Anchoring is a cognitive bias where people rely heavily on the first piece of information they receive when making decisions.

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On Etsy, we can achieve this comparison by anchoring a higher-priced alternative to make your actual products seem more affordable and a better deal. This psychological principle helps set a mental benchmark, and influence how customers perceive the value of your products.

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The key factor for this to work is to convince your customers that your product is comparable to the alternative. If they don’t believe they are comparable, anchoring won’t work.

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Applying Anchoring To Your Etsy Shop

Compare to Premium Alternatives

One effective strategy is to compare your products to more premium, luxury alternatives. These could be similar items found in high-end retail shops. For example, if you sell handmade candles, you may compare yours to luxury brands found in upscale department stores that are double your price.

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While you can compare by just stating the comparison in text, a more effective way is to make a 2-column table as a listing photo, comparing different features or aspects of your product vs the alternative.

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Frame as an Experience Replacement

Another approach is to position your product as a replacement for a more expensive experience. Let's say you're selling a DIY spa kit. You could frame it like this: “Enjoy a full spa day experience from the comfort of your home. While a day at a luxury spa can cost $200 or more, our complete spa kit brings the same relaxation and pampering to you for only quarter of the price.” Here, you're anchoring the value to the $200 spa day, making your $50 kit seem like a much more reasonable price tag.

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Highlight Combined Value

If your multi-functional product can replace multiple items, make sure to compare the combined costs of those products to your single, all-in-one solution.

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