I believe a reciprocal buying strategy – where you buy and hold shares in those players who buy and hold yours – is a winning strategy on Empire Avenue (see Is Reciprocal Buying a Good Strategy?) However, some of the best benefits come only when others know you’re a reciprocal investor:
- Other players looking for reciprocal investors will buy your shares if they know you will buy back.
- Other reciprocal buyers will hold your shares even when your share price or dividends drop because they know you’ll do the same for them.
Making it known that you’re a reciprocal investor and finding other reciprocal investors can be a challenge, so here’s an experimental idea to try to create a list of reciprocal investors.
I’ve created a Google Form/Spreadsheet. If you do reciprocal buying, fill out the form. You will be added to the spreadsheet. Within a day or so of completing the form, I’ll give you access to view everyone else on the list.
Now, few people can buy back immediately share-for-share every investment that is made in them, so I’ve provided the opportunity to clarify under which conditions you will buy and hold and which you may not.
For some of you this will still be difficult because you don’t like hard rules; you prefer to factor in a bunch of things and go with your gut. That’s perfectly fine, but I think you’ll find that the more clearly you define your buy back strategy and the more circumstances you say you will always buy and hold, the more people who will invest in you.
If after you complete the form, you want to be removed or modify your info, just let me know.
I do not want to be the reciprocal buying policeman, so if you invest in someone on this list and they don’t reciprocate, please contact that person privately and work things out.
If you have an questions, comments or suggestions about the list, please post them in the comments below or send me a message through Empire Avenue.
Thanks!
Paul
Sharon
Jan 04, 2012 @ 18:22:06
Cool…thanks! I’m in!
Sharon
pdstein
Jan 04, 2012 @ 19:40:06
Awesome Sharon!
DES Daughter
Jan 04, 2012 @ 19:33:52
Paul thanks for your time on this, which can only be beneficial for all of us, really appreciated… You know that after my two initial months on EAv, I completely changed my investment philosophy and adhered to the buy-back without advertising it… I would suggest two amends to your version one list 🙂 #1 fixing Column “I” width does not allow full text content to show… #2 adding a column to clarify who does the FULL buy-back … who matches share for share… because to me it can then become very grey area and not meet people expectations…. I can see some tickers (in the list) who did not match (yet) which is no drama and no big deal BUT to my opinion this is not really doing the job… You either do or you don’t lol and doing something partially cannot be considered as a “job well done” to my opinion… Many thanks again 🙂
pdstein
Jan 04, 2012 @ 19:55:55
Hi Dominique, thanks for your suggestions.
1) I already tried widening the column, but I went ahead and made the text wrap in the comments column. Hopefully that will help.
2) The challenge is that from the comments I’ve received on the 4-5 blog posts I’ve done about reciprocal buying, there are a lot of people who want to reciprocate and consider themselves reciprocal buyers but they don’t have the eaves to do it. If I asked, “Do you eventually match up to your max?” I think almost everyone would say yes even though many of them would also acknowledge they have no idea how long it will take – weeks or even months – as eaves allow. That’s why I added the question/column asking for the the minimum # shares a person will match immediately. That way people commit to at least that number.
DES Daughter
Jan 04, 2012 @ 22:13:45
Hi Paul, FYI 🙂
About the point #2 (clarifying who does the FULL buy-back … who matches share for share)… I fully understand the challenge for beginners, there are some with who I am at 10/200 lol but how can they consider themselves reciprocal buyers then? unless you are happy to rely or what people predict or plan to do, perhaps it might be more realistic to provide you some real data about facts… idem with some loaded players with potential to buy 600… As I said my goal is not to bring negative waves on a fantastic project, simply I went through the list and the question/column asks for the minimum # shares a person will BUY back immediately but I don’t see the term ‘match’ used at all in the spreadsheet… I think it would help to know IF the goal is to match each other amount of shares invested (disregard of price and dividends) OR IF the goal is to buy back shares by courtesy and disregard of the exact amount…
pdstein
Jan 05, 2012 @ 01:34:47
Dominique, the goal is share-for-share reciprocal investing. Looking at the questions again, you may be right that using the word “match” in place of “buy back” would have made that clearer. I’m reluctant to change it now because I would feel compelled to contact everyone who has already completed the form and ask them if that changes how they would respond.
Plus, in the blog post & intro on the form I use the word “reciprocal” and “share-for-share” several times and in the instructions under “Minimum # shares you buy back immediately” it says, “If you can’t match all investments share-for-share, is there some minimum # you do purchase immediately with plans to match the rest later?” I think that makes it pretty clear that we’re talking about matching investments share for share, don’t you?
Dr. Hansjörg Leichsenring
Jan 05, 2012 @ 08:00:15
Great idea. On eav you could rech me at http://www.empireavenue.com/hleichenring
pdstein
Jan 05, 2012 @ 13:18:08
Thanks Hansjörg!
Phil Jansen
Jan 05, 2012 @ 12:19:19
excellent idea Paul, looking forward to join the list and to meet new people. (e)PHILJANSEN
pdstein
Jan 05, 2012 @ 13:19:18
Awesome Phil! Me too. I’ve already found new people to invest in and ramped up investments in others who have added themselves to the list.
