Comment by thaumasiotes | Hacker News Reader

Comment by thaumasiotes | Hacker News Reader

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> Sometimes the box claimed "10% free!" but other sneakier boxes would claim "10% extra free!". The latter allows the marketer to quote the same nominal figure for a smaller absolute quantity.

I'm not sure they're trying to be sneaky. The difference is too small for anyone to care about:

- 10% free! (purchase price pays for 90% of the cereal)

- 10% extra free! (purchase price pays for 91% of the cereal)

(Also, it's the first option that indicates a higher unit price, not the second.)

Actually I think we're in agreement here: I didn't make it clear but the nominal figure to which I was referring was the magnitude claimed free. By saying "extra free" they get to write down 10% instead of 9%.

I also agree the difference is small in this case but I'd argue:

  * Small wins are still wins.

  * The difference is not so small with bigger percentages.

Imagine I decide to tweak my margins for a time and sell 1.5Kg of cereal for the price I previously sold 1Kg. I could say "33% free" (relative to old price) or "50% extra free".

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