Supermarkets fooling us to think we’re getting a good deal!

The supermarket aisles are brimming with tempting money saving deals which often persuade us to bulk buy on many products. But what if I told you we were actually being scammed into thinking we’re getting better value for money when actually we aren’t?

Well Professor von Stengel happens to be a mathematician and has sussed out all of the tricks supermarkets are using. A first example is a mathematical trick that makes discounts appear larger than they are: ‘100% extra free!’

He explained: ‘This, of course, does not mean that the whole product is free (in which case one would have to pay nothing for it), but rather that one gets an extra 100 per cent, ie, twice as much for the same amount of money. That is equivalent to a “two for the price of one” offer. So twice the product for the same dollar amount means in effect half price, or a discount of 50 per cent. Not insignificant, but not a 100 per cent reduction.’

If a deal sounds too good to be true, then there is a chance that it is.

Another sly trick that the mathematician has brought to light is the use of packaging to fool customers. For example, a pack of tomatoes with a big British flag in the corner. This is there to imply that the customer is backing the farmers by buying locally sourced produce, but Von Stengel says that the flag actually hides an empty part of the packet leading us to believe that there is more in there.

Speaking to the Mail the professor says: ‘Lowest price guarantee – that’s a sure fire sign it’s not going to be the absolute lowest price. They’re trying to stop you from looking around and comparing prices. Very few people would go away, check the price elsewhere and then bring something back because they have found it cheaper somewhere else.’

He added: ‘The items at eye level are also the most profitable, not necessarily the best value, it’s a used tactic to have cheaper items further down on the lower shelves. Things get cheaper as the eye goes down, because you’re more likely to buy the first thing you see.’ 

            Image taken from Daily Mail online.

CLICK HERE to read more observations made by Professor Bernhard von Stengel