Sunday 3 April 2011

Value

Why do things cost the amount they do? Why can you buy a pair of socks for $1 and a basically identical pair with a fancy brand name for $20 or more? Is the 2nd set of socks really 20 times better? The answer will almost certainly be no. For the same reason that art can fetch millions of dollars but at a different point in time will be worth less than the canvas it is painted on, and that is perceived worth in relation to supply and demand factors. The fact that people are willing to spend money for an idea/to gain a particular status is the reason why mac computers are still popular even though they are overpriced in terms of features when compared to a regular pc.

20 comments:

  1. Our world is all about earing money. As a consequense, thing aren't cheap.

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  2. The socks are the same, yet different.
    Physically, people are very similar, we all have the same components (within reason, ie different sexes).
    Yet like socks, people are also different.
    You see; there are normal people... then there are idiots who pay $50 for an item of clothing no-one ever really sees much of or cares about.

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  3. Everything costs the way it does so the world market can continue to circulate. Its economics. I wish we didn't value things so highly though

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  4. things cost the amount they do because of inflation and recession. duh

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  5. i think its because people want to be cool so much they will pay more just to be cool giving big companies the right to over charge come on people quit being fukn trendy

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  6. in the end it always comes down to how much ppl are willing to pay for something, not the actual value

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  7. Things still adhere to the basic principles of supply and demand, the key is that demand doesn't always follow logical trends. Why is a Rembrandt so much more valuable than something I just drew? For one I'm alive, so the supply is theoretically higher :) Beyond that, small groups have come together and said his work is 'better', placing a higher value in it that others base decisions off, increasing the demand exponentially.

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  8. The first lesson of economics is scarcity: There is never enough of anything to satisfy all those who want it. The first lesson of politics is to disregard the first lesson of economics.

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  9. Im pretty sure, even after inflation things are more expensive than they used to be. I mean, look at trainers, I remember when I was a kid I could get a pair for like £10, now theyre gunna set you back £30, at the least.

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  10. you get yourself a name and you get the world. at least where im from, we call nose tissues Kleenex

    lip balm is chapstick

    mac or pc, its still sometimes called pc

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  11. Basically its all about showing off, look at me i have enough money to buy expensive socks. We are still animals and want to get the feeling of being better then everyone else.

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  12. it's so complicated. but 1 thing i know: if something is expensive in china is almost for free :D

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  13. A lot of it is simply artificial and affected by factors such as competition, market saturation, supply, and demand.

    But a lot of economics is pretty weak. The least sciency science ever

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  14. It's about the value people attach to the things that decides their monetary value. Some people think a brand name is important, so they're willing to spend $20 for a pair of socks even though a generic pair is $1. Kind of silly, but it's true.

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  15. my toshiba cost four hundred dollars and i would rather have it than a mac. totally public perception
    +followed

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  16. Money is the root to profit. Without profit, you have no power. Without power, there is no hierarchy. Without hierarchy... Well, companies would be pretty pissed off. Haha.

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  17. agree agree agree..
    life would be so much more pleasant if things were cheaper..

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  18. that's why I shop at the Family Dollar!

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  19. Very true, its kind of sad when you think about it.

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