Will Driving Habits Really Change?

Just about every news pundit on TV has declared that THIS is finally the oil price change that shocks Americans out of their gas-guzzling ways. It's hard to argue with that logic. Trucks and big SUVs are piling up on dealer lots. Consumers…

Anchor Pricing Strategies

Here's a scenario... You decide to venture into a cell phone store despite your reluctance to deal with a bewildering number of phones, options, plans, along with a confusing price structure. As usual, you find you'll have to wait a bit for…

Five Keys to Selling to Spendthrifts

Neuroeconomics research suggests that roughly 15% of your consumers are "spendthrifts" - they have unusually low sensitivity to the pain of paying, i.e., the neural discomfort associated with parting with money. Selling to people who feel…

Five Keys to Selling to Tightwads

One out of four potential customers for your product may not buy it, even if the purchase makes economic sense or is otherwise a good decision. A couple of days ago, in Tightwads, Spendthrifts, and Everyone Else, I wrote about research…

Selling the Unsellable

Can you imagine a more difficult marketing task than selling books written by long-dead authors like Plutarch or Pliny the Younger to middle-class Americans? To make the challenge even more difficult, the books are priced well above most…

Your Brain’s BS Detector for Prices

Ever wonder why some prices just feel wrong? When you see a luxury watch for $19.99 or a pack of gum for $20, your brain immediately knows something's not right. It turns out there's actual neuroscience behind this instinctive reaction. A…