Imagine this scenario:
Entering one of my favorite retail stores, I spy an amazing handbag! Priced at $350.00, I pass on by as it is a little rich for my wallet today, but as I walk by, I see another hand bag almost as beautiful and priced at $50.00.
And yes, you guessed it! I snapped up that $50.00 hand bag. Funny thing is, I wasn't even planning on purchasing anything at all.
What just happened is what retailers have known for ages to attract buyers and create a sale...they just used the "principle of comparison," putting expensive things next to the inexpensive things that they really want to sell.
They don't even expect to sell the expensive item; it is simply there for COMPARISON and to make all of the other items more appealing!
The way we judge pretty much anything is in comparison with something else.
We use this principle when designing our pricing schedules, making sure to put our higher priced items on the top followed by less expensive items. Our top priced items are our paintings and by simply putting them at the top of our price schedule, the Color Studies or Museum Black and White portraits suddenly become much more "reasonable."
We also use this principle in the selection appointment, starting the sale with the largest image size or the most expensive item we are suggesting while working our way down to the smaller, less expensive images. We use the philosophy of "three decisions" in the sale which follows the comparison principle. The first decision is the main purchase, then we move to the second decision which are peripheral products and we finish the sale with the "gift" purchases, the least expensive.
This also applies to add-on sales. For example, when you buy an expensive car, the optional extras seem very cheap in comparison. When clients have purchased one of our Signature canvasses or Museum Black and White portraits, adding on gift prints or framing seems like a lot less in comparison...it's the comparison principle working for us.
By understanding and putting into practice this principle, we can leverage our way to higher sales and a better bottom line.
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