Shoppers naive about retail prices online

first-time buyers could see higher prices than repeat customers

[mona]

The study, "Open to Exploitation," found nearly two-thirds of adult Internet users believed incorrectly it was illegal to charge different people different prices, a practice retailers call "price customization." More than two-thirds of people surveyed also said they believed online travel sites are required by law to offer the lowest airline prices possible.

The rest of the story at CNN [cnn.com]

Am I naive and this is happening enough that I should be aware of it? Or is it a rare occurance and it just makes for a good story about the 'big, bad business' ripping off the little guy?

[sun818]

It seems reasonable to me for businesses to charge different prices based on where the referral traffic is coming from. I charge a different price when I sell on eBay (higher) than my web store because the venue requires more overhead to conduct business there.

I also give better pricing to repeat customers if they ask beause they have proven a shopping record with me. Why wouldn't I want encourage their repeat business? There's no incentive to offer better pricing based on the promises of a new customer promising they will buy more later versus someone who has a proven track record. The new customer could just as well sing the same song with different companies hoping a retailer will fall for it.

[jsinger]

A huge problem "professional" retailers face on the web is that we must compete head to head with the most inept people on the planet. I know some sites aren't turning a profit, but they don't. Brick/mortar retailers tend to much more experienced. Spending $200,000 to open a conventional mall shop filters out most of the loonies.

On the web, market price isn't set by Wal-Mart or Sears, but by some kid who made a pricing error in his new Yahoo Store and then lucked onto the front page of Google.

It's worse on Ebay where buying and selling must be a game to some people. I want no part of selling against 100,000 housewives working from kitchen tables.

Our site is forced to jigger prices constantly as every week brings another new, unsophisticated dabbler into web selling.

As for "exploitation," virtually all prices on the web are lower than those found in conventional outlets.