather than having the tax go to Linden. If the theory is, but they provide the search and setting so I can find things, ok, but so often I already know the creator, I already know their wares, I go to their weekend sales every weekend, but it's just I'm too lazy to go searching on their shop floor to find something I know they have. Some stores like Fantasy China are very well organized by category, season etc and you can find things.

But the reliance on the Casper vendor, which is ubiquitous, where sometimes search works, and sometimes it doesn't, or something what you are searching for is not on that vendor but another, means you are actually driven back to the marketplace and thereby not increasing Casper's business but the Lindens. Casper is useful to get redeliveries -- if in fact they show up, they don't always. Yes, I realize Firestorm has area search, but I don't want to use their viewer. 

Search/places and for that matter search/people is still broken, nearly a year after it first broke down, and it's astounding the Lindens never try to fix it.

[Maitimo]

I shop mostly on the MP. If a store has no MP presence then I won't even know they exist.

I rarely shop at events because I find them overpriced, a special deal of a fatpack for L$1500 instead of L$1999 or a single colour for L$200 instead of L$299, is no bargain when my usual budget for a fatpack is L$200. So I get most of my clothes from stores that price in that range, Hilly Haalan being my favourite.

What I buy most - probably hair. Especially Magika hair, which I love. I buy almost everything from there as its released.

[malienna]

Furniture, houses, and landscaping items. I usually see something I like in MP, then visit the shop inworld if they have one. Even if I visit the shop I usually buy the item on MP. I most often puchase older items from ages ago, so don't have a favorite creator.

[archangel969]

Oh yes! I definitely have my favourite shops and creators. That has to do with style, quality and good value for money (I am Dutch, after all). And also for sentimental reasons, I do attach myself to creators and shops I know. Just like I do with the shopkeepers in my well-known shopping street in RL.

 

For houses, furniture:

Dutchie Furniture and Homes.

Froukje Hoorenbeek succeeds in creating houses and furniture with an unprecedented realism. You really have the feeling of living in them and with them. For me as a Dutch person, it is of course a chavinistic aspect that she's also Dutch like me and even lives in my hometown Utrecht.

Other good options for furniture:

Fancy Decor by Jake Vordun

Nice and realistic, sometimes a bit clean, but always of a consistent quality.

Apple Fall by Apple Pumpkins

Very atmospheric and also constant quality. Especially suitable for a provincial and rustic look.

NOMAD by Piraiyah Novikov. Very own style with a witticism. Rather colourful, peculiar and humorous with sometimes a sinister/steampunk edge than very realistic. You like it or not.

 

Louis the umpteenth style, antique and china

CHINA & GOODIES by: Marie de Polignac.

 

Environment/landscaping:

Studio Skye by Alex Bader

Absolutely first class in landscapes. Again, a degree of realism that is rarely, if ever, equalled by others.

 

Trees

Little Branch by Cari McKeenan

Beautifully detailed trees. To be honest, if I need a (small) forest or a park I do alternate trees from other suppliers as LB trees have a rather high prim content when multiplied. But if you want trees that are also worth a closer look, this is the place to be.

 

Flowers for large gardens:

Terra d'ombrA by maizon Rayna.

Very low in prim and proper, the flower meadows and rose hedges cover a large area. Disadvantage is that they are non-copy.

 

Hedges:

3D TREES by Nadine Reverie

They are big, but nicely detailed, the hedges of 3D TREES> The yews and the cypresses are also beautiful. Not suitable for small gardens!

 

Grassy plains and meadows:
KIDD Grass Garden by doP Kidd. Good to fair quality for it's price, low in prim and covers large areas.

 

Fountains

Atelier Visconti by Stephan Visconti

By far the best and most atmospheric fountains available.

 

Animals

JIAN by Jian SL
Very reasonably priced and realistic-looking animals.

 

Clothing:

I mainly wear suits and there are really only a handful of shops that deliver a quality in that genre that I find suitable. They are:

Cold Ash

Deadwool by Masa Plympton

Hoorenbeek by Limer Costs

Bastchild by Paul Lapointe

And if I'm in a more fashionable, contemporary mood:

::K:: by: Kitt Ragu

And when I'm in a naughty mood:

NOCHE by Danny Pancake. Very good quality sexy underwear for men.

 

Edited November 5, 2021 by archangel969

[Eddy Vortex]

A creator gets repeat business from me if they put out consistently good quality stuff that works well.  Good customer service and not having silly sim rules where they require you to walk 5 miles to reach their front door without flying or double-click TP helps too.

Some of my favorites include Hotdog, Riot, Apple Fall, Bleich, Izzie's, Paragon Dance Animations, Gild, and Gabriel.

