Supplement Pricing

Supplement Pricing



When is buying a cheap supplement a good thing? And when is it just plain risky? This is a big issue for many today because of the hurting economy, everyone's become more conscious about how they spend their money (or at least they should become more conscious about how they spend their money). The issue I will be discussing however is when a cheap supplement is a warning sign of a lack of quality?
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And when is it a sign of superiority in the market. I will give you clues as to how to decipher between the thousands of products on the market in your search to choose the one with the highest quality. It's no secret that our industry isn't fully regulated by the FDA and many products that are poorly manufactured aren't pulled off the market and until after trouble begins with consumers.

First let’s look at protein powders; the pricing for these can be all over the place; from relatively cheap to ridiculously expensive. For those of you who are not first time buyers you already know to look at things like price per serving for the best value and the protein content per serving. It shouldn't take you a ton of scoops to get to +20 grams of protein unless it's a meal replacement powder with added carbohydrates and fat; otherwise, that's the first warning sign of lack of quality. As far as overall pricing is concerned, you must take into consideration the background of the company, how long it's been around, and how long it's been creating protein products.

The reason why these things are important is because it will directly affect pricing. Any company that is new to introduce a protein powder on the market is going to have relatively high prices. Not because they believe the consumer is dumb, but because they currently don’t have the ordering volume that will allow them to produce their products cheaper and subsequently price their product cheaper.

“So why do companies come out with proteins if they know they can’t beat certain companies prices?” The answer to this is innovation, digestive enzymes, added amino acids, sustained release blends, ridiculous flavors etc. Instead of competing with the basic products at low prices, the idea is to offer the consumer more for their dollar. For the companies that do offer basic protein blends for low prices, the background of the company is important, especially if you don’t have a testing lab at home. If a new protein is released for dirt cheap and the company has no history it’s a sure fire sign that they either have a great agreement/joint venture with a protein manufacturer; or you should look elsewhere so you don’t have to second guess the label claims.

Now when it comes to the rest of the products that are out there, pricing usually stays pretty relative. Although larger companies have higher ordering volumes and can usually create products cheaper, their advertising buffers prices enough to keep prices relatively similar to smaller companies. However, some companies advertise so much that their pricing can get out of control. The other thing to keep in mind is when products are too cheap compared to the competition in their category.

Usually products that do not contain amino acids or are advertised as being concentrated but do not provide a link to building muscle can be warning signs. Keep in mind when purchasing a product that is for energy and focus for a low price is the goal, you can buy a bottle of caffeine pills and it will cost you next to nothing. If you are taking a product in the hopes of increasing strength and muscle, seeking proper dosages of creatine, beta-alanine and other amino acids will be the most beneficial.

In the end, I’ve always felt that you’re better off spending $200 on a supplement stack to look better in the same t-shirt you wore last year than to go out and buy a new $200 wardrobe. For the most part, you can’t go wrong with reputable companies and many people do not look into the history/manufacturing of companies like they should. Just be weary of products that are relatively too cheap from new companies, and don’t fear protein powders that are relatively cheap from longstanding reputable companies; because in their case it is not a lack of quality, just a sign of their manufacturing power