Browser cookies & preferential web pricing

idrisdraig

Having just heard a news item about the OFT looking into the how web retailers use browser cookies to offer preferential prices to different customers for the same item, does anyone know how the consumer can play this system to their advantage?

pledgeX

Have you got a link to said news item. That sounds very iffy to me. In what way would they adjust their pricing?

I can't imagine it would work particularly well either. People can clear cookies, use different browsers, different machines etc. If it was tied to your account rather than cookies, then I'd imagine that would be more effective (from the retailers point of view)

Shimrod

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-20337775

"UK regulators have begun seeking information on how firms may be monitoring online shoppers in order to target them with different prices."

Ectophile

pledgeX wrote: »

Have you got a link to said news item. That sounds very iffy to me. In what way would they adjust their pricing?

I can't imagine it would work particularly well either. People can clear cookies, use different browsers, different machines etc. If it was tied to your account rather than cookies, then I'd imagine that would be more effective (from the retailers point of view)

If it was tied to your account, then you would see different prices before and after you logged in - which would be pretty obvious.

I understand the idea is to give special offers to new customers, while repeat visitors see the full price - but without the customer realising that they are being charged more.

jbreckmckye

does anyone know how the consumer can play this system to their advantage?

It would depend how individual sites implemented such behaviour. There wouldn't be a single solution to get preferential prices across different e-retailers.

idrisdraig

I wouldn't expect there to be a universal method of discounting, but equally I'd expect there to be some sort of core philosophy that was widely used.

NBLondon

Wild idea - someone has coded in "This item has been looked at by XX people so it must be popular and we could increase the price" but hasn't considered individuals looking several times? Special offers for new customers is an established process, but MSEr's would be wise to that and just set up a new account.

InsideInsurance

pledgeX wrote: »

Have you got a link to said news item. That sounds very iffy to me. In what way would they adjust their pricing?

I can't imagine it would work particularly well either. People can clear cookies, use different browsers, different machines etc. If it was tied to your account rather than cookies, then I'd imagine that would be more effective (from the retailers point of view)

It evidently depends on how they are doing it, it could be any of the above or also referrer information.

does anyone know how the consumer can play this system to their advantage?

Namely to learn how they are doing it and then either emulate it by doing the same or if its not possible to do the same then fake doing the same (eg if they give a discount to customers with a cookie set from a third party but you cannot/ dont want to be a customer of that third party then you'd need to create the cookie yourself - they're ultimately just text files)

So the one that hit the press a few months ago was companies saying they sorted the items for sale differently for Mac users than other operating systems. So as a simple test, find a browser plug in that enables you to alter your system responses and go to one of these sites once with it turned off and so identifying yourself as a Windows user and then clear cookies etc and return with the plug in turned on and see the difference.

Personally I dont really have much problem with it. I dont see the difference between a single store altering its prices depending on who you are -v- the fact that different shops sell the same item for different prices. They can use the identical information to adjust the service levels in addition to the pricing.

It has also gone on for years anyway; back in my mail order days we had tiers of customers and whilst everyone got the same price/ terms in the main catalogue the promotions and discounts people were sent were different based on their shopping habits or other demographic information.

idrisdraig

I'm not saying I have a probem with it, or companies should't do it.

As for how to use it, one of my thoughts was whether deleting cookies every time you closed your browser might be more likely to lead to higher prices (because new customers might get an incentivising lower price) or lower (because returning customers get a lower price for loyalty).

Obviously there is no one answer for all companies.

esuhl

Didn't Amazon try this a few years ago? If I remember rightly, people went nuts when they found out that they might not have been given the same price as everyone else.

I can't see it proving popular if consumers realise what's going on.

paddyrg

Bit silly really - charge less to attract new customers, and all you do is attract non-loyal customers who will jump if they see another promotion...much like the customers Groupon promotions attract have no loyalty and just arrive for the offer.