If I need something specific for a project, I search through Marketplace.  I sometimes find new (to me) creators through blogs or browsing the weekend sales. 

[archangel969]

18 hours ago, archangel969 said:

 

 

Forgot to add that service is really important. I also buy art sometimes to have a small art collection from SL artists and my contacts with most of the artists are really good and very helpfull.

My experiences with buying skins are not that good actually when it comes to service. I have bought skins from Stray Dog and they are very good, looking only at the quality. But the service was non existent. I first tried some demo's. For me - and I guess for more of you - skins are something really important yet tricky. It can make or brake the shape of your avatar. The times I had a shock when trying skins! So I am happy when I find one that says: hello I am you!  Well, I found the right one and turned back to the shop. That was hopeless. It was a maze. I simply could not find the one from the demo. There were so many skins and I completely got lost. I contacted Stray Dogs and they simply did not answer. Now I read somewhere that this was normal: not answering. Well, I am happened to be of the opinion that this is not normal at all. That was some time ago and maybe things are changed for the better, I hope so.

[Marianne Little]

Bazar is also a great furniture store. It is cheaper than Apple Fall and Fancy Decor, but it looks as good. I can go there and browse and buy a stack of books for 16 L or a decor bicycle to hang on the wall for 39 L. Or the whole bedroom set with bed and more decor and additional furniture than I can mention, for 1000 L.

The store has looked the same on the outside as long as I can remember. Minor changes on the inside, always with kitchens and baths on 2nd floor. The store did also have their older furniture for sale last I was there, and it is interesting how it has evolved. Some of the kitchens and baths look blah today, but others like the Traveler and Stockholm bedrooms and the Forest Dining looks like it was made the last year. The only thing they are missing is Bento animations, they are too old for that. So try before you buy.

[0neEyeMamba]

On 11/2/2021 at 3:55 AM, Alwin Alcott said:

why?

I want to create myself and I want to make sure I understand the expectations of SL residents. Also, if some creators stumble on this post, the answers received can offer a lot of insights for them to progress on their products while, also, meeting the wants of each of you. Plus, it gives an opportunity to know about other creators.

Edited November 5, 2021 by 0neEyeMamba

[Sid Nagy]

Big pet peeve of mine: Landing outside a store, the need to walk the stairs, find the doors to open to get in. Why?
Beats me. Please give a landing point straight on the money. If I want to explore and admire architecture, I will do so when I feel the urge. Please make shopping a bit efficient.

And please, no auto redirection to the landing point, because I want to use self made landmarks to find stuff back easily when examining goods and comparing stuff from several merchants.

Edited November 5, 2021 by Sid Nagy

[Eddy Vortex]

16 hours ago, archangel969 said:

Forgot to add that service is really important. I also buy art sometimes to have a small art collection from SL artists and my contacts with most of the artists are really good and very helpfull.

My experiences with buying skins are not that good actually when it comes to service. I have bought skins from Stray Dog and they are very good, looking only at the quality. But the service was non existent. I first tried some demo's. For me - and I guess for more of you - skins are something really important yet tricky. It can make or brake the shape of your avatar. The times I had a shock when trying skins! So I am happy when I find one that says: hello I am you!  Well, I found the right one and turned back to the shop. That was hopeless. It was a maze. I simply could not find the one from the demo. There were so many skins and I completely got lost. I contacted Stray Dogs and they simply did not answer. Now I read somewhere that this was normal: not answering. Well, I am happened to be of the opinion that this is not normal at all. That was some time ago and maybe things are changed for the better, I hope so.

I had the same experience with this shop about another issue and no, this is not normal. Delays in responding due to RL is one thing, but hearing crickets after 4 months is unacceptable. This is a good way for a business to lose a customer.

 

[Eddy Vortex]

12 hours ago, Sid Nagy said:

Big pet peeve of mine: Landing outside a store, the need to walk the stairs, find the doors to open to get in. Why?
Beats me. Please give a landing point straight on the money. If I want to explore and admire architecture, I will do so when I feel the urge. Please make shopping a bit efficient.

And please, no auto redirection to the landing point, because I want to use self made landmarks to find stuff back easily when examining goods and comparing stuff from several merchants.

⬆️ This. So. Very. Much.

Because they want you to dillydally around to soak in the atmosphere and EnJoY tHe FuLL sHopPiNg ExPeRiEnCe just like they like to do in RL. Them insisting on their idea of the correct way of shopping shows a severe lack of understanding of a sizable chunk of the potential customer base who prefers to shop the same way they do in RL: go in, get it, and get out.  Disabling flying and direct teleporting takes away our choice to move around efficiently.  Those who prefer to leisurely explore a shopping sim can still do so; nothing is being taken away from them if these functions were enabled.  

Edited November 6, 2021 by Eddy Vortex