Two Great-Value Wines: How to Get Customers to Buy the Pricier One

Picture two bottles of wine on the table: one at $200, the other at $400. Both are genuinely value for money — in other words, both are great-value choices.

If you were the restaurant owner, with no salesperson to talk customers into it and no promotional copy to lean on, how would you get customers to buy the $400 wine instead of the $200 one?

First, let's rule out two common answers:

1. Print the wine's vintage and tasting notes on the table? No — remember, no other promotional aids are allowed ^_^
2. Add food-and-wine pairing suggestions to the menu? Same rule — no persuasion through copy ^_^

So how exactly do you get customers to buy the $400 wine?

The answer: put a $1,200 bottle right beside them!

Why Does Adding a Pricier Bottle Work?

Because customers are already running the numbers in their heads. With one more item to compare against, the "cheaper is the better deal" instinct is instantly overturned — and it satisfies the customer's mental logic of "I can always choose something better."

We've shared this before in our "36 Marketing Strategies" emails: it's the pull of comparison. It's like a sportswear store placing comparable products on the same shelf as the trendiest name brands. The products perform the same, but one costs only a third or two-thirds of the other — and that's enough to prompt a purchase from shoppers who aren't chasing the brand name!

Starbucks Sizes and Three-Tier Plans: What Is the Compromise Effect?

Imagine walking into Starbucks. You're choosing not only a coffee but a size: Tall, Grande or Venti. Many people go for the Grande, because the Tall feels a little too small and the Venti a little too big. The Grande feels "just right," as if it were designed for you.

In the same way, many software companies promote three tiers: Basic, Advanced and Professional — and they often flag the Advanced plan as "most popular." They know most customers will pick the middle option: not too basic, not too advanced.

In consumer psychology, this behavior is called the compromise effect. When customers face multiple options, they tend to avoid the highest-end and lowest-end choices and settle on the middle one. The middle option is usually seen as the lowest-risk and most reasonably priced, so people automatically rate it as better value.

How to Use the Compromise Effect in Your Own Pricing

Understand this psychology and you can design and market your products more strategically — raising sales while meeting customers' needs. In practice, it can be simple:

• Package your product or service into high, mid and entry-level options, and put the one you most want customers to choose in the middle.
• The high-priced option's job is to act as a reference point that makes the middle option look like a good deal.
• When you sell from a single-page mini store, show the three options side by side so customers can compare them at a glance.

To raise the value of each order further, read "Pro Tip: One Small Shift in Where You Make Your Profit Can Boost Your Sales."