What are we paying for?
13 Jan
Did you ever stop to wonder why things we buy are priced that way? The hardcover version of a book cost more than the paperback version even though the content is the same. In fact most books are around the same price range regardless who the author is or what’s inside. Are we paying for the content or the medium?
This is also true for things like CDs, DVDs and even the digital revolution did little to change that. iTunes sells all music at the same price and Rphasody offers a subscription model.
Dyson Vacuum Cleaner
Companies like Apple and Nike know that we are willing to spend on better designs and cooler branding. Occasionally, we’ll splurge on innovative products like Dyson vacuum cleaners.
Quite often, the price we pay have little to with the quality or content of the product. Maybe we don’t really want to pay for the content or it’s just too hard to determine the price . But if you are given a chance to change the price of one thing, what will that be and why?
Yeap, the biggest example is music CDs. Price is ridiculous in this era now. How can it be still costing close to RM50 even today for an album? At least movie DVDs have been slowly but surely dropping in price, music CDs have been stagnant in price for so long.
change what? cars in malaysia.
why? well. do you want to start a long discussion about APs?
It’s all about the brand. Cost little but brand mahal lulz
@isaac yea, the fact that the sales is dropping doesn’t seem to change anything for them
@michelle in that case we are paying for taxes heh
@massy yup, it’s what the brand stands for, that matters
someone should change the price for clothes
Yeah sales drop but what do they blame? Illegal downloads! It doesn’t seem to cross their minds a bit that their dinosaur pricing model needs an overhaul.
LOL @john, clothes r easy, just dun buy branded ones. U see China made ones so cheap! Some are not imitations, they are simply the extra stock from the factory.
Another good place to get good bargains for clothes is the Reject Shop. Hardly can notice the reason for the item getting rejected but you pay like less than half the retail price.
Clothes, Shares, Food….
Most probably we aren’t exactly paying for the content. but the medium / brand it is delivered …. Even in its raw state.. its value is subject to perception…
If we were to pay for its content.. shares will reflect pure earnings, clothes and food will reflect the quality of the material its made of
@john You are right and I’m quite sure we don’t really want to care about that either. As long as it makes you happy?
@john In the real world, that wouldn’t work. How do you actually quantify the value that way? It’s a business remember? If I were to quantify say, the real value of a coffee shop ice lemon tea, I think they won’t be able to make profit, or take a way longer to make profit. Haha.
@john Hmmm, maybe we talking bout the same thing. LOL! So yeah, like @tslim said, dun bother bout it.
Remember, what we are always paying for is really a package, a service. You dun wanna know whats inside the black box. Hehehehe.
Kopi tiam coffee = RM2
McD coffee = RM5
Hotel coffee = RM8
Starbucks coffee = RM14
u paid for the extra cost of the plastic + printing + (the subjective) service charge + (the extra costly and subjective) PREMIUM BRAND fee.
… or so they say… :p