Price-Matching Policies, or How I Saved $75 on this PC!

If you look at the policies of many stores, one of the hidden benefits is the concept of price-matching. They will meet or beat any price if you show them proof a competitor is selling the same item at a lower cost. Some will even refund the difference if you buy something and then find a lower price elsewhere. It's a way of reversing the risk, making it a bit easier for the purchaser to go ahead with buying, having a little bit of 'insurance' against finding a better deal later and regretting it.

I saw a suggestion a few months back on a webpage board about asking for price-matching. I used it and got a store to drop the price an extra $75 on the laptop I'm using to post this blog. Here's what happened:

I had gotten to the point of being ready to upgrade my old PC and started researching what make/model/specs would meet my needs. I had found one laptop that seemed to offer good bang for the buck, with a 17" display, good processors and hard drive as well as brand reputation. Then looking through the Sunday paper one week I found that two retailers, Circuit City and Office Depot, were offering a sale on that model. Both of them had an ending price of $699 but the forms they took were different. Circuit City simply had a $699 price, while Office Depot offered an $849 price with a $150 rebate.

My normal way of thinking would have been to go to Circuit City as it would be less money out of pocket, less in sales tax and none of the rebate paperwork. But the price match suggestion I had read triggered me to try something else. The suggestion had been to ask in this kind of situation if the price-match policy for the store would be matched to the selling price at the other store. In other words, if Circuit City's price was $699, would Office Depot match that price? And the item would still be valid for rebate so the final cost would be lower.

The poster who made that suggestion said his local Office Depot had said yes to this kind of situation but that they knew him. One of the things about price-match is that it is largely at the interpretation and discretion of each store manager.

I figured it couldn't hurt to try. The two stores has locations about a mile apart so I wouldn't burn a lot of time or gas if I needed to go to both. So, ads in hand, I set off for Office Depot. I found the PC, double-checked the specs, model and price and then got some sales help. When I said I had a question about price-matching, the department manager came over and I asked if they would sell me the PC that day at the price offered by Circuit City (I told him I was ready to buy that day). He only took a few moments and then said he would do the price-match. I was thrilled. To get the better price and the rebate -- best of both worlds, right?

A couple of minutes later though, he returned with some bad news-- the store manager wouldn't do a full price-match because of the rebate offer, but they still would knock $50 off the price. Sounded good, but I figured it was an opening to negotiate a bit. I asked them if they would do $75. The store manager agreed, and voila! I had a computer + $75 less than I would have had to spend otherwise (actually about $71 with the sales tax difference).

I figure the store is still making money on the sale (they wouldn't agree otherwise) and I walked away a bit happier. I think it helped that I tried to create a win-win with my offer -- if they accepted it they would get my business on the spot. So my tip for the day is to check around for price-matching policies when you are looking for big-ticket items, the kinds that might be offered by a variety of stores. Know that it will be up to the store personnel's discretion, so use an approach that is positive and gives them a reason to want to match. And don't be afraid to at least ask.