081 Left-Digit Effect
People overweigh the left-most digits of prices in buying decisions.
• When viewing a price, people have an emotional reaction to the first digit in the sequence and overweigh its value.
• In cultures that read from left to right, this reaction is based on the left-most digit in prices.
• Given two prices, $29.99 and $30.00, people react as if the difference is not one cent, but one dollar. This reaction can increase sales up to 15 percent.
• Prices ending in 99s indicate low prices, but also lower quality. Prices ending in round numbers indicate high prices, but also higher quality.
• Use the left-digit effect when price is more important than quality in buying decisions.
See Also Framing • Priming • Serial Position Effects ...
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