Stock market traders are always seeking for the most advanced ways to try to see future economic trends. A fairly new trend of fantasy stock market games may not only be be a fun way to entertain yourself, but it could provide the new training ground for honing and testing unproven stock market strategies.
The reality that an online stock market game would become popular is no surprise among investors old and new. Signing up for an account which gives you $1 million in virtual money takes only 1 minute. With real time data feeds from the actual markets you can invest in real stocks side by side the Wall Street pros without taking any risk at all.
However, the growth in membership for sites like Smartstocks.com, an online provider of stock market education, is too steady to attribute its success to casual gamers. Unlike many other online learning games, a stock market simulation game requires constant attention and expertise in understanding market signs and indicators. The skill set needed for investing in a virtual world is no different than investing with real money.
It’s true that many university professors and high school teachers mandate students to invest in virtual stocks for their classes, many professionals use the simulation to test working models of advanced investment strategies. So the real question I want to know is what does this all say about trader confidence? Are investors pulling out of actual markets because they are unsure about their trading strategy and rather than using real money to invest moving towards a more conservative way of testing out ideas? Or, are more newbie traders joining the stock market trading games to prepare themselves to jump into what they may see as an opportunity of prosperity?
Smartstocks.com encourages traders of all experience levels to use their game to test new investment protocols. Can this help explain the rise in stock market game usage among Wall Street insiders? Theses virtual simulators are attracting investors, old and new from all over the world. And since these virtual stock market game sites are growing in popularity and exposure, it’s still too early to say what is is the real reason these games are becoming more popular.
When dealing with money I have come to the conclusion that it is not always as it appears. Maybe people just want to play to entertain themselves. Only real life experience coupled with some education will help virtual online traders build investment confidence. And if sites like Smartstocks.com can continue to satisfy the needs of these traders it may be impossible to say where this can go. The fact still remains that investor confidence in general is still low and who knows what will change that.