I have to agree with a lot of Don's points on this issue.
It has been my experience that there are 3 groups of traders when it comes to the issue of trading costs/commissions/payouts.
Group 1 : those who have little or no industry experience (prop. or professional day trading) and have had no exposure to professinal rates only non-professional retail investor rates. The people in this group see the commissions paid by professional (prop. and high volume daytraders) as incredibly cheap. While many have trouble with the split aspect at some prop firms most can understand it if it clearly, honestly and logically explained to them.
Group 2 : high level professional traders who have been around, know that there is no such thing as trading for free, and seek the deals that best suit their needs,. They look for value added services, and are not fixated on the 'price' of commissions as much as the true 'cost'. By cost I mean it is important to look at more than the number (dollar value) or price you pay to carry on your trading business and what the true 'cost' is in terms of intangibles. Cheap does not always = good and good does not always have to be high priced. High level pros are not nickle and dime, marginal, clowns always trying to squeeze the price of the inputs in their business down to nothing. They focus on being better and bigger traders and pulling more out of the markets, that's where their profits reside.
Group 3 : this is the profile that spends the most time on these boards bitching about commissions and deals. Unfortunately this is probably the largest segment of the trading population. This is a large number of traders who are just good enough to survive at this game but think the only way to make more money is to trade cheaper. They concern themselves with price, not true cost and are marginalized because of this. They waste their time trying to save a little in commissions instead of investing their energies in figuring out how to take their trading to a higher level. These guys have a little knowledge about the industry and it actually hurts them. They think that because they have made a little bit of money and had a little success that they are god's gift to trading.
My point here is this;
Anybody who treats trading as a business (and that should be everyone who considers themselves a real trader) should be concerned with their cost structure its only logical. A little research and attention to detail can help any trader improve his profitability. But don't trip over dollars to pick up nickles and dimes! Become good enough and consistent enough as a trader that spending time worrying about commissions and splits is going to make a significant difference to your business. You can only get your costs so low and hence only benefit so much, but adding to your gross is boundless for most traders!
Reality is this, if you are good you survive, if you are really good you flourish, progress and gain momentum. If you are a truly great trader you can write your own ticket, the deals find you. Here is a cheesy like saying for you;
Good traders find good deals, great deals find great traders!
And as for the rest, well most people could trade for free and they would still lose money.
MACD
