Delta Adds First-Bag Fee but Ends Fuel Surcharge

New York Times, November 5, 2008 — Delta Air Lines, the nation’s biggest carrier, said Wednesday that it would charge some passengers to check their first bag, but that it was eliminating the fuel surcharges to book tickets using frequent-flier miles. It said it was adopting the fee as it matches its policies with Northwest, with whom it merged last week.

Haggling Starts to Go the Way of the Tail Fin

Fixed pricing may be coming to a showroom near you as the Web makes prices more transparent and dealers try to cater to women and Gen Y drivers

BusinessWeek, October 29, 2007 — It's one of the enduring oddities of American retailing: car dealers haggling over price with their customers. There's history here, of course. People bargained over horses. And since the proud beasts gave way to the horseless carriage, hardball negotiating between buyer and seller has continued on the car lot. The practice allowed salesmen (and most of them were men) to bamboozle naive buyers with a blizzard of negotiating tactics and generate outsize commissions. But dealers paid a price: The car salesman became one of the least trusted people in town.

Now, some dealers are beginning to dump haggling

Study: TV Spots Reduce Consumers' Sensitivity to Price Change†

Latest Apollo Findings Come as Project Looks to Move Out of Pilot Stage

Advertising Age, October 11, 2007 — TV ads really do reduce sensitivity to price differences, particularly when consumers are frequent buyers in a category, according to new research from the Apollo pilot project, which is tracking consumers' media and shopping habits.

The study by Apollo, which combines media-exposure data collected from consumers using Arbitron's Portable People Meters with purchase data culled from Nielsen Co.'s ACNielsen Homescan consumer panel, found exposure to TV ads decreases consumers' tendency to react to price changes.

Pricing Pills by the Results

Drug Company Offering a Type of Money-Back Guarantee

New York Times, July 14, 2007 — Drug companies like to say that their most expensive products are fully worth their breathtaking prices. Now one company is putting its money where its mouth is — by offering a money-back guarantee.

Johnson & Johnson has proposed that Britain’s national health service pay for the cancer drug Velcade, but only for people who benefit from the medicine, which can cost $48,000 a patient.

Air Canada Fliers Buy the Extras†

Nearly Half Accept Higher Fare to Get Meal or Choice Seat

Wall Street Journal, March 29, 2007 — Many Canadian air travelers are "willingly" paying more than the lowest fare amid an unprecedented travel boom, Air Canada's chief executive said. Speaking to an industry conference, Montie Brewer said 48% of all passengers who flew on Air Canada in the fourth quarter last year bought one of the higher-priced tickets even though a lower-priced one was available.

Branding success calls for more than quick-fix pricing philosophy

Marketing Week, March 23, 2006 — Supermarket price promotions are used in various ways to build brands, but, as Sainsbury's has found to its cost, return on investment can take a long time