The Anchoring Effect: Why Showing the “Wrong” Price First Increases Sales

Retailers show crossed-out RRP prices next to sale prices. “$299 $199.” You know it’s a tactic. It works anyway.

Anchoring – the first number you see becomes the reference point for all judgments that follow. The $299 makes $199 feel like a bargain, even if $199 was always the real price.

A homewares brand tested showing “Compare at $X” pricing vs. just the sale price. Same final price. Different frame.

The anchored version increased conversions by 22%. The higher number wasn’t the price – it was the permission to buy.

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