Buy one, get one free

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"Buy one, get one free" is a common form of sales promotion. While rarely presented to customers in acronym form, this marketing technique is universally known in the marketing industry by the acronym BOGOF, and it is regarded as one of the most effective forms of special offers for goods.

Originally, "buy one get one free" was a random, end of season or stock clearance method used by shops who were left with a large quantity of stock that they were looking to sell quickly. More recently it has become a popular, planned and considered marketing method.

One article has argued that the success of this promotion lies in the fact that the price actually takes into account the fact that two items are being sold. The price of "one" is somewhat nominal and is typically raised when used as part of a buy one get one free deal. Whilst the cost per item is proportionatly cheaper than if bought on its own, it is not actually half price.^[1]

Buy one get one free deals are typically popular on items for which the price of "one" is not typically known. Buy one get one free is a popular sales technique because it can be used legally at any time, unlike many other offers. For example a shop cannot claim an item is on "Sale" or is "Discounted" unless it has been available for sale at the previous, higher price for a given period of time.

There is some controversy over Buy one get one free.^{[citation needed]} It has been claimed by consumer rights groups that it is deliberate deception on the part of retailers. The customer is led to believe that the item being sold is on sale at the standard, typical price that it would cost if being sold individually. However, this is not always the case as supermarkets will often BOGOF products with a known value such as beer, as a loss leader to lure customers to the shop. Another claim from environmentalists is that some foodstuffs on BOGOF offers in supermarkets have a short shelf life, so that by the time the first item is consumed, the second has reached or passed it's expiration date. For this reason, in the United Kingdom, such offers are often dubbed "Buy one, throw the other away".

[edit] Is "Buy 1 get one free" the same as "Half Price"?

Yes, but only for the customer. The store prefers BOGOF as it gains better profit. Here's why:- Let us imagine a shop selling a bottle of whiskey for $10. The cost price for the store per bottle is $2. Profit on 1 bottle for the store is $8. If whiskey is offered at half price ($5), then the profit is ($5-$2) $3. Most customers will only buy 1 bottle. However, if the store offers "buy one get one free", then they sell 2 bottles for $10. The cost price for the store is $4 (2x$2). Now the profit is $6 ($10-$4).

[edit] .....Type of Sale.......Cost to Store.......Retail Price.......Profit

    1 Bottle            $2                $10           $8
Half Price Bottle       $2                $5            $3
     BOGOF              $4                $10           $6