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Post by Budleigh on Dec 26, 2012 9:35:30 GMT
I'm not usually one to let my anger manifest itself in an on-line thread but...
I was checking out fridge-freezers in the Currys sale this morning and thought some looked good deals.
Then I went on-line and searched the various models I was interested in and found that Currys Sale price was actually the normal, everyday price with most other retailers; indeed others including John Lewis had most of the models cheaper. How so, I thought?
In light of this the former price quoted by Currys seemed ridiculous and a non-sense.
Then I checked the very small print under each price... And the majority of these goods had had their prices hiked for a nominal amount in the Summer months and only for a short period, then the price is suddenly cut for the sale period, but cut to the price it was originally!
So buying in their 'sale' doesn't actually give the consumer any sort of saving over the accepted price, excepting if someone was mug enough to buy one of these items during the 'higher-price' window.
This is surely an out-and-out con?
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Dave
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Post by Dave on Dec 26, 2012 9:44:46 GMT
Its something that has been going on for years Leigh and nearly every retailer does it. Things might be getting better soon well at least as far as supermarkets are concerned as most of the them ( not Asda so far) have signed up to a fairer special offers deal with the Office of Fair Trading www.guardian.co.uk/money/2012/nov/30/supermarkets-fairer-special-offersI was checking out the Argos website this morning ans one item I was interested in was down from £39.99p to £31.99p, but looking more closely It said the item had been on sale for £34.99p, so it looks like it was hiked up to the higher price for a while to make it look an even better deal than It might really be. Looking further I found many items like this. |
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Post by lambethgull on Dec 26, 2012 10:20:04 GMT
It's like those discount sports shops that sell trainers and sports jackets for £12 "reduced from £90" - nobody believes it, but psychologically it probably has some sort of effect. Fortunately, when it comes to bigger purchases, the TFF is frequented by people who read the small print  |
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davethegull
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Post by davethegull on Dec 26, 2012 11:17:05 GMT
I'm not usually one to let my anger manifest itself in an on-line thread but... I was checking out fridge-freezers in the Currys sale this morning and thought some looked good deals. Then I went on-line and searched the various models I was interested in and found that Currys Sale price was actually the normal, everyday price with most other retailers; indeed others including John Lewis had most of the models cheaper. How so, I thought? In light of this the former price quoted by Currys seemed ridiculous and a non-sense. Then I checked the very small print under each price... And the majority of these goods had had their prices hiked for a nominal amount in the Summer months and only for a short period, then the price is suddenly cut for the sale period, but cut to the price it was originally! So buying in their 'sale' doesn't actually give the consumer any sort of saving over the accepted price, excepting if someone was mug enough to buy one of these items during the 'higher-price' window. This is surely an out-and-out con? Well, no it isn't Bud. If a product is offered to you at a price you are happy to pay then it's perfectly fine. If you then find the same product cheaper somewhere else then tough i'm afraid. However as you conducted a thorough research and did your own due diligence then hats off to you. This sort of thing is common practice and I've used the same technique with many products over the years. From Mars bars to Boats (my next project) the practice works well. It's up to you to either do your shopping around or hone your negotiation skills if you don't want to pay more than you need to. Good hunting! |
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Post by Budleigh on Dec 26, 2012 12:28:31 GMT
It may not be an out-an-out con, but it certainly smacks of a certain amount of deviousness.
My understanding of a sale is that an item has a price on it for purchase in a shop; then during the sale period it is discounted and the buyer is getting something at a price less than they would during the normal course of events.
With the Currys system it seems that the price is no less than an item could've been purchased as normal previously.
The system used is to make purchasers believe they are getting a discount when that is clearly not the case.
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Dave
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Post by Dave on Dec 26, 2012 12:30:27 GMT
It's like those discount sports shops that sell trainers and sports jackets for £12 "reduced from £90" - nobody believes it, but psychologically it probably has some sort of effect. Fortunately, when it comes to bigger purchases, the TFF is frequented by people who read the small print Last year on Boxing day I was taken to a large outdoor sports shop in Basingstoke( is it called outdoor world? ) its a store you can become a member for the sum of £5. You can still buy anything as a non member, but at a much higher price on most of the things on sale. So many things do have two prices on them, one for non members and one for members. I found a nice pair of walking boots that only had one price marked on them and that was a SALE price. It did say on the ticket they were reduced from £79. 99p to just £14.97p. So I picked up a pair and went to the check out " are you a member sir" I was asked, so I replied no and when the price come up on the till it was £59.99p. So I then went to my friend who put them through the till on his members card and the girl was very happy for this to happen. It does make you wonder just how much such boots are worth, how much they really pay for them and just how much profit they can make when they sell them for the much higher prices. |
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davethegull
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Post by davethegull on Dec 27, 2012 4:49:17 GMT
It may not be an out-an-out con, but it certainly smacks of a certain amount of deviousness. My understanding of a sale is that an item has a price on it for purchase in a shop; then during the sale period it is discounted and the buyer is getting something at a price less than they would during the normal course of events. With the Currys system it seems that the price is no less than an item could've been purchased as normal previously. The system used is to make purchasers believe they are getting a discount when that is clearly not the case. It's not a con at any level because you have a choice whether to buy or not. There are lots of tricks of the trade that are far more dubious than this. Advertising agencies have used powerfull persuasion techniques for decades beamed straight into your front room, this is childs play. I regularly use NLP and Covert Hypnosis techniques in the sales process. I have had long discussions with colleagues about the ethics of using such techniques, but they work. |
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Dave
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Post by Dave on Dec 27, 2012 8:17:07 GMT
It has to be a form of conning DTG if you mislead people into thinking that are getting a real bargain, something so much cheaper than it was on sale for. Yes we all have the choice to buy or not, we can all use the power of the Internet to check out prices etc. I use a bar code scanner on my mobile sometimes when out shopping, its surprising the results it can bring up.
