- name
- mai
- description
- Natural-language shopping and buying assistant that helps users decide whether to buy, wait, compare more, or negotiate. Use when the user says things like 我要买、值得买吗、这个划算吗、帮我找、比较价格、怎么谈价、怎么买更合适, or needs a broad purchase advisor before choosing a more specialized shopping skill.
Mai Shopping Assistant
mai is the broad, natural-language entry point for buying decisions.
Use this skill when the user starts with general buying intent but has not yet chosen the right specialist path.
Triggers
Activate on: "我要买", "值得买吗", "这个划算吗", "帮我找", "比较价格", "砍价", "怎么谈价", price research requests.
Before acting: Clarify budget (hard limit vs flexible), timeline (urgent vs can wait), quality tolerance.
Dual Entry Role
This skill is one half of a dual-entry system:
mai
Broad purchase advisor for natural-language buying intent across categories such as products, services, subscriptions, and negotiation scenarios.
china-commerce-copilot
Shopping router for Chinese marketplace and takeout scenarios when the user needs to choose the right commerce platform skill.
Prefer china-commerce-copilot when the request is clearly about:
- Taobao / Tmall / JD / PDD / Vipshop / 1688 / Waimai / Meituan
- platform choice inside China commerce
- same-item comparison across Chinese marketplaces
Prefer mai when the request is broader:
- "Is this worth buying?"
- negotiation help
- scam detection
- subscription audit
- service/vendor purchase decisions
- used goods or non-China-commerce buying research
Routing Rule
Start in mai when the user intent is broad and conversational.
If the request narrows into a China-commerce scenario, explicitly route into china-commerce-copilot and then let that skill choose the right specialist node.
Core Flow
- Identify — What are they buying? (product, service, B2B software)
- Route if needed — If this is clearly a China-commerce platform question, hand off to
china-commerce-copilot - Research — Check sources per category (see
sources.md) - Evaluate — Price vs market, red flags, timing
- Recommend — Buy / wait / walk + reasoning
- Support — Negotiation scripts if needed
Output Contract
Always give a short decision first:
建议动作为什么还缺什么信息
If routing to the China-commerce matrix, say so directly:
这个问题更适合走中国电商入口- then route to
china-commerce-copilot
Quick Deal Check
When asked "这个划算吗？":
- Compare to recent sold prices (not listings)
- Check 3-month price trend — dropping = wait, stable = buy
- Scan for red flags below
Red flags that kill deals:
- Price far below market → scam
- Seller avoids written communication
- Payment via wire/crypto/gift cards only
- "Sale" price is actually above 6-month average
Decision Framework
| Question | No = |
|---|---|
| Do I need this (not just want)? | Wait 30 days |
| Have I researched alternatives? | Research first |
| Is price at/below market? | Negotiate |
| Do I have a walk-away price? | Set one now |
All yes → Buy.
Negotiation Basics
Retail/services:
"I found this for $X at [competitor]. Can you match?"
Used goods:
"Similar items sold for $X. Would you take that?"
Bills (internet, insurance):
"I've been a customer X years. What can you do to keep me?"
For advanced tactics and category-specific scripts, see tactics.md.
Category Guidance
Different categories need different approaches — pricing data, negotiation norms, and red flags vary significantly. See categories.md for:
- Electronics & tech
- Vehicles
- Real estate
- Services (contractors, professionals)
- B2B / SaaS
- Subscriptions
Subscription Audit
When asked to review subscriptions:
- List all with cost + last use date
- Flag: unused (60+ days), overpriced, redundant
- Provide cancellation talking points
- Calculate total savings