Department of Health Sciences and the EMGO Institute for Health and Care Research, Faculty of Earth and Life Sciences, VU University Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Eur J Public Health. 2010 Jun;20(3):325-31. doi: 10.1093/eurpub/ckp198. Epub 2009 Dec 15.
Pricing strategies are an important component in the marketing mix and may also be useful in stimulating healthier food choices. However, due to competing interests and feasibility problems, the introduction of pricing strategies is complicated. For successfully introducing food pricing strategies, it is essential to explore incentives that are not only promising but also realizable and being approved by different sectors.
We aimed to assemble a list of pricing strategies by exploring expert views using the Delphi method. Subjects included experts from academia, industry, retail, agriculture, policymakers, consumers and non-governmental organizations. Data were collected in three rounds. In round one, experts designed promising pricing strategies. Based on a time-budget model incorporating Sleep, Leisure, Occupation, Transportation and Home-based activities, these strategies were in the subsequent rounds judged on several criteria. Results were analysed using median and interquartile deviations scores.
We found fair consensus levels among experts and a varied list of promising pricing strategies. The panel agreed on the potential success of offering small presents, providing price-cuts on healthy foods and discounting healthier foods more frequently. Also, it was found that experts gave higher rates to pricing strategies for which the implementation responsibilities could be placed elsewhere.
The resulted list of promising monetary incentives is an essential first step for the future design of pricing strategies. Following this study, it is important to determine how to make solid agreements on responsibility and implementation issues. Also, consumer perceptions regarding the proposed pricing strategies should be studied.
定价策略是营销组合的一个重要组成部分，也可能有助于促进更健康的食物选择。然而，由于利益冲突和可行性问题，引入定价策略变得复杂。为了成功引入食品定价策略，必须探索不仅有希望而且可行并得到不同部门认可的激励措施。
我们旨在通过使用德尔菲法探索专家意见来制定定价策略清单。研究对象包括来自学术界、行业、零售、农业、政策制定者、消费者和非政府组织的专家。数据分三轮收集。在第一轮中，专家设计了有希望的定价策略。根据纳入睡眠、休闲、职业、交通和家庭活动时间预算模型，这些策略在随后的轮次中根据几个标准进行了评估。结果使用中位数和四分位距得分进行分析。
我们发现专家之间存在公平的共识水平和多样化的有希望的定价策略清单。专家组同意提供小礼物、对健康食品降价和更频繁地打折健康食品具有潜在成功的可能性。此外，专家还认为，定价策略的实施责任可以转移到其他地方的情况下，会给予更高的评分。
这份有希望的货币激励措施清单是未来设计定价策略的重要第一步。在这项研究之后，重要的是要确定如何就责任和实施问题达成坚实的协议。此外，还应研究消费者对拟议定价策略的看法。