We have all been in a shop and saw that item reduced in the sale, because its human nature that we all like to think we are getting a real bargain, we so often just end up falling into the trap.
It needs to be changed, yes I know selling is your game and you might not see anything wrong with such tactics being used, but does it help create repeat business, if when you get home with your bargain, you discover it was not such a bargain after all.
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davethegull
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Post by davethegull on Dec 27, 2012 8:31:08 GMT
It has to be a form of conning DTG if you mislead people into thinking that are getting a real bargain, something so much cheaper than it was on sale for. Yes we all have the choice to buy or not, we can all use the power of the Internet to check out prices etc. I use a bar code scanner on my mobile sometimes when out shopping, its surprising the results it can bring up. We have all been in a shop and saw that item reduced in the sale, because its human nature that we all like to think we are getting a real bargain, we so often just end up falling into the trap. It needs to be changed, yes I know selling is your game and you might not see anything wrong with such tactics being used, but does it help create repeat business, if when you get home with your bargain, you discover it was not such a bargain after all. Don't get me wrong Dave, I can give you a million examples of mis-selling but this isn't one of them. It's a completely legit way of presenting your product. All businessess do it from time to time whether it's Tesco's marking down the bread at the end of the day where they had been selling it for a higher price all day to Double Glazing companies giving you an inflated quote so they can offer you a discount if you take up their offer now. If you want to see a movie about dodgy selling try Boiler Room. I have an acquaintance currently working in one somewhere in asia and some of the stories I 've heard are criminal, literally. I worked in the Timeshare industry for a short time and that was brutal. A bit of creative pricing is nothing to get wound up about. |
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Post by Budleigh on Dec 27, 2012 8:33:35 GMT
I understand where you are coming from Dave, but I think we'll just have to disagree.
I don't believe in devious or ruthless selling techniques. I believe in 100% honesty and as far as I can tell the Currys system is designed to make buyers think they are getting a discount when they are not.
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davethegull
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Post by davethegull on Dec 27, 2012 8:55:04 GMT
I understand where you are coming from Dave, but I think we'll just have to disagree. I don't believe in devious or ruthless selling techniques. I believe in 100% honesty and as far as I can tell the Currys system is designed to make buyers think they are getting a discount when they are not. Fair enough bud. I too believe in honesty and integrity in selling and my reputation is there for all to judge. There are "sales" "tools" that would make your hair curl. I've witnessed people crying during sales presentations so forgive me for not taking Curry's little price manipulation too seriously |
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Post by lambethgull on Dec 27, 2012 11:15:44 GMT
It does make you wonder just how much such boots are worth, how much they really pay for them and just how much profit they can make when they sell them for the much higher prices. To be honest, the sleight of hand at the end the line is just one small part of the process. Remember that in order for a laptop or fridge to make it onto a shelf in Currys in Torbay, that product has been transported from Asia where workers there and elsewhere have extracted the minerals and raw materials necessary for its production and assembled it for a fraction of the price it is exchanged for. This is only possible because workers in those countries live and work under authoritarian regimes that prevent those workers from obtaining a wage that reflects the true value of their labour. So when advocates of the "free" market boast about its efficiency and efficacy, it's not just the Used Car Salesman techniques employed at the end of the process that they are defending. |
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davethegull
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Post by davethegull on Dec 27, 2012 11:48:14 GMT
It does make you wonder just how much such boots are worth, how much they really pay for them and just how much profit they can make when they sell them for the much higher prices. To be honest, the sleight of hand at the end the line is just one small part of the process. Remember that in order for a laptop or fridge to make it onto a shelf in Currys in Torbay, that product has been transported from Asia where workers there and elsewhere have extracted the minerals and raw materials necessary for its production and assembled it for a fraction of the price it is exchanged for. This is only possible because workers in those countries live and work under authoritarian regimes that prevent those workers from obtaining a wage that reflects the true value of their labour. So when advocates of the "free" market boast about its efficiency and efficacy, it's not just the Used Car Salesman techniques employed at the end of the process that they are defending. That would be the Asians living under marxist regimes then. Really lambie you made that very easy. I doubt you would recognise a used car salesman technique or afford one on benefits. |
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Post by lambethgull on Dec 27, 2012 11:59:29 GMT
That would be the 'Marxist' regimes that Western capital is opposed to would it?
You have revealed yourself on here as con artist, anti-Semite and idiot. Congratulations.
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davethegull
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Post by davethegull on Dec 28, 2012 9:17:17 GMT
That would be the 'Marxist' regimes that Western capital is opposed to would it? You have revealed yourself on here as con artist, anti-Semite and idiot. Congratulations. Brilliant, quite brilliant. If by con-artist you mean someone who's recruited, trained and managed scores of successful salespeople by encouraging them to embrace modern methods to help their customers through the buying process in an ethical and honest manner. Then I'm guilty. If by anti-semite you mean someone who detests the Rothschilds, Rockefellers, Warbergs and other ruling elite, then guilty again. If you mean someone who wishes harm to Mrs Cohen and her family from Brent Cross then nope, not guilty on that one. As for idiot? Sure, guilty as charged on occasions, but hey I can live with it. Thankyou for the congratulations, the sky is a beautiful azure blue to match the sea. The temperature is in the high 80's and I'm just about to knock the top off a San Mig Lite........it's a wonderfull life. How is it in that shitehole London? No wonder you're bitter and jealous. |
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