the art of guessing exactly how much a stranger will pay before they hate you.
means the deliberate act of assigning a number to a product or service that balances what it costs, what it's worth, and what people will tolerate.
from from old french 'pris' meaning value or worth, itself from latin 'pretium' — the same root that gives us precious, meaning value has always been half math, half feeling.
uber surge pricing — fares multiply 2 to 5x during storms and rush hour demand spikes
netflix tiered plans — 2023 add-ons introduced ad tier at 6.99 to widen the funnel
diamond markup — de beers historically priced stones far above mining and cutting cost
psychological 99 cent tags — used since 1880s five-and-dime stores to force change-counting cashiers