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Monday, March 3, 2014

7 Simple Rules for Navigating Empire Avenue

New players on Empire Avenue (EAv) often struggle to find their way. I wish I had understood these simple rules for navigating the social stock market game from the start. I invite experienced players to share any tips I missed in the comments below.

1. Do not attach ego to share price.


Share price features prominently on your Empire Avenue profile. Because it is tied to the quantity of shares you have sold, share price feels like a popularity benchmark. 

However, as your share price rises, your shares become less affordable. Even worse, your yield goes down. In short, pushing your share price higher does not make your shares more attractive to other EAv players.

Over the long run, dips and plateaus in your share price progression won't matter anyway. As long as you keep playing the game, your shareholder base will grow and your share price will rise. 

2. Try not to take anything personally.


People have many different reasons for playing Empire Avenue. Some see it as pure entertainment, akin to Grand Theft Auto or Candy Crush Saga. Others have staked their professional reputations on their association with the site. 

Unfortunately, we cannot truly know what motivates other individuals because we are each trapped in the filters of our own perceptions, and we should take care how we act on presumed slights. 

Try to view the actions of other players without getting emotional. Did someone sell all their shares in you? Fine, look at the shares you own in them with an investor's eye and decide whether you wish to continue holding them. Then ignore that player and move on. 

3. Reciprocation matters.


Game theorists have demonstrated that human interaction is driven by expectations of reciprocity. Empire Avenue is no exception. Your shareholders will expect you to buy them back unless you pay dividends so high they are willing to overlook an imbalance. 

4. Dividends rule the stock market.


Share price is relatively unimportant because dividends rule the stock market on Empire Avenue. The dividends you earn each day on your investments determine the rate at which you build wealth, and the dividends you pay to your investors drive share sales.

You increase the dividends you pay to your shareholders by improving your network scores on your top five networks.  

You build wealth by investing in high yield/high dividend stocks. Building wealth early in the game frees you to focus on whatever you want later. (Thank you, Harold Gardner.)

5. Avoid selling active stocks.


Some players buy and sell the same shares repeatedly. They may be chasing a perfect ROI, funding missions, or expanding their pie or portfolio size. These churners may pay a social price in public backlash.  

While I think you should not take the game personally, other players will take offense if you churn their shares. At times, they will go public with their hurt feelings. 

From a wealth-building standpoint, selling and re-buying shares on Empire Avenue is expensive. You pay at least five percent on each transaction. Because the share prices of active players rise over time, you also end up paying more for the shares you sold. You will be selling low and re-buying high, which is stock market madness.

6. You cannot buy loyalty.


Eaves are not only for investing, they are also used to fund missions that foster goodwill, fund new shareholders, and initiate relationships on other networks.

Some of these connections will flourish, but others will not. Sometimes a player will sell off the shares you financed in a mission. Maybe he forgot you paid for the shares. Try not to take it personally.

7. Succeeding on EAv is not the same as being a social media rock star. 


Social media rock stars do well on Empire Avenue. Their activity and interactions on other platforms pay high dividends that attract investors. If they choose to employ their considerable social skills investing and interacting on EAv, all the better. 

However, the reverse is not true. Succeeding on EAv, even when paying high dividends that appear supported by activity and interaction on several networks, is not always proof of social influence. (Thank you, Kevin Green.)

Be wary of advice that contradicts your internal social barometer and the goals you have set for yourself, regardless of the network scores an adviser boasts. 


Have I missed anything?


These are the seven rules for navigating Empire Avenue I wish I had known when I started. What rule would you add? Please comment below.

Would you like to learn more about Empire Avenue? 


Feel free to click through on my referral link. Empire Avenue is free to join and play, and my referrals benefit from my support and attention.


11 comments:

  1. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  2. It seems to me that the rules may vary slightly depending the reason behind your use of EA. There are people who view it as a game, people who view as a way to advertise, people who use it to promote a cause (like me), etc. Some of these rules cut across all motivations. I offer no answers, just the observation.

    Nevertheless, a very good post!

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  3. I agree, Lou. Your motivations and goals in the game will weigh heavily on your choice of strategy.

    Thanks for taking the time to read and reply. Cheers!

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  4. I've considered writing something like this for over six months now. Thanks, Tammi, for saving me the trouble. Spot on!

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  5. Interesting that you didn't mention ROI :100*(DIVIDEND / SHARE PRICE).

    I always make my invested based on ROI...like any stock market should.

    Then focus on bringing high dividend to my shareholder.

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    1. #4 - Dividends Rule the Stock Market. The calculation you call ROI, I call yield. I didn't go into a lot of detail because that is another post. :)

      Thanks for commenting.

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  6. What about this. You buy the new players. 50 of them. And after two week you shift them. Those who didn't buy you and aren't growing you sell. Or what about the watch button? Or the lists you can make. How you benefit from those services. e(Atotsm)

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    Replies
    1. Hi Thomas, you have raised several useful points for more advanced posts. Thank you!

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  7. Excellent pointers Tammi! My favorite is #2 (don't take anything personally).

    The only thing I would add is info about doing the missions. Lots of newbies just click the complete button, but don't follow through.

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