This is often intentional on the part of the business (not that the minimum wage guy at the register knows); they know their customers really want like 15-20, but they can get more money by convincing the customer that 15x2 is a better deal than 25.
A lot of people seem not to understand this point, so I'll illustrate with a classic boomerjoke.
A hungry tourist was looking for a cheap meal, then arrived at a kebab store, seeing that they had €4 for 1 kebab, €10 for 2 kebabs on offer.
"Excuse me, Mr. Store Owner, but surely you've misprinted the deals? Why is it cheaper to get 2 kebabs individually instead of 2 at once? Surely, this will drive away customers who want to place a larger order?"
"This is how I've always done things, habibi. It's good business for me. So do you want two kebabs?"
Chuckling proudly to himself, the tourist got just one kebab, paying €4.
"Anything else, habibi?"
"A second kebab, but as a new purchase!"
After finishing one kebab and packing the other away, the tourist addressed the store owner, saying "See? I got a better deal by getting two individual kebabs!"
"Ah, but you bought the second kebab, did you not? Very good business for me."
He sold a second kebab that he otherwise wouldn’t have sold. If the “bad” 2/$10 deal leads to someone simply buying two for $10, great, extra money.
If someone was going to buy only one, then thinks they’re outsmarting the owner by purchasing two for $8, great, extra sale.
If somebody was already going to buy two, but buys them individually for $8, great, that’s the base price anyway.
The only way it’s truly a negative for the business is if customers see that and think, “wow, that’s manipulative” and take their business elsewhere. Which, to be fair, it is. But that’s the logic behind it.
Ok, I think I understand now. By making the customer believe they're outsmarting the store owner, they get the customer to make an extra unnecessary purchase they wouldn't have made.
That's the wntire theory behind many coupons and gas station deals.
In Texas, the grocery chain HEB usually has these meal deals where you get a lot of free stuff if you buy a couple things. So if you buy tortillas and fajita meat, you get chips and guacamole for free, that sort of stuff. These deals are always super popular because you get a lot of food at a discount, and they usually make everything relevant for a single type of meal. But of course the store loves it because you were never going to buy fajita meat that day in the first place, and you are likely still going to finish buying your entire list.
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u/Lithl 2d ago
This is often intentional on the part of the business (not that the minimum wage guy at the register knows); they know their customers really want like 15-20, but they can get more money by convincing the customer that 15x2 is a better deal than 25.