A new study has revealed that the advantages of bundling products may not be as straightforward as previously thought as consumers prefer products that are packaged individually and so retailers need to draw attention to the value of a package deal.
Authors Tobias Kruger, Andre Mata, and Max Ihmels from University of Heidelberg said that consumers may not always be aware of a bundle’s added value over a single item and this could undermine the entire purpose of the bundling strategy.
They added that without drawing attention to a product bundle’s added value, a bundle may not be perceived as more attractive than the respective single product without the add-on.
In one study, when the bundle was contrasted with the single product, consumers were more likely to notice the add-on and realize that the bundle was a better value.
This research shows the importance of making consumers aware of the added value of a bundle when relying on product bundling as a marketing strategy. Retailers may still want to offer a single version of a product even when they prefer to sell the product as part of a package deal. Presenting the package together with the single version makes consumers aware of the bundle’s value and more likely to purchase the bundle.
The authors concluded that their research sheds new light on “the presenter’s paradox,” according to which presenters (people deciding what to sell) tend to choose bundled options, believing that consumers will prefer them over single products, even though evaluators (consumers deciding what to buy) actually prefer the single option. We find that consumers will also prefer the bundled product if they are able to compare it to the single item.
The study is published in the Journal of Consumer Research.
(ANI)