Official Middleman Application Process

Plus Tmoe was removed, so there was a net gain of only 1 OMM over the past 6 months. Another reason to keep the current system.

N4n0: Please explain to me how you do not believe the current OMM vetting process (including the staff vote) is not secure?
In my opinion, it would be ideal for us to have many more OMMs
Taken off Hahanerd's thread http://sythe.org/showpost.php?p=9362816&postcount=29

 

Oh I was under the assumption that Tmoe still held the OMM rank on the books, and just didn't have it in his profile.

Well regardless here's a rundown of inactive/soon to be inactive OMM's

Tmoe - Has yet to be reinstated as OMM
Hamjam - Not OMM'ing at the moment
Ryan - Hasn't posted in his OMM topic since April (4 months ago)
Dingo - Hasn't posted in his OMM topic since February (6 months ago)
RsProd - Inactive soon
Louis - Currently Banned, outcome has yet to be decided
Nick - Inactive, hasn't been on Sythe since June 26th (1.5 Months ago)
Viper - Has no OMM Topic, not on the OMM list, and hasn't been on Sythe since June 20th (1.5 months ago)


So of the ~20 OMM's, over 1/3rd of them are Inactive/not OMM'ing

 

Gahh I wish people would just trust me enough to MM i only have 3/25..I wish i can just get it done already so i can move up and on.

 

I do think there should be one major one like others have said for $500.

 

For my two cents, I'd like to add that I feel the dwindling gp price doesn't really support the increased number of high-value trades required for the application.

When free trade was new and gp was still $1/m, more trades were going on and they were worth more in general. Now, gp is at $.4/m and (so far as I can tell) there are really not that many large trades happening anymore - with that said, the ones that do happen happen between the bulk gp sellers who wouldn't think to use a MM in the first place anyway.

I think it's okay as it is.

 

I think it should be something along these lines,

11 $5-50
11 $50-100
11 100-200
5 200-300
2 $300+

Which equals 40 trades.

Thats just what I think it should be. I also find this as being much better than how it is currently.

 

That looks real good actually. It may sound as though I'm sounding a bit selfish or greedy saying that, but it needs to be done. The application now is too easy. Also, adding in a 1-2 $500s would be even better. An OMM should be trusted with all amounts, not just $200 or so.

 

No one is going to use a regular MM for a 1b+ Trade.

Most of the people getting their applications done in a week or two are moderators or widely known extremely trusted people in the market.

Snow Patrol raised an incredible point in the "problem" of there being too many middlemen.

 

I have only OMM'd 2 trades in the past 5+ months. Just adding onto snow's post.

 

Nice work, n4; I like the idea of new requirements. However, I'm just a tad shaky, as other people have pointed out, about the quantity of trades worth more than $300.00, though I'm sure it won't pose too large a concern.

And yes, Snow Patrol poses a valid point. 1/3 of the OMMs are considerably inactive and the amount of people who would use free middlemans for trades over $350 are few, if any (with mild exceptions).

 

True that. Trades of that value is the reason for omm's. I just think the amount of trades to do that amount should be lowered. Or something.

 

And I'm pretty sure Finn hasn't done many either.

N4n0, can you please explain WHY we need a stricter OMM application?

 

5 <$50
10 $50-100
10 100-200
10 200-350
4 $350+
1 $500+

 

Why more than 25? Why new numbers?

 

Like I said before, no one is going to use a regular MM for 15 trades over 400M.

The only people that blase through their OMM applications are moderators and people will 500+ or more vouches, and if someone does manage to make it through and don't deserve it you can deny them, adding all of these large trades would make it nearly impossible for any regular member to attempt the OMM application.

 

Many of you are wondering why the amount of trades and value per trade should be raised, I will state my reasons below.

1. The more complicated the application, the less we will get very, very trusted applicants who have an easy time MMing because of their large amount of trust.

2. If these people discover that the OMM application takes a large deal of time that may cut into their other business profits, then they will be far less likely to go for OMM.

3. The current application was created long before free trade came out, and before free trade, the only real way to get a $200 trade was with an account trade, and that took a long time to find. Now that you can freely trade GP between accounts, getting large trades is easy as pie due to all the RSGP sales going on around here.

4. By creating a harder application to meet the current market prices, and having it be difficult enough to possibly turn off very trusted people who were doing it for the rank or a symbol of power, we will only have the most devoted and determined applicants.

5. The rank of Official MiddleMan is very prestigious, and should be given out to those who are put through a strenuous application process to prove trust and dedication.

This theoretically ought to knock off undevoted applicants, resulting in better MMs, and ridding of members who have an easier time getting OMM so they can scam in the
future.

@Flyingtoast,
$300+ account trade back in the day is the rough equivalent to a bil GP trade nowadays, just look at the GP prices...

And I don't necessarily agree with you, I was neither a staff member nor did I have 500+ vouches; I had 35 or so vouches when I began my MM quest, and had somewhere around 100 when I finished....

 

Sorry I haven't checked up on this in a bit, but this pretty much sums up my reasoning. I feel that if the standards are higher, the people that actually do attempt to complete an application will be dedicated towards the job.

Also, for those of you saying that a $300/400(ish) trade is too much for a normal MM. What makes this person any different than an OMM with THE SAME AMOUNT OF EXPERIENCE, TRUST, AND VOUCHES? At this point, the ONLY difference is a simple title. If you're going to let that sway your vote, then honestly you need to reconsider your trading practices.

The whole reason I want to make a more difficult application is so that users who are applying for OMM go through and properly earn their rank through hard work and dedication. Not by doing a simple 25 trades, which as stated earlier, can be easily completed in just a couple weeks.

 

There have been 14 OMM applications submitted, three from the same person this year so far.

It's not like there's an overflow of people applying, an everyone who hasn't deserved it has been denied.

 

If you want to fundamentally make the application system much harder than before, it would only be reasonable to demote the entire OMM team and make them reapply, as they would not have reached the standards through there applications of those of the "very, very trusted applicants".

This is a bad thing. We want MORE active OMMs.

I did 18/25 applications in around a month of not-ridiculously active MMing. I completed all the top tiers (all 100+ with many excess, even had a $550 trade). Also, I would argue with what I have noticed to be increasingly declining demand in the RS market, there will be LESS MM opportunity now then before free trade.

Please explain to me how someone not so "very trusted" could complete the application today and then pass a global lounge supermajority? I've certainly never seen it happen.

I've never seen an applicant who deserved it more than the people who have gotten it since free trade came out.

A scammer will be searching to pursue one of 2 paths.
1. (rare case) Gain enough trust so they can pull of a huge scam. In this case, they will complete any size OMM application.
2. (common case)

At the point of 1 Billion GP or more, buyers usually go first to sellers (like me) or insist on an OMM. I can tell you this from much bulk GP-buying experience.

I would argue that with the fact no one uses paypal anymore, combined with a decrease in the market volume, it is just as hard to get OMM now than before free trade.

If there was no staff vote, I might hesitantly accept your call for reform. But honestly, I see no need.

@N4n0: Please explain how 25 trades is a small number? Just because arguably the most trusted and active trader on the site (video) pulled it off, doesn't mean it's commonplace. I think 40 is a large deterrent.

Again, if you do decide to go for a new reform system, the voting should be by ONLY non-OMM upper staff and you should at least have one or two people play devil's advocate and stir up good reasons against it, as this suggestion clearly benefits the current OMMs.

 

The little rank means a lot, just like when becoming a moderator GREATLY increases business. You still had the same amount of experience, trust and vouches but you've got that extra title.