Final Customer Purchasing from an Intermediary of the Product

Acquire Steps: Acquire steps include all activities the customer completes preceding the purchase of the product. These steps include the customer's efforts needed to identify and evaluate Intermediaries and travel to the Intermediary location.

B.
Resources: Reduce resources required for the use of the product

1.
Money: Reduce the money the customer uses with the product. For more ideas on using pricing, please see the Improve/Pricing section of StrategyStreet.

A. Reduce the level of payment for use of the product.

Reduce price for a comparable product

Reduce price of component

No.	Year	SIC	Note
1	1999	2834	Since PolyMedica is the largest direct shipper of diabetes test strips, glucose monitors, and insulin to patients, it can negotiate bulk discounts from manufacturers to avoid charging patients a fee.
2	1999	3711	General Motors Corp. has said it has formed a special unit to buy dealerships that will compete in the marketplace with the independent franchises that have been its main conduit to consumers. GM said the move is a response to the unprecedented change in the auto-retailing industry, including the effects of the Internet and the rise of consolidators such as AutoNation Inc.
3	2004	4813	Prepaid firms such as TracFone and Virgin Mobil USA sell their mobile phones retail at below cost. Unlike big wireless companies, TracFone doesn't charge activation fees to start a service.
4	1994	5541	Sunoco offering a joint credit card with MasterCard which offers rebates on gasoline purchases.
5	2002	5731	Best Buy, a consumer electronics retailer, relies on warranty as "they subsidize unattractive product sales with low margins." It is the largest consumer electronics store in the U.S., posting $764 million in warranty sales in 2002. The company has more than 1,900 stores that sell personal computers and entertainment software. It operates under banners that include Sam Goody and Musicland. Its sales were around $20 billion in 2002.
6	2003	6021	Since Washington Mutual's appearance in Chicago, Bank One has increased efforts to keep its customers while attracting new ones. Bank One is advertising more and eliminatin fees for items such as online bill paying.
7	1992	7832	Cinemark located walk-in and drive-in theaters in small towns, opened discount theaters as an option for families. Cinemark charged $1 to lure customers into theaters and then made money on higher margin items like popcorn, soda and candy that consumers valued more.

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