Buyer’s remorse is a phenomenon that any company would be happy to get rid of. It is a highly illogical response that nonetheless costs companies in a huge way by reducing its potential number of loyal customers.
Fortunately for the business community, there is currently an API based bot that may have an answer to some aspects of buyer’s remorse. Many customers who make a purchase and immediately find a cheaper alternative somewhere else may experience buyer’s remorse if they feel as though they overpaid. A new technology that is based on an API from Mastercard makes the price comparison journey much easier for these consumers.
Earny is the name of the app and it is making quite the stir in the B2B marketplace. The main function of the app is to scan the recent purchases of a consumer against inventory that retailers currently hold. Putting these two lists up against each other gives the consumer a quick way to find savings that would otherwise have gone missing. If a consumer is confident that he is getting the lowest price, there is less chance of buyer’s remorse.
Earny goes a bit further than psychological stroking, however. By using the app, consumers actually become privy to the current price of goods and the inventory of competitors in real time. The result is a very real improvement in price comparison technology. The implications of this new technology are massive.
First of all, the market can definitely expect copycat APIs to appear very quickly. With price comparison APIs all backed by the major credit card companies, will there be any room for price differences in the market? Companies will be forced to justify any increase in price, which will certainly make it harder to market on anything except price.
Secondly, apps like this may actually invite an informal type of collusion into certain marketplaces. Consumers are not the only ones who can use Earny and its cousins – companies can use the app just as easily. Savvy companies will be moving their prices in real time to match the best prices on the market. Smaller industries may begin to imitate the future’s market because of the speed with which prices can now be accessed.
Third, companies who try to make profit based upon the ignorance of the customer will have a great deal to answer for. The post purchase communications between a company and a customer are incredibly important when trying to upsell or resell to that customer. Suddenly, the level of communication will become much more sophisticated. The consumer now has the same amount of information as the industry insider.
In large scale markets with low profit margins, the introduction of apps such as Earny represent a changing of the guard. This is why you must keep your ear to the street – to stay ahead of innovations like this. Savvy companies are already shoring up their prices and customer service lines to deal with any backlash from the introduction of this new technology. You should definitely do the same, especially if you have loyal customers that you are planning to keep.
