Has anybody actually done any A/B testing on this sort of thing, or are we just making competing assertions about how slapped in the face we personally feel or not?
Edit: Thanks, some pretty good results out there.
Edit: Thanks, some pretty good results out there.
"In one usability test, removing the coupon code field increased overall conversion from 3.8% to 5.1% (an increase of 34%)."
Providing a code and its attendant price reduction clearly had positive effects on perceptions of fairness and satisfaction when compared to the control group.
...prompting for a code in the absence of having one had negative effects on fairness, satisfaction, and completion when compared to the control. As would be expected from these findings, the three groups were ranked in the predicted order (code > control > no code) for all dependent variables, including intention to repatronize and recommend the online store.
Equity theory, then, becomes an alternative explanation for reactions to code provision and non-provision... the Web buyer without a code experiences the additional impact of the inequity perceived if others are imagined to have a code, are selectively provided one, or are simply viewed as "special" in some sense.
Though I do suspect it A/B tests differently :)
Another thing is there are going to be people that aren't going to put the code in and you would make extra money off of them when they forget to use it. I don't know the percentage of that but it's certainly greater than 0, right?