Many merchants are going a step beyond price matching
For many retailers, the thought of haggling with customers may seem archaic, or more appropriate to small shops rather than big box stores and well-established businesses. Yet according to NBC News, the practice has been gaining popularity and may become a mainstay for many stores.
Price matching or accepting competitors' coupons has been standard practice for many retailers for years now. This was not necessarily that crucial a few years ago, when a shopper might have to pore through multiple flyers or catalogs to find the best bargain. But in the age of ecommerce and easily researched products, the process has become both faster and simpler for the average consumer. NBC News noted that even Best Buy accepts discounts from other merchants if customers could show proof.
But for some retailers, simply matching another price is not enough. According to the source, a few merchants are beating competing deals by taking an additional 10 to 20 percent off the relevant items. This includes major chains such as The Home Depot and Lowe's, while even high-end businesses such as Nordstrom created price-matching guidelines for their staff, even if these practices are generally not advertised.
"I truly feel that the shopping landscape is going to change," Joe Marrapodi, chief executive of Greentoe.com, told NBC News. "It's going to be much more driven by the consumer and ability to negotiate."
Marrapodi added that negotiating does need to be consumer initiated, which can avoid the problem of customers immediately expecting to receive a deal on marked prices.
Do not get hung up at the point of sale
Merchants that choose to engage in this practice will need adaptable retail software that can quickly mark the change without slowing down the line or otherwise impeding other shoppers from quickly purchasing their items. On-the-fly discounts can add complexity to the point of sale, but this should not unduly disrupt the process or complicate inventory management, particularly when the end goal is to achieve a greater number of sales with a larger volume of customers. With negotiation becoming a more common consumer tactic, industry professionals should adjust to the change, or at least ready their staff members with an answer when a patron requests price matching or an even steeper discount on a product.