Katherine
Jan 06, 2012 @ 00:26:19
This is just what I’ve been looking for…many thanks! ;)Kat
pdstein
Jan 06, 2012 @ 02:48:17
In that case, Kat, you’re just the person I’ve been looking for! 🙂
kimlavigne
Jan 07, 2012 @ 02:27:12
Great Post Paul!!
pdstein
Jan 07, 2012 @ 03:03:31
Thanks Kim!
Lee Smallwood (@leesmallwood)
Jan 10, 2012 @ 15:03:18
Hi Paul. Great idea. Count me in 🙂
pdstein
Jan 10, 2012 @ 15:31:29
That’s great, Lee. Be sure to fill out the form so you’re added to the list and everyone else is aware of any conditions you may place on matching those who invest in you.
Lee Smallwood (@leesmallwood)
Jan 10, 2012 @ 15:04:32
of course it would help if I posted the link (Homer moment)
http://empireavenue.com/AEOLIAN
Exnet
Jan 16, 2012 @ 11:19:26
I’m in 🙂
pdstein
Jan 16, 2012 @ 11:54:35
Great! Thanks!
Rob Burns
Feb 03, 2012 @ 07:24:12
Excellent Post! Being new to eav I thought this was a great read and would tell anyone who’s new to read your blog!
pdstein
Feb 03, 2012 @ 07:52:19
Thanks Rob! I appreciate that.
Paul Letellier
Feb 14, 2012 @ 23:01:35
https://twitter.com/#!/videofun/status/169631775922978816
Viggo Andersen
Feb 26, 2012 @ 10:16:59
Hi Paul
Great idea. Where do I ‘sign in’? =)
Or rather, where’s the document I’m supposed to fill in?
Cheers!
/ Viggo
pdstein
Feb 27, 2012 @ 10:02:54
Hi Viggo,
Just fill out the form, which was linked to in this post:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dE9XNXRuNmZoQ0VKczBPTGttVEYwSFE6MQ#gid=0
It’ll put your info into the spreadsheet and then I’ll add you to the access list to view the spreadsheet.
Viggo Andersen
Feb 27, 2012 @ 19:20:41
Hi again Paul.
So sorry but I couldn’t find the link the document in the post but hell, I might be blind or something lol
Thanks for providing me with the link here. I filled out and submitted the form.
Thanks for your work, Paul.
Cheers!
/ Viggo
pdstein
Feb 27, 2012 @ 20:48:33
Thanks Viggo. Share invite on the way. Good to have you on the list.
nixkuroi
Mar 10, 2012 @ 15:16:21
Every cent, post commission, anyone invests, I use to buy them back. It seems like I only get about 10% of their investment :/, but I spend it all back. So far, it’s kept my share/div ratio pretty high, so I wrote a program that does it automatically and just run it a couple of times a day 🙂
pdstein
Mar 11, 2012 @ 15:16:47
That’s smart, nixkuroi!
ⓣⓘⓜⓞⓣⓗⓨⓟⓐⓖⓔ
Mar 26, 2012 @ 00:12:08
that is fantastic! I’m pretty sure I can comply, but honestly, I’m still a bit erradic in my EA strategy, I dont operate by schedule, nor do I keep tabs to well, but I’ll do my best! thats all I can ddo I guess,
thank you!
saulman
Mar 29, 2012 @ 05:59:39
Fantastic, would be delighted to be a part of this, but of course, I cannot promise to immediately buy-back the same volume people buy of me. Paul knows that it took me AGES to get to 300 of him (he isn’t in the “bargain bin,” after all, haha)!
However, I warmly welcome one and all to invest in http://empireavenue.com/OSAKASAUL and “shout” with a mention of buy-back, and you will find I do all in my power 🙂
pdstein
Mar 29, 2012 @ 10:17:00
Saul, that’s fine; that’s why the form to join the list allows you to clarify how much you buy immediately and under what conditions you hold shares. Did you fill out the form linked to in the post? I didn’t see your name there. Once you do that I can share the list with you.
Webination Station
May 13, 2012 @ 12:26:14
Yeah but what if the only people investing in you have poor ROI? I respect your strategy, but it is not for me. But if I see a good investment in a person who employs this strategy, i will certainly invest and this is an incentive to invest in them. where do you publish the list of Reciprocal players? I would like to go gold digging, but that might not be welcome. Thanks for the blogs and tips. You do a great job at it!
pdstein
May 14, 2012 @ 10:37:13
I understand. I had the same mindset the the first 3 months I was on Empire Avenue as well.
The list is private. Access to view it is granted after a person fills out the form indicating they are a reciprocal investor.
Webination Station
May 14, 2012 @ 16:50:30
As I would expect it to be. Who knows, maybe i will be there someday. See you Around!
bewitched in salem
May 18, 2012 @ 15:42:05
Thank you for putting this opportunity out there Paul. I have always appreciated your efforts for the EA platform.
I’m creeping up one my 1 year anniversary on the Avenue and I feel that I don’t really have a hardcore strategy beyond my ADD……Oh, Shiny! strategy. It’s a fun strategy, but very hard to keep track of, Lol.
I still find EA to be all about connections made over growing my Eaves. I have over the last month or two decided to sell off individuals who choose to not support BIS, and have started to block repeat offenders of taking the Mission Rewards without performing any actions.
Have an excellent weekend everyone. We’ll see you on the Avenue!
rezaahmed
Aug 21, 2012 @ 04:44:37
Reblogged this on Tech Tips for Basic Computer Learners.