Nathan Burrow

Even if you got a sale November 1st and there's a price protection policy in place that would allow you to get refunded, they sort of count on you not taking advantage of that, not going back in store and getting refunded the difference when the price drops another 10% on Black Friday. So when that dynamic exists, it puts the onus back on the shopper to take action to get that difference refunded.

Even if you got a sale November 1st and there's a price protection policy in place that would allow you to get refunded, they sort of count on you not taking advantage of that, not going back in store and getting refunded the difference when the price drops another 10% on Black Friday. So when that dynamic exists, it puts the onus back on the shopper to take action to get that difference refunded.

And in a sense, it kind of operates like a rebate where shoppers, you know, they may take advantage of it, but they often don't. In that sense, retailers are potentially ensuring that they're able to pad the bottom line a little bit.

And in a sense, it kind of operates like a rebate where shoppers, you know, they may take advantage of it, but they often don't. In that sense, retailers are potentially ensuring that they're able to pad the bottom line a little bit.

Yeah. At this point, there are three different Amazon Prime events that pop up throughout the year. as opposed to the one when I started at Wirecutter. And then during those windows, we're seeing sales from other major retailers like Best Buy, like Target, Walmart.

Yeah. At this point, there are three different Amazon Prime events that pop up throughout the year. as opposed to the one when I started at Wirecutter. And then during those windows, we're seeing sales from other major retailers like Best Buy, like Target, Walmart.

And of course, the smaller retailers and direct-to-consumer retailers get in on the act at various points throughout the year as well, especially during the Black Friday and Cyber Monday window.

And of course, the smaller retailers and direct-to-consumer retailers get in on the act at various points throughout the year as well, especially during the Black Friday and Cyber Monday window.

So there are three main reasons. And the first one is... related to price and how it's presented. And that's the MSRP, probably seen that abbreviation. It stands for Manufacturer Suggested Retail Price. So basically, in a nutshell, the MSRP is the term used for prices suggested by manufacturers for retailers. Those retailers pay wholesale prices

So there are three main reasons. And the first one is... related to price and how it's presented. And that's the MSRP, probably seen that abbreviation. It stands for Manufacturer Suggested Retail Price. So basically, in a nutshell, the MSRP is the term used for prices suggested by manufacturers for retailers. Those retailers pay wholesale prices

And then they mark the price up to a price of their choosing. In the modern day, MSRP is often ignored by retailers in favor of their own pricing approach. So you'll see list prices that are totally divorced from MSRP. I will say it's often used as a benchmark to set pricing or to give the perception of a discount. And we've all heard those ads from car dealers that tout their price versus MSRP.

And then they mark the price up to a price of their choosing. In the modern day, MSRP is often ignored by retailers in favor of their own pricing approach. So you'll see list prices that are totally divorced from MSRP. I will say it's often used as a benchmark to set pricing or to give the perception of a discount. And we've all heard those ads from car dealers that tout their price versus MSRP.

More often than not, it's really just another form of discount manipulation.

More often than not, it's really just another form of discount manipulation.

So how does your team work around this to get to the true discounts?

So how does your team work around this to get to the true discounts?

So we use something called street price. And that's a term we use for what we perceive the everyday price of a given product to be. If there are a lot of price swings, we tend to use an average for the street price. So something that's 40 one week and then 50 the next and then back to 40 would have a street price of 45.

So we use something called street price. And that's a term we use for what we perceive the everyday price of a given product to be. If there are a lot of price swings, we tend to use an average for the street price. So something that's 40 one week and then 50 the next and then back to 40 would have a street price of 45.

Our goal is to just identify what a reader would pay on a normal basis without the sort of price manipulation that you might see in making the list price or the full price seem like more than it is.

Our goal is to just identify what a reader would pay on a normal basis without the sort of price manipulation that you might see in making the list price or the full price seem like more than it is.