Pricing Technique #1 Question

by Candace
(Fort Walton Beach, Florida)

Original Comment:

April 16, 2014

Joe, please let me know if repricing at "one penny below the next higher price" takes into consideration the product's condition rating. For example, if I have a book in very good condition, will I price it at 1 penny below a book in "good condition" if that book is the next higher price".

Candace

Response:

April 27, 2014

Hello Candace;

First, please accept my apology for the late reply. For the past three weeks, reader questions have been missed directly to my SPAM folder and I only recently discovered the problem.

You ask an excellent question about pricing. And your assumption is correct in that you don’t want to price books in better condition against those in worse condition. It’s obvious that you will almost surely get the very next sale, but you’re also leaving money on the table unnecessarily. There’s no sense in competing against cheap used books when your inventory is of superior quality.

I should have worded that article to say “one penny below the next higher price in the same or better condition” to make the strategy more effective. That way, you’re not leaving money on the table and you’re maximizing your profits even further.

This is a classic example of mistakes that new sellers make when selling books online and not understanding the dynamics of price competition; kudos to you for recognizing that subtlety.

I hope this answer has been helpful to you. However, I’d like to point out that you can get unlimited answers to your questions in my Internet Bookseller’s Forum by going to the Forum Guidelines page and signing up for a FREE MEMBERSHIP.

You'll get lots of useful advice from me and other experienced booksellers to help you grow your business and make it more profitable. Make sure you sign up today and introduce yourself to everyone!

Joe Waynick
Bookseller, Author, Mentor

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