The "Reason for 99 Cents" Story

It was an ordinary day. Needed gas for the car. Today the price of gas is $3.29.9. Three dollars and twenty nine cents and .9. What is that .9 after the 29? It's 9/10 of a cent. So why don't they just say that the gas is $3.30 and be done with it? Well, it's the same thing as spending $0.99 cents for something instead of $1.00. Your mind thinks it is cheaper. And, it is. One cent cheaper. I read not long ago that we may some day soon get rid of the penny. Geez, what will we do when that happens. How will they put that on the message board at the gas station. For years people have been making items that would have a price that was one cent away from a price that seems dramatically higher. A piece of furniture may cost $999.99. That just seems so much cheaper than the same piece at a store down the street that charges $1,000.00. Hey, its one cent cheaper! Bet if you were buying it you would go to the store with the $999.99, but yet if you have too many pennies in your pocket you may just get rid of a few before they make a hole in your pocket. When I was teaching in high school I often noticed students throwing pennies at each other. Pulled one to the side one time and asked him what he was doing. It's only a penny, was the reply. He didn't realize a penny can hurt the same as a dime. Besides the fact that he shouldn't be throwing anything. A penny means nothing to the younger generation. If I ever found a penny on the street I would pick it up and put it in my pocket. Many will tell you not to do that unless the head is up on the coin when you find it because if may bring bad luck, but I figure that if you accumulate enough of them you'll make your own luck. So many things are one cent shy of a dollar amount today to make them seem cheaper. In the iTunes Music Store most songs are $0.99. How Steve Jobs, in 2003, convinced all the music companies to offer their singles for that price is amazing to me. Most still remain that price, but in 2009 they made some changes and now offer hit singles for $1.29 while others remain $0.99 and the obscure songs can be purchased for $0.69. Notice it is not $1.30, $1.00 and $0.70. Probably wouldn't sell as many. In the retail clothing market, clothing that carries a price of say $14.99 will sell 20% more clothing than if it were $15.00. Also, a store employee would have to open a cash register to give a penny change and therefore be less likely to pocket the whole dollar amount. I recently bought an iPad. Price was $499.00. I know it should have been $499.99, but it wasn't. And then I decided I wanted to buy some apps (applications) for it so I could play different games on it. Bet you know what the price was for most of the apps. Yep, $0.99. So they got their extra $0.99 after I bought my first app. It's crazy, but $0.99 cents just seems like a more throw-away figure than a dollar. You agree? How many pennies do you have in your pocket or purse? It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.