Vulnerability to Low-Price Signals: An Experimental Study of the Effectiveness of Genuine and Deceptive Signals

Low-price guarantees help buyers make inferences about retailers’ prices. However, researchers are concerned that consumers might be vulnerable to relying on guarantees associated with high market prices. Furthermore, truly low-priced retailers that issue low-price guarantees might be vulnerable to consumers’ discounting of such guarantees. This article experimentally assesses these concerns and finds that the effects of adding a low-price guarantee to a low or high offer price on consumers’ pre-purchase perceptions depend on consumers’ confidence in their product category price knowledge and their decision involvement. The article explores the implications of the findings and provides directions for further research.

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► Retail low-price guarantees (LPG) act as signals of low prices.
► Therefore, LPGs associated with low (high) offer prices are genuine (deceptive).
► Consumers with low price confidence respond favorably to genuine or deceptive LPG.
► A genuine LPG does not affect perceptions of more confident consumers.
► However, a deceptive LPG favorably affects their perceptions.