Recently active topics in Intrade

idea: figure out an easier way for people to get money into their intrade accounts.... my guess is that this is what is limiting the amount of volume traded on intrade -- those interested in starting out are put off by not being able to use credit cards in the US, and those who can use a credit card from another country then later on run into the arbitrary credit card limits, which are fairly low. My bank contacted me initially on credit card approvals and I feel that is sufficient security. In any case, do you realize the negative impact this is having on your business -- intrade for the US presidential election has a much higher profile in the media than it does actual volume... for what other reason than difficulty in depositing, and perceived risk of giving money to a website in Ireland. You should do something as well to let people know that they have their own segregated accounts, and give this a higher profile. Using a bank in the US may help as well. You have a great site but need to do something to grow this faster.

suggestion: You should make it easier for prospective members to understand that a price of 50 is actually $5. It took me quite a bit of looking around originally to figure this out.

In addition, although all the accounting reports provide good detail, the summary stats on the position aren't easily understandable. In particular, I don't belive that the PL always is my mark to market. Ive taken to just adding together my frozen and my available to see how i'm doing (roughly). You should put more effort into diagnostics that could pop up and show people how they're doing. You should package all of the typical "confusions and objections" that an interested but cautious member has into a very visible "button" that they could press as a quick start to get the minimum amount of info and confidence you need to actually join...just sticking this is various help locations isn't enough to jumpt the credibility barrier. You should link this info to external web reputational sources to bolster it.

As the site is, the small volume of there is partly reflective of the fact that only 'early adopter' types (like me) can figure it out enough to use it.... your commitment to prediction markets is laudable, and the amount of money on there impressive, but you haven't really made the leap to a true market on a global scale...that would make the predictions really valuable.

In addition it needs to be easier to put money into an intrade account (see my other post).