this post was submitted on 12 Nov 2024
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[–] rhacer@lemmy.world 168 points 1 week ago (8 children)

But it IS how we see prices. If there weren't science behind it, they wouldn't be doing it.

[–] PriorityMotif@lemmy.world 87 points 1 week ago (3 children)

A lot of marketing strategies are pseudoscience. Just like a lot police investigation practices or body language assumptions.

[–] Kidplayer_666@lemm.ee 32 points 1 week ago (1 children)

JC Penny kinda showed that no. It isn’t pseudocience

[–] Anticorp@lemmy.world 14 points 1 week ago (1 children)

What's the story about JC Penny?

[–] Kidplayer_666@lemm.ee 37 points 1 week ago (2 children)

The CEO decided that clients were smart intelligent people and treated people as adults. Aka, no discounts, no 99 pricing, it just costs what it costs, as low as we can make it, plus our margin.

JC Penny was already not too well, this helped sink them

[–] TehWorld@lemmy.world 33 points 1 week ago

It was less about the .99 pricing and more about "Sale" pricing and 'coupons'. Retailers will put a pair of pants on "Sale" for 50% off 51 weeks out of the year and people think they're getting a great deal whereas when it's not half off, they just don't buy.

[–] Anticorp@lemmy.world 17 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Poor guy. Tried to do some good in the world and paid the price for it. Nobody ever went broke overestimating the stupidity of the average person.

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[–] criitz@reddthat.com 14 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Some marketing strategies are pseudoscience, but this one isn't.

[–] Prox@lemmy.world 10 points 1 week ago (5 children)

Does anyone in the thread have actual info to back this up?

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[–] BakerBagel@midwest.social 9 points 1 week ago

I was watching a PBS documentary about the first humans in the Americas. All the scientists are super cool until you get to the American anthropologist who starts using phrenology to explain why Native American tribes shouldn't be given repatriation rights, only for a Danish geneticist to say "yeah, this is absolutely a Native American and i am willing to testify to that in any court of law"

Pseudoscience is still all the rage if it can be used to push a political agenda.

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[–] TheImpressiveX@lemmy.ml 137 points 1 week ago (6 children)

$20 and $10 shipping: 😡

$30 and free shipping: 😄

[–] PriorityMotif@lemmy.world 23 points 1 week ago (2 children)

It is kind of a dick move when companies overcharge for shipping. I only charge calculated shipping on large or heavy items because those are the ones that vary a lot and I don't want someone in zone 8 (like Southern California or even someone in HI buying it and shipping costing more than they paid. If it's under 1 lb then I just give free shipping and bake it into the price.

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[–] Mercuri@lemmy.world 17 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Part of it is that there's less hidden costs. I like it when it's just "the total is $30" instead of "there's $8 shipping and a $2 service fee and then $4 in taxes and..."

I've also seen some online stores lure in a customer with a really cheap initial price and then on the last page just slam them with insane shipping and handling fees hoping that the customer either doesn't notice or feels too invested at this point to cancel their purchase.

But yes, part of it is also people are stupid when they see the word "free" as if the store wouldn't move the cost somewhere else.

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[–] volvoxvsmarla@lemm.ee 50 points 1 week ago (3 children)

My husband is awful in that regard. He sees the first digit only and then rounds it down. "It's just 30€" - it's 39,99€. "It's like 200€" - it's 289,90€, "5000€" - 5999€. I love him to pieces but I don't trust any of his numbers.

[–] CaptainBlagbird@lemmy.world 38 points 1 week ago (1 children)

I love him to pieces

How many? About 200?

[–] Lanthanae@lemmy.world 19 points 1 week ago (1 children)
[–] brachypelmasmithi@lemm.ee 19 points 1 week ago

A whole 100 pieces? What a deal!

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[–] OneWomanCreamTeam@sh.itjust.works 49 points 1 week ago (4 children)

From my experience working in retail I've seen people say out loud something like "oh, it's only 4 dollars!" When the sticker says $4.99. This shit apparently works on a lot of people for some reason.

[–] ByteOnBikes 11 points 1 week ago

This is my neighbor all the time.

Like dude, round up!

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[–] gerryflap@feddit.nl 35 points 1 week ago

Honestly, however much I want to pretend to be better than that, I think it does work on me. Obviously not on a conscious level, I know how numbers work, but some part of my monkey brain sees the 1 instead of the 2 and therefore concludes that it must be way cheaper. It's a feeling that no amount of facts is going to disable. And in the end many purchasing decisions aren't based on a full analysis but on feelings.

[–] Semi_Hemi_Demigod@lemmy.world 30 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Most people are idiots most of the time.

Some people are idiots some of the time.

No one is never an idiot.

