When most stores decide to discount, they just lower their price. Right? Amazon, Wal-Mart…they markdown their prices. A friend recently shared with me an e-mail from the Wegmans supermarket chain announcing they were lowering prices because “During difficult times likes these, it's okay with us (Wegmans) if we make a little less money.”

In contrast, Starbucks’ recent efforts to lower price involved rolling out a Gold card, which is targeted for “people who really love Starbucks, those of you we see everyday.” The primary privilege of paying $25 for Gold card membership is a 10% discount. Therefore, you have to spend $250 a year (which is about 6 lattes every month) before you are ahead of the game. Barnes & Noble has a $25 similar deal that offers discounts for both online and in-store purchases.

So why charge customers for the privilege of a discount?

Maintain brand. Starbucks isn’t known for having the lowest prices nor is B&N. For example, B&N offers my book at $24.95 for non-members and $19.96 for members. In contrast, Amazon sells my book for $16.47 (no membership needed). It’s clear that B&N isn’t striving to be the low cost leader.

Provide discounts only to those who request them. If someone doesn’t need a discount, why give it to them? A customer who “ponys up” $25 is demonstrating their interest in future discounts.

Capitalize on the law of diminishing returns. These membership discounts are targeted towards high volume customers. A 10% discount can help keep these “best customers” in the fold as well as maintain their frequency. That said, these membership discounts neglect low volume customers.

There may be value in being a “member.” American Express has made its name by advertising “membership has its privileges.” Some may find value in being a Gold Starbucks member.

Finally, in Starbucks’ case, a slew of $25 signups will add profits in what’s looking like a very challenging quarter.

This strategy may pass muster in a strong economy: it courts and coddles a company’s best customers. But today, especially for luxury brands, an aggressive pricing strategy needs to go far beyond offering a 10% discount to high volume customers who pay $25. Case in point, yesterday’s earnings report by Starbucks: profits were down 97% and same store traffic slumped by 8%.

In this economy, every company needs to be hyper-proactive about their pricing strategy.