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Monday, December 21, 2015

Coffee, gas, and impulse spending

The other day, I was only my way to the Shell to fill up on gas. As I was filling up, I noticed an advertisement on the pump. Get a free coffee with a fill up (minimum $20). With gas being $1.80 per gallon where I live, I wouldn't exceed $20 per fill up. I would however exceed $20 if I filled up with premium fuel which costed $2.60 per gallon.

Oh, I see what they are trying to do.

I filled up with regular unleaded and the total amount came out to be $16.35. One cup of coffee would only cost about $2. I looked to the pump across from me and saw that the last customer paid exactly $20 for a fill up.

Impulse spending can be large ticket items. Impulse spending can also be several small transactions as well.

One free coffee would be all the motivation a man would need to go inside the food market and pick up the free coffee along with a pastry and some other item.

3 comments:

  1. http://freedompowerandwealth.com

    Very few will only take the coffee. Most will buy something else too. That’s what they want you to do. Gas alone is not such a good business any more, so gas-stations have long ago begun to to expand their range of consumer products (in particual food).

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  2. The reason they give away coffee is that there is a wide gap between cost and perceived value. It costs only pennies to make and yet it is seen as being worth far more because it is always sold at a huge mark up.

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  3. I have a saying: "If two men split a dollar and one cleverly walks away with 51 cents, by next week, he is king, the other guy his serf."

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