[–] hemko@lemmy.dbzer0.com 10 points 1 week ago

Can confirm. I'm idiot most of the time

[–] Kalkaline@leminal.space 29 points 1 week ago (1 children)

This is locally grown artisanal bullshit, it's actually $300, please tip.

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[–] BruceTwarzen@lemm.ee 28 points 1 week ago (4 children)

These dumbasses thinks this works on us smart people. Anyway, gotta go fight some people on black friday for shit i don't even need nor afford

[–] joyjoy@lemm.ee 11 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

Which just so happens to have been the same price all month.

[–] Anticorp@lemmy.world 17 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Regular price: $399.99

BLACK FRIDAY SPECIAL: ~~$799.99~~ $399.99

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[–] possiblylinux127@lemmy.zip 28 points 1 week ago (8 children)

It does work believe it or not. It is something that plays to your subconscious. You will favor the slightly cheaper option even if you aren't aware of it.

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[–] Draedron@lemmy.dbzer0.com 27 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Its literally how we see prices which is why companies do this

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[–] RememberTheApollo_@lemmy.world 24 points 1 week ago

I generally round up to nearest bigger number or close to that. $19.99 is $20. $23.99 would probably be $25. $180 would just be $200.

No real rhyme or reason, just the bigger the number the more I fudge the “real” price upwards thanks to sales tax and a “can I really afford this?” factor.

[–] Sixtyforce@sh.itjust.works 23 points 1 week ago (1 children)

The amount of times I've watched Youtubers say something like "35 dollars" while showing an image that shows the price as $35.96 happens too often for me to side with OP lol, sorry.

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[–] PugJesus@lemmy.world 23 points 1 week ago (6 children)

I'm not sure it works on me. Not because I'm some super human resistant to advertising (I'm not) but because I'm so bad at math that when they start asking me about anything involving small change I tune out and overestimate by 50% rounded into nice whole numbers.

"This is 19.99"

"Okay so it's basically 30$."

It gives me nice surprises sometimes when I get my receipt.

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[–] itsonlygeorge@reddthat.com 22 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (23 children)

People suck at math and this is how they confuse people into not caring what the actual price becomes when they have to add multiple items together.

What’s 19.99 + 21.75 + 4.99 + 3.99 + 1.99? Can the common person do that math in their head while grocery shopping? What about adding the tax to that total? Not a chance.

Most people probably don’t even know what the sales tax is in their own state.

[–] pyre@lemmy.world 38 points 1 week ago (4 children)

your price tags show the price before tax? that's fucked up

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[–] koberulz@lemmy.ml 12 points 1 week ago (7 children)

Weirdly, my brain went through those numbers as "20, 22, 5, 3, 2."

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[–] Bosht@lemmy.world 22 points 1 week ago (3 children)

Honestly I just want tax included on the price tag.

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[–] Kolanaki@yiffit.net 19 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (11 children)

I just wished it was mandated to list prices to include all the taxes along with it. Whether it says $19.99 or $20 still isn't the actual price.

Recently had the worst of this. Was craving chocolate milk, find a nice size bottle of it for $3. Get to register. $6.63 total price because the glass bottle had over a $3 deposit.

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[–] shderz@sh.itjust.works 19 points 1 week ago* (last edited 20 hours ago)
[–] TankovayaDiviziya@lemmy.world 18 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

It never works on me. I was taught at a very early age that pricing down by one cent of one dollar is a psychological trick and that I should round up to the nearest whole number.

[–] RQG@lemmy.world 35 points 1 week ago (8 children)

Funny thing is, it still works.

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[–] Ragdoll_X@lemmy.world 18 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (5 children)

I always round up the price when I see $X.99 but my grandmother always rounds it down and it pisses me off

They're trying to fool you! Don't be a sheep!!!

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[–] AnimalsDream 14 points 1 week ago (2 children)

This is one of those things that makes me feel the slightest bit more agitated and cynical towards people and society. We all know it's manipulative, and that should be enough reason not to do it. So why does everyone who runs a business do it? Like yeah it does work, but is it really worth subtly eroding your own customer's trust in you? There's an invisible cost of goodwill here.

[–] Jackcooper@lemmy.world 9 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Are you choosing to go to the store that does $20 instead of $19.99?

Does that store exist?

It's more that the customer refuses to buy the $20 item but at 19.99 it seems just a little more attainable.

[–] AnimalsDream 9 points 1 week ago (1 children)

That is a fair point. But then again, I don't even remember the last time I was in a store that had honest prices.

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[–] Voyajer@lemmy.world 9 points 1 week ago

They may list it as $19.99 but I'm always going to call it twenty bucks and eleven cents.

[–] DmMacniel@feddit.org 9 points 1 week ago (1 children)

But you get a penny back, isn't that great?

[–] Hideakikarate@sh.itjust.works 10 points 1 week ago (5 children)

Jokes on you. We have sales tax.

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