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Optimizing Pricing Strategies for Product Lines and Value‐Added Services: Accounting for Reference Prices and Network Effects

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  • Wei Qi
  • Ziwei Li
  • Yongfeng Ma
  • Xuwang Liu

Abstract

Customer choice behavior is increasingly influenced by the reference price effect and negative network effect as customers become more rational and personalized. This study, considering customers as pivotal stakeholders for enterprise development, employs the multinomial logit (MNL) model and develops pricing and strategy optimization models for pure bundling and mixed bundling strategies of an enterprise's product line. The main focus is to analyze how these effects impact optimal pricing and strategy selection. The results indicate that stronger effects lead to lower enterprise profits, and ignoring them can cause substantial losses. Generally, mixed bundling strategies yield higher profits.

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  • Wei Qi & Ziwei Li & Yongfeng Ma & Xuwang Liu, 2025. "Optimizing Pricing Strategies for Product Lines and Value‐Added Services: Accounting for Reference Prices and Network Effects," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 46(2), pages 862-878, March.
  • Handle: RePEc:wly:mgtdec:v:46:y:2025:i:2:p:862-878
    DOI: 10.1002/mde.4408
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