Price Discount Perception: Consumers\u27 Numeric Interpretation of Semantic Price Claims

Behavioral pricing research includes a considerable amount of focus on the effects of semantic cues (phrases) used to label reference and offer prices in price promotions, but a related type of semantic claim also frequently used in price promotions has continued to escape research attention - claims that attempt to encourage purchases by describing the consequences of buying at the discounted price (e.g. Super Savings). Using a variety of methods and conceptual foundations, the present research is the first to comprehensively study consumers\u27 discount and value associations of these semantic claims. In a series of three studies, we find evidence suggesting that at least some semantic claims have consistent numerical interpretations and a subset of those were found to influence discount expectations and perceptions of both transaction and acquisition value. These findings suggest the importance of recognizing that consumers may associate specific claims with certain discount magnitudes

The effects of multiple-period promotions differing in frequency and depth on internal reference price

Many marketers use sales promotions but excessive discounting can lower consumers’ internal reference prices. Scant research examines the implications of discounts and premiums varying in frequency and depth across multiple buying periods on period-by-period reference prices. In three studies, we find discounts with deep depth generate lower internal reference prices than those with shallow depth at high frequency. Then, we find frequency moderates depth, identifying approximate threshold levels of reference-price change. Finally, we find that premiums with the same value as discounts preserve internal reference price even if they are implemented with high frequency and deep depth