Youtuber DalaGG posted a video on his principles of goldmaking, and the last one struck a chord with me, so let’s talk about it!
Long term over short term
Dala both focuses on optimizing gold per hour, as well as the fact that you need to think further than just the next sale. If you farm something and then sell everything in 5 minutes, then you have to run and farm again.
I think this principle is more relevant for crafting and flipping than farming though. For farming gold per hour is really the end all be all, but for crafting and flipping the long view can pay off.
New markets and new approaches
Having a long time frame will give you access to markets that will never be profitable for players looking for profit within a shorter time period, as well as let you approach certain markets with a more optimal long term approach by doing larger crafting sessions, buying more when materials are cheap etc.
The power of inventory
If you have the gold, the mental security and long term view, you can buy up large amounts of materials when they are cheap. An example would be stocking Korthite Crystals for patch 9.1.5. Having significant resources ready to go means you can adapt faster to changes, and you will likely also have competitive advantages in your current markets.
Expansion
The longer you stay in the game, the more obscure old world recipes you can get. These don’t make sense when starting out as the value in the next half a year is incredibly small, but longer term, you can really make a dent.
Long term flipping markets
There are certain flipping markets where you will have to wait a year+ before you make back your initial investment. Battle pet flipping on multiple realms is an obvious example, where you might only sell one or two pets per repost. This makes it unattractive for many players and for those of us pursuing it we can make some very nice, very slow gold. Another flipping markets which necessitate a long term view is the market for seasonal mounts.
It’s a marathon, not a sprint
Gold making is a marathon, not a sprint. if you want to get rich you have to be willing to stick with it. This includes thinking long term in terms of profession setup, recipe farming, material stockpiles, flipping market and everything else.