How do they charge differently at the cashier? Like if the label changes for me after Jane picks her milk up then how does the system know that I picked up the milk at the higher price?
I’ve wondered this myself, but at a guess, I’d assume that they’d attach a 1hr window to the time change. So to use your example:
1400h egg price is set to £3.00
1445h you pick eggs off the shelf
1500h egg price set to £3.05
1515h Jane picks eggs off the shelf at £3.05
1530h you get to the till and pay £3.00
1535h Alice gets to the till and pays £3.05
Basically, so long as you’re in and out within an hour, any price rises (not drops, likely) within that hour don’t apply to you.
Alternatively, there’s a continued push to use the self scanning guns, those things you take with you in your cart as you shop. These could track the time of purchase and thus give you up-to-the-second pricing. Of course this only works if everyone has to use those things. I’m sure that’s next.
Traditionally, with paper coupons. Now, targeted digital offers (e-coupons).
They’d face lawsuits if they changed labels during the day and folks overpaid. Harder to think of a strategy with those labels that would be truly personalized. But like paper labels, would be location dependent (how wealthy and what tastes for the surrounding area).
How do they charge differently at the cashier? Like if the label changes for me after Jane picks her milk up then how does the system know that I picked up the milk at the higher price?
I’ve wondered this myself, but at a guess, I’d assume that they’d attach a 1hr window to the time change. So to use your example:
Basically, so long as you’re in and out within an hour, any price rises (not drops, likely) within that hour don’t apply to you.
Alternatively, there’s a continued push to use the self scanning guns, those things you take with you in your cart as you shop. These could track the time of purchase and thus give you up-to-the-second pricing. Of course this only works if everyone has to use those things. I’m sure that’s next.
Would say—
Traditionally, with paper coupons. Now, targeted digital offers (e-coupons).
They’d face lawsuits if they changed labels during the day and folks overpaid. Harder to think of a strategy with those labels that would be truly personalized. But like paper labels, would be location dependent (how wealthy and what tastes for the surrounding area).