[How To] Make your guides effective

[Unholyshaman]

Hi there, this is Unholy[S]haman and I am writing this guide to try increase the quality not quantity of new threads and information we get each day.

I'm sure all of you are a bit tired of reading the same piece of information over and over again, thinking that this person did not put much effort into it, like they don't really care about it, just hoping to get rep.

Well I've been a member of this site for quite a few months now and have been slowly contributing (busy working on three different guides at the moment). I have seen a few [How To Post a Guide] Threads but not all of them seem to have been successful and have been long gone from all the new influx of threads daily.

So today I am going to show you some of the methods that I enjoy seeing in a guide, it makes me feel like it was worth my time reading and that the author put in a effort to make it successful.

I am going to take the thread “A Basic Guide to Monopolizing” By Joedude11 and use it as an example.
[NOTE] I take NO recognition for the method. All i have done is improve it in order to demonstrate how to write a successful guide. I take full recognition for the demonstration.(You can find the link for his guide at the bottom of this thread.

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Guide:

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One of the most successful and fun ways I have found is to monopolise the World of Warcraft economy, namely the Auction House.
WoW -> Info - > Basics - > Auction Houses

For this example I am going to use :
Cobra Scales

For this you will need to be a:
Skinner


Cobra Scales suggested price range is 10-25g each depending on your server.
Thottbot: World of Warcraft suggests:


The easiest way to monoplize the AH is when you already have a few of the said items. So what we need to do it get a few hour of farming in action.

Cobra Scales drop off: (seldom drop, best way is to skin them)
Twilight Serpents in Nagrand

Coilskar Cobras in Shadowmoon Valley

At the bottom of the guide you will find maps and coordinates to these mobs.

*We need one or two stacks for Cobra Scales before we can get into business. This might take an hour or two depending on your luck, kill speed, downtime, farming competition and so forth.

*Once you have your supply of Cobra Scales, go to the auction house and make a search for Cobra Scales. Look at the results, it should give you an idea of how much they sell for. (Might help to ask your guild or in trade for some of them people who have a nice updated auctioneer or who often farm them).

*Then buy out all the Cobra Scales on the auction house and re-list them for about 10 gold higher, might help to only list a few stacks at a time and then a couple singularly as well, then each time you see someone has bought one, go re-list some more up.

*Now here is when the real monopolizing comes into play, you need to keep an eye out for anyone who dares to re-list cobra scales for cheaper than your, you need to buy those out immediately and then re-list them at your price or keep for future re-listing.

*This way you are in control of the average price, forcing people to start re-listing theirs higher and higher. Soon the average price will be as high as yours, and the best thing about this is, if you get bored of it, you can always undercut your normal price and sell for a few gold lower than the current going rate, as long as it is a bit more than what you originally bought them for.

Recap:
Step 1: Farm
Step 2: Acquire average price
Step 3: Buy them all
Step 4: Re-list for higher price
Step 5: Buyout all of the cobra scales in the next few hours/days that people re-list for lower than yours.
Step 6: [Optional] If you get bored, sell all the ones in your bags for slightly lower than the new price but higher than the original price.

I hope you all enjoyed and benefited from my guide, below you can find the promised links.

[Origional Guide] http://www.mmowned.com/forums/wow-gu...opolizing.html
[Twilight Serpents Map]

[Coilskar Cobra Map]

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Guide:

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I have found that what makes a guide successful is:
*Having links if possible
*Having images if possible
*Correct and up-to-date statistics
*Maps and coordinates
*A decent layout that is not just one or two solid paragraphs of text
*Information that follows in a logical order and explaining as much as possible or at least giving links to other websites that maybe explain certain things in a greater detail.
*Using a color that is easily readable on mmowned's grey/black background and a color that does not hurt the eyes.
*It is often helps to recap what has been said in a short and logical way to remind the user of the steps so each time they dont have to go and re-read the whole thing.

** Big tip to alot of site noobs, do NOT ask for rep ever, don't even hint for it because
A) shows you are desperate
B) people will rep you if they feel that your thread or post is constructive and successful
C) mmowned isn't all about getting rep, sure, you do get bonuses for having 80 + rep and so on, more respect, etc, but try think of it more as helping others succeed in world of warcraft.

[Sence]

Very nice guide, I liked how you spiced up and made Joedude11 guide more interesting. I will keep these tips in mind. +rep if I could

[Technique]

very nice guide! well put together and pictures.

[shadowbladex]

His is more a tip, ur's is a guide.

[Unholyshaman]

Well you see, i basically used his guide as a demonstration on how he could improve it to make it more effective, this is the kind of post that makes me feel like reading it was worth my time, even if i know the info i still give rep sometimes just for the layout and effort put in, making it that he deserves rep since it is a very nice contribution.

[Unholyshaman]

anyone with more feedback? Maybe other things that you guys found makes a successful thread?

[Ermok]

I think this is an epic post to be fair, =]

[Unholyshaman]

Hehe thanks UserDutty, im hoping that the admins will consider this a valuable contribution but then again maybe not =)

Just want to try raise the quality of threads and information being posted.
Also with all the leechers trying to post decent information to get out of the leecher usergroup this might help them too.

[joedude11]

Man your guide is so much more epic than mine... i guess im just a lazy bitch props to you

[Unholyshaman]

heh well it was just a demonstration on how to post a decent guide and how you could extend it so that it provides more information ( i did not write this guide to steal your information btw, and i did give you 1 rep point for your guide as well.)

[Jechob]

Very nice guide format and whatnot.
+Rep

[Unholyshaman]

Thanks Jechob

[Sence]

Cool I can rep you now for this good Guide.

[Unholyshaman]

Edited and Added a bit more info

[Kazzin100]

Awesome guide bro. Think this will hopefully indeed raise the standards of guides posted.