Dodging Dollar Signs
Identification
Yang, Kimes and Sessarego (2009) conducted an experiment to assess how reminders of money and the act of paying would affect diners’ spending at restaurants, using menus that included words or dollar signs beside prices, and menus with only bare numbers. Surprise, surprise—diners spent more when menus did not include overt reminder$ of price.
Example
De-emphasizing price by designing the listings without currency signs or rhetoric (but who uses words anymore, anyway?) will make consumers less hesitant about spending.
Solution
If the marginal increase in bill reported in the study (around $6) makes you sweat, consider eating in.