add "auto-EP harvester" to auto-harvest

This would be another premium advantage, perhaps. Add automatic EP harvesting to the auto-tree harvest. It could operate exactly the same way, but just harvest the EP givers.

Better yet, harvest the "givers" that give something other than EPs (similar to the way trees that offer various products are auto-harvested).

I think this would encourage more people to be premium.

Another suggestion.. offer a couple small harvester coupons. Say, 2 X 12 hour or 4 x 3 hour, some such. This, too would boost interest, I believe.

 

This sounds like you are asking for a bot. Under the T&C, that isn't permitted and will see you banned from the game.

 

Players are aware of Premium advantages. For those who aren't Premium players, it's often not because they don't want to be - it's because they just don't have the means to pay for it. I mean, when you're on a tight budget, paying for unnecessary benefits in an online game is hardly a wise use of money. Others simply don't feel the need for these benefits. It's not like BP *needs* more Premium players.

Meanwhile, what's wrong with actually doing some work on your farm?

 

For premium players the auto tree harvest isn't particularly useful because of the need to activate owls prior to harvesting to increase EP; in fact the only time it's really great is happy tree day when you can maximise the EP from your trees, so auto EP giver harvest would also not be particularly helpful if you had owls etc. But that's just my two pence worth.

 

This is no different than the auto-tree harvesting, just for the EP givers, or, for that matter, the harvester function that they offer for sale/as prizes.

The bots that you refer to are bots created by users, not systems created and authorized by farmerama. They are not legal for a variety of reasons, not least of which is that they can allow someone to have a farm that they spend no time upon at all. There is also a potential for a user bot to do something that actually messes with the game itself for others (like a virus)


TC Rooster-- this is sort of true. I had it turned off for a while, but am finding it helpful to fulfill the picky pirate quest and a couple of the recent events more efficiently. An EP harvester would certainly be a mixed bag, but would be helpful for those of us without owls yet, and maybe for others who would trade the convenience for a few EPs on occasion, if not always.


Squiggle-- I, of course, don't have access to the farmerama data, but this game does move on money, like most things, even if it is largely free. Premium memberships are one way to keep a consistent flow of funds coming. Whether having more is beneficial or is pointless is a matter for them to debate, but if they are not reaping much benefit, then making it more attractive would help. The issue is to balance it so that you give benefits, but not so much as to utterly skew the game. Again, not having access to that data, its impossible to truly debate this. I am just offering the suggesting, for now.