So today I went to Walmart with my mom. Moms buying, time to stock up! So one of our first stops was the drink isle. My mom grabs a 12 pack of Coca Cola because they are on sale! Then she realizes oh wait 24 packs, which are right next to the 12 packs are also on sale. So she figures “go big or go home” and grabs the 24 pack. Then she realizes that it is $3.99 a 12 pack, so $8.98 for 24 cans, or the 24 pack was “on sale” for $9.99. It was $1 cheaper to buy 2-12 packs rather then 1-24 pack! What is with that? Do you pay a premium for the connivence of only carrying one case? Normally you pay less, the higher volume you buy!
I have seen other examples like this in the past, such as a few months ago when I saw a 2 pack tooth brushes for $4.50 when the same tooth brushes were priced at $2 each. Is this a mistake or are some companies trying to pull a fast one on us? I think in some cases that you come across (see picture below) are just mistakes by the employee who put out the prices on the shelves, but in the case of the Coca Cola there were big promotional displays with the two prices clearly marked.
These mistakes are pretty funny but they could be costly to the stores that they occur in. Many large corporations, like Walmart, have programs in place where customers receive the products at a reduced rate and in extreme cases for free if they are “marked” inappropriately. Over repeated cases this could add up and cost the business large sums of money.
One reply on “Mis-pricing Good For Consumers, Costly For Businesses”
Great post, Tom. Can you answer your own questions about why companies seem to make these crazy pricing gaffes? And what percentage of consumers do you think buy the higher priced product? How many respond only to the SALE, SALE, SALE message?
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