Supermarket Sleuths: Costco shopper spots clever two-word trick enticing customers to spend more

My partner and I headed to Costco this past weekend to stock up on some grocery items we use a lot of, and to indulge in some of our favourite treats.

Costco is known for its delicious baked goods made on-site, with everything from cookies to sheet cakes to cinnamon scrolls and bread rolls.

This is why I was surprised to see, right near the entrance to our local Costco at Marsden Park, a huge display of discounted Krispy Kreme donuts.

But it was a detail on the price sign that was of equal interest to me.

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The first line of the sign read: "Krispy Kreme original doughnuts 12pk, $19.00."

However, underneath this was another line of information highlighted in yellow which read: "Instant Rebate. Exp. 06/07/25 -4.00."

Then the bottom line, written in large, black, bold text, revealed the final price of "$15.99".

That is a significant discount. Krispy Kreme donuts normally cost $26.95 for a pack of 12, which is $2.24 each.

At Costco's price, customers were paying just $1.33 each.

As we made our way further into the store, I noticed even more signs that included the "Instant Rebate" price.

These included Ruffles chip packets, Pringles Minis, Australian lamb, Vulcan gloves, and shoe racks.

I wanted to find out what "Instant Rebate" pricing meant, which products were subject to them and why, how this price was calculated, and how the expiry date was decided.

Costco declined to comment to 9honey Kitchen when asked about the "Instant Rebate" information on the signs.

But we decided to speak to Peter Resanceff, consumer psychologist, behaviouralist, and brand strategist, about sales language used by supermarkets.

It appears the phrase is simply a discount offered by the product's manufacturer and applied at point of purchase at Costco's register, but the way in which it's displayed can be particularly enticing to customers.

"Words are like triggers – if marketers use the right words, they can sometimes trigger a change in behaviour," he told 9honey Money.

Resanceff explained language that "triggers a sense of urgency is often used to create momentum around a sale, appealing to shoppers' fear of missing out".

This would certainly be the case when it came to the inclusion of the words "Instant Rebate" on the Costco signs alongside an expiry date which would add to that sense of urgency.

The impact of highlighting that entire line of information in yellow is equally effective.

Resanceff previously explained why to 9honey Money. "Yellow has become part of the visual language of marked-down or price-discounted items – it's become a familiar and recognised visual cue in shopping environments to reduced-price items," he said.

"Yellow price stickers are also highly visible in a shopping environment – they simply stand out, making it easier for shoppers to spot discounted items amongst those that are not."

Yellow is also associated with "positivity, happiness, and optimism," he continued, which can "subconsciously encourage shoppers to buy discounted items".

As my partner and I made our way through the store, we did notice that the price signs including the yellow "Instant Rebate" sign did pop out to us, which isn't easy to do at a busy Costco store.

Although, as self-aware consumers, we were able to avoid purchasing any of them – even the Krispy Kreme doughnuts.

Instead, we stuck to the items we had already agreed on before we even walked into the store. These were kalamata olives, two giant pizzas, a rotisserie chicken, chicken breast, chicken thighs, snacking pears and passata.

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We weren't that specific with our plans, actually. We had agreed on pizzas, the rotisserie chicken and passata, and the chicken breast and thighs came under "some stuff for dinner later this week" and the snacking pears were our version of "let's get some fruit".

The only rogue item that landed in our trolley, because we're only human, was the oversized garlic baguette. Garlic bread for days.

Because what's a visit to Costco without an unplanned, giant, delicious purchase you aren't sure how you're going to eat all of?

That's not fun at all.

It all cost us $130.81 which is pretty good for us. If we manage to spend less than $200 during a trip to Costco, that's definitely a win.

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