Thread: Not big on discounts

I guess it depends on who you are. I hate bargaining, and negotiating. I would prefer that a company clearly displays their best price on a label next to the stock on the floor. You shouldn't have to spend hours haggling with different sales people in different shops before you find out what the actual price of the item is. If two different shops are selling the same item, then lowest price should be the winner, you shouldn't have to take that price to a higher priced competitor just to get them to match it, or beat it slightly. It should be a completely transparent process. If somebody can't be bothered doing the research to find out what their competitor's prices are why should they get my custom?

Peter

Originally Posted by petersemple

I guess it depends on who you are. I hate bargaining, and negotiating. I would prefer that a company clearly displays their best price on a label next to the stock on the floor. You shouldn't have to spend hours haggling with different sales people in different shops before you find out what the actual price of the item is. If two different shops are selling the same item, then lowest price should be the winner, you shouldn't have to take that price to a higher priced competitor just to get them to match it, or beat it slightly. It should be a completely transparent process. If somebody can't be bothered doing the research to find out what their competitor's prices are why should they get my custom?

Peter

I agree with this thought. That being said, I was doing some reading on commercial practices regarding pricing recently, and in some cases there is a legal requirement on resellers to display a certain price on an item. Not doing so puts you in breach of contract and you could lose your rights to sell that particular brand.

So unfortunately it's a matter of don't ask, don't receive.

Grant

if they put the best price on the machine then it leaves no room for those types who are going to haggle and like to haggle and will be disgruntled when the staff cant lower the price any more than what the special tag on the item says. Then there will be a whole other group of people complaining.

They are there to make money, if you can sell an item for $1000 and put a price on it at $1500 leaving yourself $500 to work with, gice somebodt $150 off and they think they have value, you know you are $350 up on min price, win win situation customer happy company happy.

if you were selling your car would you advertise at the minimum you want to get for it????

I too don't like haggling so I don't.

If I found out some cheap whinger nagged a lower price than I did then I hope the store goes bust and the haggler gets run over by a bus.

I play the game and pay the displayed price if that means I am regarded as fool by the store and the whinger is valued - the store can keep the whinger and lose me.

When I give a quote, I don't expect to lower it because of some smooth talker. It is my best price, anything less and I am losing.

the store wont go bust, they know what they can do and push come to shove I am sure they would let a whinger walk with his money elswhere then go bust to keep them happy.

when you qoute, you quote at what you think is fair and reasonable and makes a profit i would assume. if you chose not to lower it then it would be because you dont want to lose profit i would also assume.

if a store thinks you are a fool for paying displayed price, they too would be fools to reckon this.

i beleive if you dont ask for discount to begin with, the store wont offer it. if you want a discount ask, if you dont then dont, each to their own really. the store should be pleased to accept your custom whether you pay full price or not.

In the distant past, I used to pay the full ticketed price but I am now comfortable with simply asking whether the retailer's price is the best price they can do. For me it's not a matter of haggling, it's just a simple question whether the seller is prepared to give me a discount off the ticketed price. If not, no problem, I will not try and screw them down. I realise that they have to make a profit, but I also know that if you ask, more often than not, you will get a discount on the goods (whether tools, white or electrical goods) priced over about $200 or so.

Regarding businesses offering to match a competitor's price, I am not up for that, I always buy off the the seller who initially offers the best price.

My two bobs worth.

Originally Posted by petersemple

It should be a completely transparent process. If somebody can't be bothered doing the research to find out what their competitor's prices are why should they get my custom?

There is almost no rationale for the management of a store to spend its time trying to find cheaper prices in other stores, just so they can make less money on each sale - rather than, say, researching their market to find new and better products, or training sales staff to provide accurate advice that brings customers back through the door. Even very price-sensitive businesses like the big B mostly rely on the customer bringing them the lower price.

Consider it this way: if you discovered an employee in your business who, instead of spending his days learning the product lines, finding new clients and trying to improve their sales technique, was reading your competitors' websites to see if he could sell your products for lower prices - would that make you happy?

beeroll,
perfectly put.

at the end of the day, buy from who you want when you want and what you want and be offended by them or not and bad mouth them here or dont and tell your freinds what you like and blah blah blah blah blah................................

if they have aproduct and you want it and the price is in bidget and you can justify buying it from them and it gives you good servoce what in the hell is the problem, really.

I think there are two paths to haggle, one for the product that is sold and one for the service that is offered.

For service it is your price that you offer. To allow someone to bid you down on your service does not do anyone any good. It would be better to stay at home and go broke.

For products it is supply and demand that govens the price. We have all heard it before it is cheaper to produce a lot of products then to produce a few products. As for wood working tools say for example a table saw, not many produced as to a fridge where there are more then a few.

Then there is the mix of product and service, might be able to beat the quote by getting cheaper parts but not wanting to lessen the service price. So others can do it cheaper, so let them do it cheaper.

Just another thought, those that are after a fridge feel free to bargin.