Know The Shopper Psyche, Don’t Get Trapped By It!

Spending | December 17, 2009 at 1:25 am

The magical spell of anything attractive and brand new strikes one and all like Cupid! The most mentally evolved amongst us is not quite immune to the charm of these gorgeous things that we come across in retail outlets or shops in general. It may be a small pack of cookies or a huge sports car, the effect is the same – you are filled with a desire to possess it. Is it the item itself, is it the way it is displayed, is it the ambience, or is it the knack of the sales executive that makes an item crave worthy; is something that I often wonder about. Apparently the reason may be any one or more of these factors, but in reality it is a complex interplay of your senses and your motivation to satiate the desires generated by these senses that actually makes you fall for the temptation of buying more than you need. So, know certain tactics to bridle your desires and be frugal in your holiday shopping.

Did You Know That Trying On A New Garment Increases Your Desire To Own It?

shopping psychology If you are familiar with the human psychological motivation called the endowment effect according to which a real or perceived ownership of a material increases your desire to possess it; you’ll not fall for the tactics of clever salespersons in retail outlets, trying to convince you into trying out the dresses! Imagine, if you happen to try out that gorgeous party dress in the trial room and you looked awesome in it, you’ll naturally want to buy it at any cost! If you would have just seen it and not tried it, your desire to buy it would not have been so strong. The bottom line is, if buying for yourself is not on your agenda; don’t try anything, just look!

Even Touching Can Intensify the Desire to Buy an Item

Ask Joan Peck, consumer psychology researcher, Wisconsin School of business, she’ll tell you that even touching an item can compel you into buying it! So don’t even touch the article that is out of your budget, lest it induces you into buying it.

Romantically Primed Men Splurge on Dandy Stuff and Women Encourage Romantically Primed Shopping

According to a 2007 study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology some men who want to impress women with showy material possessions tend to buy flashy garments, cars and expensive items of luxury. They buy less of utility items like an iron for pressing clothes, etc. Women, obviously, don’t buy stuff to impress men. Instead, they are clever enough to induce the men into buying more. It’s not without good reason that stores employ attractive women. A clever saleswoman can bait a romantically primed man into buying more with her charming interaction.

9 In the Last Digit of the Sales Price Works Wonders

Price an item as $399 instead of $400, more people will buy it. Price an item as $ 499 instead of $500 it’ll find more customers for itself. Even though the difference is just $1, you’ll feel as though there is a hundred dollars difference between the two prices. The human psychology tends to focus more on the leftmost digit of the number than the rest.