I recently participated in a research study related to running in the 2019 Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run. I received a $10 Under Armour gift card for filling out some short surveys before and after the race. I immediately jumped on the Under Armour website, and looked at running shorts, since my two pairs are older and somewhat stretched out after wearing them during my last couple pregnancies.
I was struck by how much the running shorts cost. I found shorts ranging from $20 to $50 a pair. I often purchase my workout gear at Marshalls, and can find the items I want for $10. If I purchased the $20 pair of running shorts, and applied the $10 coupon, I would spend my normal amount, but would also have to pay for shipping. The shipping wasn’t expensive, around $5. If I spent $60, then I would receive “free” shipping.
Except, the shipping wasn’t free. The shipping was costing me the additional $50 I never planned on spending. Even if I purchased two pairs of shorts at $20 each and applied the coupon, I would still be spending $40 more than I normally would for those items.
How frequently do we purchase something we never intended to, because it was a “good deal”? If the most efficient way to do something is not to do the task at all, the lowest price you can pay for something is not to purchase it at all.
As I paused to consider my intent to purchase new running shorts, I thought about why I was purchasing these items to begin with. My shorts support an activity I am committed to participating in on a routine basis. Ideally, they will enhance my performance. But if I’m really honest with myself, purchasing new running shorts will not enhance my performance much, if at all. My current running shorts are sufficient, if old and a bit stretched.
I wanted new shorts because I wanted something new. Perhaps I felt I deserved something new, as I had committed to running some road races this year. New running shorts, however, were not what made me a runner. Running made me a runner. The problem is that the coupon didn’t serve me in becoming a runner. It only served to help me purchase running clothes that I didn’t even need.
The question we are always left with when we see a promotion via coupon, rebate, or some discount, is whether the promotion serves us. It is not a good deal, if the ultimate purchase did not provide you with value. It is not free, if you acquire something you don’t esteem enough to manage daily. And even items that we do enjoy and use, will typically carry a cost of disposal in time, money, or both. A deal is only good if it serves you in accomplishing a larger goal.
Since purchasing new shorts did not help me in accomplishing my goal of advancing my recreational running, what was I to do with this $10 coupon? I could give it away. Someone else who wants and needs new Under Armour clothes would be better served by this coupon than me.
Leave a comment below on on the Facebook page if you could use a $10 Under Armour coupon. Enjoy!
Photo by Holger Link on Unsplash
Comments
One response to “When A Coupon Causes You To Spend More”
YES! This is so often the case; it’s just a gimmick. I would consider using the coupon if I had wanted something, but was putting off buying because of price.
Good idea about offering it to someone who wants to buy from the company!