As a rule, faced with two similar options and one dissimilar option, behavioral economics says that most people will discard the dissimilar option and choose between the similar options based on our hardwired need to compare two like things. Furthermore, behavioral economics shows us that by contemplating a number, which in fact can be quite […]
Harness Our Need to Compare and Decoy Prices Read More »
Remember when Blu-ray and HD DVD were competing for head to head and it became clear that Blu-ray was going to emerge as the standard? Savvy retailers, knowing that buyers respond in irrational ways to the word “Free”, began to offer HD DVD players that sold in the neighborhood of $400 a piece with “Five
Harness the Power of Free Read More »
Economics assumes that an individual provided with all the facts will respond rationally and make good buying decisions. Behavioral Economics recognizes that our brains are hardwired in certain ways that make us respond, often quite predictably and irrationally, in ways contrary to logical economic rules. With a better understanding of just a few hardwired behavioral
Use Behavioral Economics for Profit Read More »
New government policies and news events affect group-thinking, which also creates sales opportunities. For example, recent talk of potential gun legislation caused a run on guns and ammo. Movement, whether economic or emotional, creates opportunities for small businesses who can spot them and react more quickly than larger companies. Savvy small business owners look at
Do You Leverage Group Think? Read More »
I was walking through Sam’s Club the other day with a shopping list. Nowhere on my list was cheese or ham patties. But as I walked up and down the aisles grazing on samples, I ended up with cheese and ham patties my cart. There is no way I would have looked at either of
The Power of Free Samples Read More »
Coming up with a great idea is the easy part. It is the execution of bringing your idea to market that is the hard part. I have run into many clients who have a great idea, around which they want to build a business. When I mention that they can license the product to a
Being an Inventor Does Not Make You an Entrepreneur Read More »
Americans are fixated on how much they make. People use their salary as a report card of sorts to compare their success to others. The problem is that income is often a poor measurement of success since it is decoupled from a person’s standard of living. It is not how much money you make, but
Salary vs. Standard of Living Read More »
I often encounter businesses that at their core are pure services businesses, but which also sell products as part of their offerings. For example, consider a small part-time mobile oil change business. They are primarily in the service business of changing a person’s oil. However, their service includes the sale of motor oil. I’m often
Sales Tax Workarounds for Service Oriented Businesses Read More »
Everyone deserves a living wage, but the wages earned by an employee should be directly proportional to the value they provide to their employer. A pay raise should not be based on how long a person has worked for an employer or some government mandate. When my kids have come to me and asked “How
Do Your Employees Know Their Contribution? Read More »
On a recent trip to visit our son, we went to dinner at a nice restaurant. When the meal was served my son’s Chicken Alfredo contained a rather large bone, on which he nearly choked. When the owner was summoned to the table he began to explain that it was not possible for the bone
Social Media Can Make Or Break You Read More »
