When comparing prices you are usually trying to determine how much to money to spend and prices become anchors or standards for comparison in the decision process.

To illustrate this, let's pretend you are shopping for summer sandals to jazz up your summer look.  In one store some sandals cost over $200 pair, so a pair costing $95 looks like a bargain.  Another store sells sandals costing on average $40 and below and now the same $95 pair of sandals seems expensive.  Do you notice that the price of the sandals is at the mercy of the context in which it is found?  Sometimes a high priced item is placed to anchor your thinking and make the other prices seem better when they may not be. 

To avoid unknowingly being influenced when making purchasing decisions:

1)      Be aware of the context in which you have found an item and its price.  Are you in an affluent section of town, an upscale mall or on a premium website?  If so, you could be lured into buying something you might be able to get somewhere else for much less.

2)      Educate yourself on reasonable prices before shopping.  Check out Consumer Reports® and ConsumerReports.org®.  These resources are published by Consumers Union, an expert, independent nonprofit organization whose mission is to work for a fair, just, and safe marketplace for all consumers and to empower consumers to protect themselves.

To run all over town trying to get the best price eventually defeats the purpose, however armed with a little education and awareness; you can find the right price for almost anything.

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