Marketing
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Marketing •
Marketing:
The way that brands advertise, and promote their businesses have a psychological effect on how likely we are to purchase something. Here are some ways stores encourage consumer activity. The next time you go into a store, pay attention to where these come up!
Eye Level: Stores often place the more expensive products or name brands at eye level, encouraging you to pay more for a product you can likely get for a lower price elesewhere!
Urgency Pressure: “Only three left!” or “Limited Edition!” often triggers us to panic-buy things without much thought. Most of the time, there are more than three left! It is important to think through each of your purchases.
Discount traps: Sometimes discounts can make us feel like we are saving, when we are actually still spending. A $200 sweatshirt that is 30% off is still a $140 sweatshirt.
Checkout: Often, stores will display small items for customers to browse while they wait to checkout. A person is not very likely to spend $1000 dollars without thinking, but will likely be ready to buy anything under $20 without much consideration.
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 need it.