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Comment by yiyus | Hacker News Reader

> A candidate's expectation for salary might be lower than the advertised range, but if they see the range, they'll expect more money.

A client expected price for a product might be higher than the advertised price, but if they see the price, they'll pay less.

I do not say this is a good idea, but I do not think it is obvious that this particular issue is a reason for it to fail. This is how selling products work so, why wouldn't it work for the job market?

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In fact, in enterprise sales, the product price is usually hidden behind a phone call step, for precisely the reason that it enables customer segmentation and price discrimination. People complain about this, but it’s not going away, as it materially benefits the business.

It doesn't aid them that much, especially for new customers. People still shop around - you're just making it more of a hassle for them

Shopping around addresses only a small part of the purpose of “call us” pricing. It’s not so much about hiding the price of a vendor relative to the competition, as it is about hiding the price offered to one customer relative to other customers. All vendors are incentivized to price discriminate, the better they can do so the better they will do in the marketplace. Importantly, there’s a set of skills and tactics a salesperson will bring to that call to strike a deal that leaves the least amount of money on the table. Eg, a good salesperson will listen to the customer’s needs and tell a compelling story tailored to those needs justifying the product’s price (not unlike a recruiter trying to close a candidate at a salary lower in the range, by talking up other ways the opportunity is a great fit for them).

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