[Post] Discount

年近歲晚, 又是一個消費旺季, 各式各樣的商店都打出折扣的旗號, 以吸引顧客消費. 有的折扣是明顯的, 例如8折, 有的折扣卻是不甚明顯的.

首先說明顯的那種, 8折即是把原價乘80%, 少付了原價的20%, 這是小學的計算, 現實上這種計算是有的, 但更常見的是商家把原價提高後, 再計算折扣, 很有機會比起原價更高, 或只是比起原來的減了少許. 另一種情況是有加一服務費, 原本的消費是$1,000, 有9折及加一. 最後的金額是$1,000 X (1+10%) X 90% = $990, 真正的折扣只是99折, 而不是9折. 另一種計算方法是$1,000 X 10% = $100折扣, 即是$900, 再加上加一$1,000 X 10% = $100, 總額是$1,000, 即是沒有折扣. 兩種方法我也遇過, 下一趟大家可以向商戶拿取收據作研究.

另一種折扣是複雜的那種, 最近有一間連鎖百貨公司開新的分店, 那分店提供折扣, 條件是顧客要買$500以上的貨品, 才可以有$100現金劵, 但這現金劵不可以當現金用, 而是在下一次光顧$500以上時, 才可以當$100使用, 而且只有少於一個月的使用期. 如果顧客兩次都光顧$500, 折扣只是$100, 即是9折, 但條件多多. 當光顧的總金額大於$1,000時, 折扣更少.

這種折扣較為複雜, 要光顧兩次, 而且有金額的限制, 令商家可以有較高的營業額, 這較簡單的折扣更有效. 顧客當然喜歡簡單的那種, 但商家更喜歡能同時提高營業額的方法.

另一種是買3送1, 原來每件要$100, 買4件要$400, 送1件時只付$300, 即是便宜了$100, 是75折. 表面上折扣率不錯, 但也是要多買一點東西, 顧客是否有需要, 因人而異, 但肯定會幫助商家減少積壓了很久的存貨.

在現代社會, 經濟掛帥, 不少公司長年累月都掛著折扣的牌, 是否有折扣要靠大家的智慧. 同樣, 香港多處也有特賣場, 是否特賣, 也要多作比較. 從商家角度看, 特賣場是散貨場, 商家希望早些拿回現金. 去過那些特賣場的人也可能會感到價格並不完全便宜, 有些東西在美國本土商店的價格原來更低. 現時特賣場內充滿內地的遊客, 其實價格已提升了不少. 要找真正的折扣, 是一場商家與顧客的角力, 要看你有多少時候去尋找.

[Quote] The Trump Card

所謂«絕招»就是把一個簡單的事情做到極致

[Learn] Merchandising

What is online merchandising and why does it matter?

Merchandising, traditionally speaking, is largely about the product on the shelf; what's offered in the store. But, there's more to it. Take a look at this definition of merchandising:

"…merchandising refers to the variety of products available for sale and the display of those products in such a way that it stimulates interest and entices customers to make a purchase…" It's the second part of that definition: "display of products in such a way that stimulates interest and entices customers to make a purchase" that is at the heart of online merchandising. Online merchants typically don't select or manage the inventory, but they optimize the performance of the inventory in the online store environment based on customer behavior.

Today, the online merchandiser's tool set is rich and robust: sophisticated on site search tools, product recommendation software, product videos, side by side product comparisons, enhanced visualization tools, reviews and ratings, the list goes on. Site analytics help merchants identify how placement and presentation decisions are impacting conversion, basket size and sales. Site administration tools have advanced to help "non-technical' online merchants make presentation changes easily. A/B testing tools allow for ongoing testing, learning and optimizing based on what works. More than ever, online merchants are focused on site productivity; getting maximum product engagement, conversion and sales per order.

[Learn] Boundaries

Sometimes, boundaries help you make tough decisions.
If you build your company with the policy that you'll never run an ad, it makes it even more important that you build a remarkable product--you'll never be tempted to compromise and try to make it up with hype.
Same thing goes for organizations that refuse to pay bribes. By eliminating situational decisions and grey areas, it changes strategies from the top down.
Or perhaps you're not willing to pay overtime, regardless of the emergency, regardless of how late the project is... it makes it far more likely projects won't be late, because they're designed to ship without emergency...
Rigidity is rarely your friend, but well understood boundaries make decision making a lot easier.