What's the Actual Math for Calculating Dynamic pricing?

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Christopher Bucklin | Forum Activity | Posted: Wed, Feb 12 2020 7:32 AM

I can't figure out the actual math for calculating dynamic pricing. If I was looking at a bundle of 3 books, how could I calculate what the bundle price would be if I bought one of the books outright? For example, if a bundle cost $15 for three books, and the books are normally priced at $10 each (amounting to $30 if I bought all three separate), then if I bought one of the books separate, I would think the bundle would cost $10 for the remaining two... as each would be 50% off in that bundle. but that math doesn't work. I've tried it on multiple bundles where I have some of the books, but not others. 

So can anyone give us an actual formula for calculating dynamic pricing?

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PetahChristian | Forum Activity | Replied: Wed, Feb 12 2020 9:55 AM

The bundle discount is independent of dynamic pricing. Regardless of whether you own some or none of the books, that (50%) bundle discount remains the same.

Christopher Bucklin:

if I bought one of the books separate, I would think the bundle would cost $10 for the remaining two... as each would be 50% off in that bundle

Unlikely. Here are a few examples showing how the calculation is a bit more complex:

• Even though the bundle discount is 50% off, that doesn't necessarily mean that each book is also discounted 50%. One book could be discounted more, and another less.
• If you bought the least expensive book in the bundle, the bundle's price for the remaining books might be higher than $10.
• Books often don't cost the same, so your three books in the bundle wouldn't share the same dynamic price. To pick round numbers out of the air, the three books might have dynamic prices of  $4, $5, and $6, rather than $5 each.
• A book's dynamic price is going to differ between bundles (since each bundle is made up of different books with different discounts).