WW: Price

Welcome to Word Wednesday. The word of the week is Price.

Price is the upfront cost of something, for example the price tag. This is what is paid. To many people, this is the sole indicator of value. They will buy their meals off the value menus. They'll shop the dollar stores. While you can get a lot of stuff for less money, price should not be the sole indicator.

Some people prize price over value so much that when presented with a "deal" they will buy something they would not normally buy. Advertisers count on this. Author Robert Kiyosaki calls this turning your cash into trash.

As an example, say you can get a cell phone plan that gives you 700 minutes a month for $40 per month. The next tier gives you 1,500 minutes a month for $50. Some people would say that the first plan is almost 6 cents a minute and the second is a little over 3 cents a minute. The price per minute does not tell you the value. If you only use 500 minutes a month, you are really are paying 6 cents a minute for the first and 8 cents a minute for the second. I've heard people say that for $10 a month more they don't have to worry about going over. That's their value judgement, just don't use price as the reason for the purchase.

Bulk buying is another way many are tricked into spending more money. This is somewhat related to the 1,500 minutes. The more you have of something, the more you tend to use. We used to buy little cinnamon containers. They were more expensive per ounce than the big bulk containers so we switched. Then we noticed that we were using more cinnamon, because we had more. We didn't have to worry about running out. Kind of like no one wanting to drink the last of the milk in the fridge. When you get low, you tend to ration more (ie use less). When you buy in bulk, you get low less often and tend to use more. Also, if it is perishable you run the risk of throwing out (wasting) more. Add on top of that that sellers know that the mentality is that bulk costs less per unit, they will actually sell bulk at more per unit. Few people actually validate that bulk costs less per unit and will end up paying a lot more.

What is a cynic? A man who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing. 
Oscar Wilde 

price

 [prahys]    Origin

price

   [prahys]  Show IPA noun, verb, priced, pric·ing.

noun

1.

the sum or amount of money or its equivalent forwhich anything is bought, sold, or offered for sale.

2.

a sum offered for the capture of a person alive or dead: Theauthorities put a price on his head.

3.

the sum of money, or other consideration, for which aperson's support, consent, etc., may be obtained, especiallyin cases involving sacrifice of integrity: They claimed that everypolitician has a price.

4.

that which must be given, done, or undergone in order toobtain a thing: He gained the victory, but at a heavy price.

5.

odds ( def. 2 ) .

verb (used with object)

8.

to fix the price of.

9.

to ask or determine the price of: We spent the day pricingfurniture at various stores.

..

Idioms

10.

at any price, at any cost, no matter how great: Their orderswere to capture the town at any price.

11.

beyond / without price, of incalculable value; priceless:The crown jewels are beyond price.

Origin: 
1175–1225;  (noun) Middle English pris ( e ) < Old French  < Latinpretium  price, value, worth ( compare precious); (v.) late MiddleEnglish prisen  < Middle French prisier,  derivative of pris, OldFrench  as above; see prize² , praise