购物小窍门

Bring a calculator with you

带上计算器去购物

即使很明显是打折比较划算，消费者的数学盲点依然存在。在另一项实验中，这次实验对象是阿克什劳的本科生，阿克什劳给出了两种购买散装咖啡豆的方法：免费多送33%和价格降低33%。这个折扣比免费赠送划算得多，但那些看起来很聪明的学生却认为两者一样。

Studies have shown other ways in which retailers can exploit consumers’innumeracy. One is to befuddle them with double discounting. People are more likely to see a bargain in a product that has been reduced by 20%, and then by an additional 25%, than one which has been subject to an equivalent, one-off, 40% reduction.

这些研究表明零售商还有其他方式可以利用消费者的数学盲点。其中一种就是用折上折来迷惑他们。人们往往会觉得，先打八折再打七五折比一次性只打六折更划算，其实两者根本一样。

Marketing types can draw lessons beyond just pricing, says Mr Rao. When advertising a new car’s efficiency, for example, it is more convincing to talk about the number of extra miles per gallon it does, rather than the equivalent percentage fall in fuel consumption.

阿克什劳说，除了产品定价，人们还可以从这些研究中学到关于市场营销的其他技巧。例如，为一款新车的性能做广告，宣传每加仑的油能多跑多少英里比实质上能省多少油更有说服力。

There may be lessons for regulators too. Even well-educated shoppers are easily foxed. Sending everyone back to school for maths refresher-courses seems out of the question. But more prominently displayed unit prices in shops and advertisements would be a great help or you can bring a calculator with you.

监管部门也可能从中学到东西。即使是受过良好教育的购物者也很容易被忽悠。让大家重返校园进修数学似乎不大可能，不过在商店和广告中更明显地标出产品单价将会有莫大的帮助.或者你可以带上计算机。