April Fool's Day: Top 7 retailer price pranks

NEW YORK (WABC) -- Wednesday is April Fools Day, and if you got pranked, we hope it didn't cost you money. Because research shows retailers use all types of price pranks every day to fool you into spending more.

So how can you avoid falling prey? There are subtle sales methods proven to work that are great for the retailer but bad for your wallet, and Seven On Your Side wants to help you out.

Shopping expert Andrea Woroch's No. 1 price prank is touch tempting. Research shows in-store demos where you can feel, taste, smell or even hear are effective.

"They put this out and they sample and it, and it's delicious, so you want to buy it," she said. "Once you touch a product, you're likely hooked, and you feel like you own it."

Woroch suggests breaking the spell by window shopping or shopping online first to avoid impulse buying or getting pranked by trick No. 2 -- using urgency.

"One day only, 50 percent off (the) entire store," she said. "So of course, you fear that you're going to miss out, you want to get some good deals."

The urgency of daily deals are what grew Groupon into a multi-billion dollar business. But Woroch says slow down, because time-ticking deals always return.

"If you're always tempted, maybe you should unsubscribe from retailers' emails so you don't run into the store as soon as the deal becomes available," she said.

Prank No. 3 is an eye-trick. Woroch warns that some stores elongate mirrors or dim lighting to make you look better in the dressing room.

"They may even tweak the lighting color, so you appear more tan, and when you look like you're glowing, you feel good," she said. "They'll even tilt the mirrors."

So she recommends taking a picture of yourself in the outfit, or move to a mirror on the sales floor to trump this trick.

Price Prank No. 4 is pushing bundles as value, packaging items together for one price, which sometimes means you wind up with stuff you don't need.

"Break down what the cost is for each item to make sure you're actually getting a good deal," Woroch said.

And beware of "door buster" deals that luring you in the store with rock bottom prices on one product, while the retailer overprices others.

Also, watch price shifting. That's when prices actually go up and down throughout the day, bumping up prices when you're most likely to buy.

"Don't assumes that something that costs more is going to be of better quality," Woroch said.

And Price Prank No. 7 is called charm pricing, which are prices ending in .99 or .95. Our brains look at those prices and round down.

Beat this trick by always rounding up, and it's also a good idea to add up your purchases before you buy. Use the calculator on your phone to keep a tally. Or of course there's apps for that too.