How surcharges affect pricing and purchasing
Surcharges — additional fees such as shipping and handling — are unwelcome but common charges that can shoot up the cost of online and catalog shopping. Yet how many of us base our purchasing decision on these niggling fees? A lot more than you might think. New research conducted by Amar Cheema, Ph.D., assistant professor of marketing at Washington University in St. Louis, holds important implications for businesses and their pricing practices.
Is less more?
Inflation may be rampant, but not all consumer products are getting more expensive. Instead, they’re getting smaller. Three marketing professors from the Olin Business School at Washington University in St. Louis comment on why smaller packaging is a good idea — for business.
Why price promotions aren’t the best marketing strategy
Discounts are no way to increase business.Price promotions may not be the best way to increase sales of canned tuna — or any other frequently purchased consumer good. Managers can become overly focused on losing market share and get caught up in a mindless cycle of discounting — without regard to the long-term implications of their actions, according to marketing professors at the Olin Business School at Washington University in St. Louis.
Dynamic pricing in retail can boost bottom line
The right pricing strategy can keep the cash register full.Determining the right pricing strategy can make or break the overall profitability of a firm, especially during the all-important December holiday season. One such strategy, dynamic pricing, long practiced in the airline and hotel industries, is showing promise and profitability in the world of retail. When applied to products sold over a short sales season — new toys, skiwear, and the like — dynamic pricing can boost profits for a firm, say two professors of the Olin School of Business at Washington University in St. Louis.
‘Dynamic pricing’ in retail can boost bottom line, research shows
Determining the right pricing strategy can make or break the overall profitability of a firm. One such strategy, dynamic pricing, long practiced in the airline and hotel industries, is showing promise and profitability in the world of retail. When applied to products sold over a short sales season—new toys, skiwear, and the like— dynamic pricing can boost profits for a firm, according to research recently conducted by two professors at the Olin School of Business at Washington University in St. Louis.