Selling Strategy to Attract Buyers

Steemian friends.

In this post, I discuss one sales strategy which seems odd, but can be effective in influencing consumers when making shopping decisions. What's even more unique is that this sales strategy is often not realized by consumers. The strategy is to create products that are deliberately made so they don't sell. These products are often known by the term "Decoy Products."

There are also call it Decoy Effect, Decoy Pricing, Attraction Effect, and several other terms. What is the Decoy product like? So, like this, for example, if you want to buy fried potatoes at a cafe, there are 2 size choices for fried potatoes. There are small sizes and large sizes. The small size costs 15,000 rupiah. And the large size costs 25,000 rupiah. If you are like most people, maybe you will choose only small products, because the price of large size fries is expensive. Meanwhile, from the point of view of traders or sellers, they are annoyed, because the consumers who come always buy small sizes. However, as traders, they certainly want their margins, or profits per consumer, to increase. Don't let all consumers keep buying cheap products.

How Can These Sellers Increase Profits Per Consumer?

One way is by adding a new product which is deliberately made so it doesn't sell. Namely medium size fried potatoes with price 23,000 rupiah. Well, with these 3 choices, medium sized fried potatoes become a product that doesn't seem important.

"The price is really affordable, instead of buying the medium size, it's better to just buy the large size. It's not bad, so you can eat it in a group, and the price is only 2,000 different compared to the medium size."

Well, that's called the Decoy Effect. The medium sized fried potato product is what is named the Decoy product. This product is deliberately made as if it is expensive and not worth it. The purpose of this product is not to be bought by many people, but to direct consumers to buy their main product, namely large French fries. Just by adding one product which was intentionally made so it wouldn't sell.

The cafe owner succeeded in making large size of fried potatoes more attractive. People who previously didn't think long, immediately ordering the small size, are now starting to hesitate. Order the small one, or just the big one, okay?

Now we look at another example, for example we want to buy coffee at a coffee shop. There are 2 choices for iced capuccino, namely the small size, the price is 15,000 rupiah. And the medium size costs 25,000 rupiah. Again, most people will probably only choose small products. So, now, what if the seller adds one more product that is deliberately made so that it doesn't sell. A large iced capuccino, priced at 50,000 rupiah.

Wow, why is it so expensive? Yes, it is deliberately made expensive, because this product is not made to be bought, but so as a comparison and make potential buyers see the price of iced capuccinos the medium size is reasonable and doesn't look expensive anymore. People who previously without thinking twice, immediately ordered the small size, are now starting to hesitate. Order small, or medium huh? Well, the large coffee is the size of the decoy product. This product is made as if it is expensive and worfit. The purpose of the existence of this product is not for many people to buy, but to encourage consumers to buy their main product, namely medium size coffee.

This marketing strategy has been often carried out for decades years ago, and has been proven to be able to increase sales significantly. One well-known product that might be this strategy is a magazine about the world of economics which is quite famous, called "The Economist." In Indonesia, this is like Kontan magazine or Indonesian Business. Well, The Economist magazine offers 3 subscription package options.

The first option, online access economist.com, costs 58 dollars per year. The second option, access to print economist magazines for 125 dollars per year. And the third option, online access to print economist magazines for 125 dollars per year.

If from the existing options, how come there are 2 prices which are the same, but the products are different. If, for example, take option 3, why should you take option 2? Very strange, right? Of course people choose option 3 because that's the main product. While option 2 is a decoy product which is intentionally listed to confuse the considerations of potential buyers.

There is an economist, his name Ariely, who conducted experiments with these 3 prices. He asked one hundred students about the subscription package they chose. As a result, 16% chose the first option, and the remaining 84% chose the 3rd option.

Yaappp! No one chose the second option. Then, Ariely was experimenting again, what if option 2 was eliminated. There are only option 1 and option 3. As a result, 68% chose the first option, and 32% chose the third option. According to Gerald Zaltman, a professor at Harvard Business School, basically people buy goods that are often not based on rational considerations, but based on emotional decisions that can be triggered by price comparisons, attractive product packaging, attractive color patterns, and other things. other supplements which are not the main essence of the product.

Well, maybe that's also the reason why we're easily tempted by discounts, even though we don't need the goods. So, for those of you who are starting a business, selling online, or trading certain goods. Maybe you can be inspired and try to practice this sales strategy. Or for those of you who usually shop online and shopping everywhere, you can tell what are the decoy products that you usually see everyday.

OK, that's all I want to say, I hope this discussion can be useful for you.

See you again in the next post.

Greetings always compact.

By @midiagam