What I am about to share with you is one of the most amazing effects of psychology. The human brain, though one of the greatest creations of the creator can be easily fooled by amazing marketing strategies, and one such strategy is the Decoy effect.  

I'll use an amazing work done by Dan Ariely (a professor at MIT).

One fine day when Dan was surfing the internet he came across an advertisement by "The Economist". The screenshot of which is attached below. 




The advertisement is simplified as below :

1.Only Online subscription - 59$
2.Only Print subscription - 125$
3.Both Print and Online Subscription - 125$ 

Now I'll ask you to pick up a subscription, the one you wish to purchase. 1/2/3. Memorize the number. 

Here's an other advertisement. 


The advertisement is simplified as below :

1.Only Online subscription - 59$
2.Both Print and Online Subscription - 125$ 


I'll ask you to choose your subscription again. 1/2.


Now let's get to the trick. 

Here are my predictions - 3rd option on the first advertisement and 1st option on the second ad.

So how did that happen? The amazing marketers just tricked your brain. 

First Advertisement
1.Only Online subscription - 59$
2.Only Print subscription - 125$
3.Both Print and Online Subscription - 125$ 


In the first ad, even a layman can easily figure out that the third option was definitely worth more than the second and in fact, only an idiot would choose the second, since for the same price there is an additional online subscription that's being given for FREE!!! And now the first option seems just like a normal option since there is more value that can be extracted from the third. So it's obvious to choose the third. This makes the customers get into a mindset that they have received true value for their money. 

Second Advertisement
1.Only Online subscription - 59$
2.Both Print and Online Subscription - 125$ 


In the second ad, there is no external factor that could influence your choice. You could choose the first if you only want the online subscription and second option if you need both print and online subscription. 

The same test was placed before MIT students and here are the results. 


84 of the 100 students choose 3rd option in the first advertisement whereas only a mere 32 choose it in the second ad.

This is called the Decoy Effect.

So what exactly does this do? By introducing a third option between the two, one option seems like it delivers more value to your money. And usually, it is always the higher-priced option. This brings in a lot more money into the wallet of the companies. They slid into your pocket stole your wallet and you just never know, that is how smart robbery works, and it has a name Marketing. 

Here are some practical examples that you see in everyday life. 



The 6.5$ option is the Decoy here, it makes the large popcorn bucket for 7$ look more value for money. You start to feel 3$ popcorn bucket is too little and might not be a great option to buy. But if the 6.5$ option was not present you would probably choose the 3$ bucket since 7$ looks too high and a 3$ bucket work for the movie. 


This amazing strategy is used by most of the companies and you just never know. Now that you know, see if you can get out of the trap next time.