A&W had a 1/3 lbs burger to compete with McDonald's quarter pounder and it didn't sell people because thought it was smaller than a 1/4 lbs burger.
this post was submitted on 14 Jun 2025
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Perfect example
McDonald’s also had a ”Third Pounder” and it had the same issue
Worked cashier during that time. People are some of the dumbest people
Is there any actual proof of that? Because I see plenty of restaurants advertise 1/3 lb burgers these days.
The problem wasn't that they had a 1/3rd pound burger, it's that they advertised it in direct competition with a 1/4 pound burger at the same price and people were too dumb to know that 1/3 > 1/4 because 4 > 3.
They did re-do the advertising... decades later...
"1/12 lb more beef then a quartet pounder" would have been a great marketing slogan!
I like the new one... "3/9th pound burger! And if it's sold out, we'll replace it with a 2/6th pound burger at no extra cost!"
I remember someone talking about an airline that advertised very low prices up-front but then added tons of fees for every individual thing, and when adding all the fees up for the service you'd expect with any other airline the end price would be the same. However, given that all the services/fees are technically optional, this is actually an ideal pricing model since you don't have to pay for any services you don't want.
We will soon find out with Southwest. They are moving to assigned seats because they think many travelers are avoiding them due to their open seating. However they may find that their most loyal customers no longer have a good reason to choose Southwest. Time will tell.
I’d like to see some airline adopt a seat + weight pricing. You pay a base fee and then you’re weighed with your luggage.
They're also removing the free checked bags AFAIK which is probably the real reason people chose them. I have had nothing but bad experiences with Southwest and can't stand them any longer. The seat free-for-all was also shitty too and I'm glad to see it go.
So what’s left to differentiate them? That they don’t serve food other than pretzels? That’s a big selling point?
I imagine just competing on price and routes. It's not as if many other airlines will treat you any better.
Exactly
So not an example of that effect then?
How so? I feel it is an example of the effect because customers are drawn in with a low price and are surprised by a plethora of seemingly-sneaky fees, which take up a large portion of the total bill. Customers feel negatively about the long list of fees and the implication that they've been tricked, but they wouldn't think twice if the fees were just included in the base price. It is against their best interest to be automatically and opaquely charged for all regular services (i.e. normal airlines) instead of being transparently given the option to forego those that they do not care about (i.e., fee-based airline).
Ehhh i’m not sure I agree with you, I get what they’re saying. It’s not about being drawn in and pulling what’s borderline a bait and switch, it’s about literally not knowing that one deal is better than the other at face value with all info available. Deciphering fees and running through all that stuff is not the same thing. The 1/4 vs 1/3 pound burger is a much better example
It would be like me offering you 3 nickels or 1 quarter and you decide to pick 3 nickels because you don’t realize that 1 quarter is worth more than 3 nickels
Exactly.
I can 100% confirm that the "discount" perception is a huge aspect of the decision making process for a purchase.
I sell a shitload of stuff on Facebook Marketplace because I buy, sell, fix, refurbish electronics and appliances
I know from experience that the way to sell something for $100, is to first post it for $120, and then 8 minutes later reduce the price to 100. People see the crossed out 120 and they think *oh my god this is my chance"!
I've been buying and selling for almost 30 years, I was like the first user on eBay LOL... This is such a baffling but real phenomenon! For example on ebay, if you want to get 30% more than market value, post your item for a dollar and let people fight! The idea of a deal, even when it doesn't exist, is so potent.