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Why your cereal box got smaller but the price stayed the same. Companies reduce package sizes instead of raising prices because consumers are more sensitive to price changes than quantity changes.
This summary was generated from show notes and public descriptions, not from a full transcript review. Details may contain inaccuracies.
Canon
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Planet Money: Brian Wansink's research shows people eat 30% more from larger containers without noticing. Shrinkflation inadvertently makes people eat less — which might be the only positive externality of corporate deception.
Highlights
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Shrinkflation exploits a cognitive bias — we notice price changes but not quantity changes
Planet Money: studies show consumers are 3-4x more likely to switch brands after a price increase than after an equivalent package size reduction. Companies exploit this asymmetry systematically.Was this useful?