Alicea Lieberman and Kristen Duke discuss research on the structure of an incentive as either a surcharge or a discount. Incentives can be used to shape people’s behavior. Their research suggests that these tools can be effective, not only in changing one-time behaviors, but also in shaping social norms.
Source: Harvard Business Review, February 13, 2020 <link>
. . . people who learned about a surcharge (vs. discount) thought that they would feel more embarrassed and guiltier if they did not comply with the expectation.”
INSIGHTS: Animal health has been a discount-minded industry for many years. Once we disposed of minimum order requirements for prepaid shipping, surcharges per se’ became few and far between. Fuel for thought!