Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management

Many goods such as mosquito bednets have large health benets but are underused. To increase consumption of these products, organizations frequently use door-to-door marketing, which can induce pressure to purchase the good being sold. Using pressure can backfire, however, if it encourages purchase among individuals with a low propensity for usage. Through a field experiment, we show that selling a side good alongside the focus product can increase its perceived value and reduce purchasing pressure, raising total usage of the focus good. We also show that a discount on the side good can reintroduce pressure and undo these usage gains.