When people talk about pricing strategies, one of the most mentioned is the ‘loss leader strategy.’ This involves pricing a product low enough to get customers through the door. Once there, the customers will likely spend more on higher ticket items. Essentially, the business sacrifices the loss leader to encourage customers to shop with them. But how effective is the strategy?

Loss Leader to Develop Loyal Customers

The loss leader strategy can be used to develop loyal customers to incentivize them to use a certain brand. Nightclubs and bars that offer happy hours do so as a loss leader strategy, with very little profit being made on each item. Instead, the customer becomes a loyal patron and may visit at other times.

They may also stay beyond the happy hour or spend enough due to the cheap prices to make up for the loss leader of the original happy hour offering. The goodwill gesture that can be seen in the reduced prices will be more likely to foster positive attitudes towards a brand or business, which will then cultivate a stronger relationship.

Loss Leader to Incentivize Against Competitors

Moreover, the online entertainment industry utilizes the strategy to get customers to try the product or service instead of those of a competitor. Customers can then indulge in more of what the entertainment site has to offer. As we can see, some new casinos in the USA offer no deposit bonuses as a loss leader to attract new customers. These range from no deposits to free spins and can be tailored to specific games. This means that they offer an incentive for customers to use them, and once on the site, the customer can engage with the online casino games they have on offer. The welcome bonus gives them a foot in the door to then try out the other aspects the site has to offer.

Loss Leader to Sell Higher Ticket Items

One of the main reasons for using the strategy in retail is to get customers through the door so they then purchase other higher priced items. Milk is a common loss leader product as most retailers make little on the milk – but without it, many customers wouldn’t step foot in the store and would go elsewhere.

Losing money on these items is necessary for a business who might be charging more for other higher priced items. By giving away something like milk for a low price the retailer can focus on upselling other products. If someone is coming to a store for one item, they are likely to go somewhere it is cheapest. As most people attest to, one item rarely means one time.

The loss leader strategy can be useful for a business. As part of a wider strategy, it can help incentivize customers to use the brand or business, can help foster stronger relationships with customers, or could be used as a ploy to sell more expensive items. Ultimately businesses who use this strategy understand that by sacrificing something to get the customer’s attention, they could end up with far more profit than if they had relied on the customer arriving without any incentive.