Construal
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Advertising
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Construal • Advertising •
Advertising and Construal:
Brands often use psychological strategies such as construal to subtly manipulate a customer into purchasing something. Construal refers to how we mentally interpret or make sense of something based on how it is presented to us - not based on what it actually is. For example, a $60 water bottle on your feed may be presented as trendy, healthy, and aesthetic, but in reality it is just a container that holds water. Marketers use construal tactics to manipulate how customers perceive a product in order to encourage and drive up sales.
Look out for these ways that products are often construed!
Presenting something as an everyday luxury (even if it is made the same as a cheaper version!) encourages us to perceive it as high quality.
Framing something as a “self - care essential” allows us to justify it as filling an emotional need, when in reality it is just a want.
Packing a product in minimal, sleek packaging construes it as sophisticated and healthy, and therefore worth the extra money.
So, now you understand how brands are able to manipulate us into purchasing their products. I know sometimes it can be hard to resist, so here are tips for outsmarting these construal traps:
Unpackage: imagine the product in boring packaging or without its popular branding. Do you still want it?
Think facts over claims: words like “natural”, “soothing”, or “essential” are often just vibes, not facts.
Pause: ask yourself if you are buying the product because you need it or because you are being made to feel like you do.