Free Shipping...and other lies!

A potential customer called on "Black Friday" and wanted to know if we offered free shipping.  I explained that no, we did not, and that if we did offer "free" shipping, we'd have to raise the price to include it.  We are so accustomed to phony marketing in this country, people truly believe you can get something of value for free, when in fact you are mostly paying too much anyway. Sure, retailers will often reduce prices in order to move product, and "free" shipping is just another way of offering a discount and calling it something else.  But, just as often, they will set phony high prices on an item to begin with so that then they can offer a phony sale or that "Free" shipping.  Have you ever read the fine print on a Kohl's catalog (or Macy's or most other large retailers)?  Here's Kohl's:

"Sale" prices and percentage savings offered in the advertisement are discounts from Kohl's "Regular" or "Original" prices.  The "Regular" or "Original" price of an item is the former or future offered price for the item or a comparable item by Kohl's or another retailer.  Actual sales may not have been made at the "Regular" or "Original" prices, (emphasis added by the blogger) and intermediate markdowns may have been taken. "Original" prices may not have been in effect during the past 90 days or in all trade areas.  Merchandise in this advertisement could be offered at the same or lower "Sale" prices during future promotional events..." (November 30, 2017 flyer)

Can you blame people for expecting everything to be discounted, and shipping to be for free when you have this kind of phony pricing to be the norm in our culture?  How can a small business compete, when they try and offer a genuine, hand-crafted product at a fair price and don't want to join the phony merchandising game?  It's a challenge, for sure, especially given all the other costs that go into running a business that somehow must be paid for out of every "Sale" (web fees, advertising, rent, supplies, etc.)  .

Oh, BTW, the reality of shipping costs at PHNX Boards is that we lose money pretty much every time, mostly because we haven't figured out the algorithm, but also because we realize there is a point at which people will hesitate to buy (those who aren't expecting free shipping, anyway).  As an example, we shipped a board recently to Oregon and it cost us $38, while we only recouped $17.95.  That person got a $20.05 "sale" without even knowing it, and we recouped that much less.

So, in the spirit of the season, PHNX Boards is now offering a HUGE 50% OFF SALE on all of our Boards, with FREE Shipping*

*note: this sale assumes a "Regular" and "Original" price double the current listed price plus whatever the web-store shipping algorithm spits out.  Uh, yeah, that equals exactly what the boards are selling for, plus shipping, but if it makes you feel better, go ahead and tell everyone you got 50% off with "Free" shipping!