Could shops charge you more for products you've tweeted or 'liked' on Facebook?

Online shops already have a frightening amount of information at their fingertips - from whether you've purchased from them before, to what sites you've visited before you arrive at their shop, accessible via browsing history.

But new start-ups could move the idea to a new level - harvesting information from sources such as Facebook and Twitter to 'tweak' prices to what customers are willing to pay. 

In other words, if you've 'Liked' something, prepare to pay for it. 

One web entrepreneur, Alex Gannett, founder of CampusSplash says that 2012 will be 'the year of behavioural pricing' - a new type of e-commerce, where prices will be tweaked to include what customers are willing to pay.

Using such freely available information isn't an out-there idea. 

Demdex, acquired by Adobe last year, has built a business on harvesting user information from 'cookies' - invisible internet files -  to build up a picture of what audiences like so that advertisers can target people more effectively.

Tweaking prices to suit the individual could be the next step. 

The idea has already started raising privacy alarm bells. 

 

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Gannet writes, 'This year will mark the end of static pricing. The use of your tweets, credit score, and web history in e-commerce pricing is frightening—but ultimately unavoidable.'

Gannett describes the idea as a 'consumer's worst nightmare, a merchant's dream'. 

Chris Simpson, Chief Marketing Officer at price comparison website Kelkoo says, 'There are many pricing policies already used by retailers that most consumers are completely unaware of.'

Chris Simpson, Chief Marketing Officer at price comparison website Kelkoo says, 'There are many pricing policies already used by retailers that most consumers are completely unaware of.'

'These include things like regional pricing variations in the same stores across the country, not to mention retailers using different pricing structures for the same products in stores and online.'

Shops already harvest information from loyalty card programmes, and also use credit ratings to decide what rates some customers should pay for products such as loans. 

Gannett writes, 'Online marketers have dramatically increased the amount of behavioral data they have on consumers. It comes from a complex network of web histories, demographic records, loyalty programs, and increasingly, social media profiles. 

In the last few years, behavioral data has matured and gained widespread acceptance and usage in online advertising. Startups like Demdex  allow advertisers to access “databanks” of behavioral information on users, and target advertising to them.' 

Kelkoo's Simpson says that although the idea seems like a next step for businesses, it may be hard to work in the real world - particularly when web shoppers are fond of using apps and comparison sites to track down the best bargains.

Simpson says, 'Whilst behavioural pricing might seem like the next logical step, it is a hugely complex initiative for retailers to implement.'

'The danger of this pricing strategy is that if ‘social savvy’ shoppers became aware of it, it could lead to a social media boycott destroying a retailer’s reputation very quickly.'

The great thing about price comparison sites like Kelkoo is that we offer customers price transparency. In essence, customer data does not influence the prices that are displayed on our website.'

From The Mail Online