DemandAdapted from Capstone Economics Unit 2, Lesson 8

Today’s Goals

• Students will understand what Demand is.• Students will understand what The Law of Demand is.• Students will understand what a Demand Shift is.

• We will access these goals by generating and interpreting data from an in-class activity.

The set upOne day you are shopping with your friends, and you walk into a small greeting-card shop close to school to buy a birthday card for one of your relatives. While you are checking out the cards, you overhear the owner complaining that a certain style of card is not selling, and the display of that card is taking up precious space in the small store. “Unfortunately, I bought these cards up front and they cannot be returned,” he says. “I guess I will just throw them away and use the space for something that has a better chance of selling.” As the store owner looks over to you and your friends, he continues: “I learned in my economics class in high school that a person shouldn’t cry over spilt milk or let costs incurred in the past influence future choices — right?” It becomes obvious that the owner is soliciting a response from you.

What should the owner do?

Do you support the owner’s view, or do you suggest an alternative course of action?

Possible answers:• Throw the “dogs” away• Lower the price of the cards• Place the cards in a different location• Advertise• Recycle them

SALE!

Why do businesses put things on SALE?

Why do businesses put things on SALE?

When business people put products on sale, they are attempting to predict consumer behavior.

They are predicting that the number of products bought will increase at lower prices.

That is not the only possible way to increase sales, of course. If the owner could change his customers’ perception of value for the cards, the customers also would buy more. Changing customers’ perceptions is one of the purposes of marketing through advertising.

Auction Time!

On the blank side, create a demand schedule based on the data we gather together. Use about a third of the sheet

Candy Bar Demand SchedulePRICE QUANTITY DEMANDED

.10

Candy Bars Suggested Price Quantity Demanded

$ .10

Some questions

• Did anyone choose not to bid on the item?• What goes through your mind before a bid is

made? • Why does a higher price reduce the number of

items demanded?• Once a price is established in the market, do

you think it stays the same for long periods?

Graphing the dataWhat would be a good set of numbers to use for the Quantity demanded axis?

Your graph should have some resemblance to this.

The Law of Demand

As prices for goods or services rise, the quantity people are willing and able to buy declinesAs prices for goods and services fall, the quantity people are willing and able to buy increases.

Determinants of Demand

Sometimes the demand changes when certain variables change.Consumers are influenced by outside factors:-income-taste-preferences-price of related products-expectations-number of buyers

Auction Time! New Variables!There may be some cash in the wrapping, and you can write me an IOU if you do not have enough liquidity.

How to Construct an I.O.U.

Name: _____________________________________________________

I.O.U.Amount: $___________________________________________________

On the blank side, create a second demand schedule based on the data we gather together

Candy Bar Demand SchedulePRICE QUANTITY DEMANDED

.10

Graphing the dataGraph the new demand information on the same graph.

Label your first demand curve, D1, and your new demand curve D2

What do you notice?

Demand should have “shifted” to the right

How would demand shift for the following situations?• The demand for cars when people get a tax refund An increase of demand(shift right)

• The demand for gloves after the first snow storm An increase of demand (shift right)

• The demand for hot dogs when the price of hot dog buns rises

A decrease of demand (shift left)

• The demand for gasoline today when people expect prices to fall tomorrow

A decrease of demand (shift left)

Quick Question

1. What does the Law of Demand state?

A. There is a positive relationship between price and quantity demanded.

B. The graph of a demand curve is an upward sloping line.

C. People usually buy less goods and services when their price rises.

D. People’s behavior in the marketplace is unpredictable.

Article: Why Chefs Hate Valentine’s Day• Read the article by your self and think

about the questions (4 minutes)

• Now pair up with someone close to you (no moving seats) and talk about the questions together (3 minutes)

Why Chefs Hate Valentine’s Day

• What does this article have to do with demand?• Who decides how much a dinner on February

14th will cost?• Is it fair that restaurants charge up to $150.00

for a meal on February 14th?• Is dinner on February 14th more or less scarce

than on other days?• Do you think that Mr. Hammond went out to a

fancy-schmancy Valentine’s dinner with his beautiful girlfriend?

Today’s Goals

• Students will understand what Demand is.• Students will understand what The Law of Demand is.• Students will understand what a Demand Shift is.