How is that OfB thing supposed to work? I have only been through two businesses (one of them Delarosa's premade flower goodies) and I still cannot figure it out. I downloaded a couple premade home businesses, complete with the items to sell and all, but when it gets down to it, I have a sign and cash register. I call to start up a business, but then I can't click on the items for some reason? I thought it was supposed to be like that, but I noticed in Delarosa's lot, you can actually click on and price the items right there, and then they become sold out. I am still able to price everything using the cash register, but it's like customers walk in and walk out, leaving negative signs. (One of my workers even quit the job himself!)

So are you supposed to build the shop AFTER you convert the house to a business, or is there something else I am missing?

Also, I noticed that some makers have created wonderful shop goods for us all (candy, pastries, plants), but are these actually supposed to be SOLD, or are they just decor? I've wondered for the longest time now.

Thanks in advance!

OfB looks hard, but if you take the time to test it out, you will probably figure it out pretty quickly
Those downlaodable shop goods can be sold, yep, practically everything can be sold!

How come you can't click on any of the items to price them, though (I mean even Maxis stuff)? And my customers walk in but don't seem to notice the items.

Did you set the items to sell? You have to click on the items that are to be sold with the price tag tool (Can't think of the right name at the moment), so that the customers know what they can and can't buy. I would suggest that since you are new to the whole running a business thing, that you start with a simple business such as a toy or grocery store until you get the hang of things.

I actually downloaded plasticbox's flower shop, and I thought it was simple enough. It looks nice, it's minimal, and there's only a few plants.

Oh, so that was it! I'm going to try that right now.

When you open a home business or purchase a community lot, you get a business control panel in the upper right hand corner of your screen. One of the buttons on the panel is the pricing button. When you select that, the contrast of your screen will change and you will be able to use the cursor to price your items. Once you have priced them, they will change color until you leave pricing mode.

If customers are not showing interest, click on a priced item to get the "Show Item To..." menu. Follow up with some sales technique. There are always one or two customers who refuse to do anything but yap and distract the other customers, usually the neighborhood old ladies. Ask them to leave immediately.

Anything can be sold in a shop. A lot of shop goods sets are just deco in a game. If you search carefully, you can find the rare interactive items like edible cakes and candies and buyable potions.

Workers quit if you make them work longer than 8 hours, forget to give them a break or ask them to work more than one shift per day.

I'm glad you're taking the time to master OFB. It's my favorite EP. I remember when I first got it I wanted so badly to raise puppies and sell them in a shop and it took me forever to figure out things weren't enabled that way. I've had time use venues, factories, restaurants and retail shops. Check out my Big Foot's Fish Mart for a detailed explanation of how I play that particular lot and feel free to ask me any questions you might have.

Yeah, you can't SELL your own puppies, but I've seen people create pet shops for the game. It's hard enough for me to try and make my Sim dogs pop in the first place (I always have a baby or toddler around, I guess that's what my Sims receive for all the woohooing ).

What are these "sales techniques" you speak of, however? I tried to show some people vases or balloons, but they'd just leave the shop immediately with negative red symbols above their heads, symbolizing that the boss (my character) and the other one aren't on good terms.

Also, how exactly can you build the customer loyalty? I got to level 1, then it sunk to -1 because the customers were "now losing interest".

Thanks so much!

Yeah, OFB has turned out to be my least favorite EP because it's just turning out to be cumbersome to play. I've given up trying to run a business on my own and I'm breaking out the game guide.

Sales techniques is just how you try to sell. There are 4 options: Basic Sell, Hard Sell, Offer At..., and Dazzle. The better your salesmanship (badge status), the more options become available. I generally use the basic sell. I rarely use the offer at cheap and I never use the hard sell. I usually only use the dazzle sell when I've suggested an item.

You gain customer loyalty by gaining a good sales relationship with the customer. Each time a sales interaction goes well or they just are having a good time at the business, you will see green plus signs above their heads. After how ever many green plus signs, they will gain a star. That's the customer loyalty. They can reach a maximum of five customer loyalty stars.

The customers that never seem to be pleased, no matter what you do, are the ones that you want to ask to leave. If you see red minus signs with even just the basic sales option or if their buy meter doesn't seem to be going any where, those are the ones that are bad for your business.

There will be a certain amount of customer loyalty stars needed to achieve the next level of the business. You need 3 stars to reach level 1, 5 stars to reach level 2, etc. To reach a maximum level 10 business, you will need at least 125 stars. You can check the amount of stars needed to achieve the next level by looking at the business information icon on the business status bar. Each level reached opens up a new business reward that you can use for cash, inventory discounts and many other advantages.

Hope that helps you some.

Oh, okay. I see now. Thanks so much for the helpful answer!

Also, if you see a new customer standing around looking confused, you need to do "May I help you" interaction as soon as possible or they will get a red minus.