HOW BRANDS MANIPULATE US CUSTOMERS
What is it about retail stores that makes us want to buy more stuff than we need? Although you might just think you have poor impulse control, the reality is that brands are intentionally manipulating you into buying more. Listed below are a few ways they psychologically control you.
1. They use colour psychology to persuade you to spend:
Colour psychology plays a huge role in how you buy items. It can change your mood, evoke a feeling, and even subtly suggest an idea. For example, red is a frequent colour in sales since it evokes action, which definitely helps explain all those impulse purchases at grocery shops. A study even found that waitresses who wear red get bigger tips. Other colours that manipulate you is black, which is associated with high-end, expensive items that seem exclusive, and blue, which is associated with trust and loyalty.
2. They purposefully make the layout confusing:
There’s a reason essentials like milk are stuck all the way in the back of the store. Retail stores in particular are designed to be attractive mazes that are easy to get lost in. The more time you spend in the store, struggling to get to that elusive exit that’s blocked by 15 displays of random, cheap stuff you don’t need, the more likely you are to spend money. There’s even a word for it: the “Gruen transfer,” which is named after Austrian architect Victor Gruen who designed shopping malls.
Notice how big department stores don’t have any windows aside from the ones by the entrance? That’s not an accident. Stores try to remove the aspect of time, creating an experience where you’re essentially “lost” in the store and more likely to forget the original reason that you’re there to begin with. What happens is that you then mindlessly go into “buying mode”.
3. They intentionally make those displays messy:
According to a study conducted by Proctor & Gamble, people who were able to feel merchandise were willing to pay more than those who hadn’t. It’s called the “Endowment Effect,” and you’ll see it in action whenever you see big, messy display tables or bins of cheap merchandise just begging for you to ruffle through them. Once our hands touch something, we feel a subconscious sense of ownership over it, which promotes us to buy.
We’re also more likely to purchase things that are similar to what we’re already holding. According to a study published in Applied Cognitive Psychology, people who are holding their smartphones in their hands are more likely to buy a Kit-Kat over a Snickers bar since the former is shaped like a smartphone.
4. They surround you with enticing scents:
There’s a reason there’s always a Cookie man right at the entrance of every shopping mall or a flower shop right by the entrance at the grocery store. Good smells put us in a good mood, which makes us shop more. Even Disneyland uses the scent of vanilla to fool its customers into thinking they’re at the happiest place on earth. But if you’ve ever walked past a clothing store pumping too much perfume, it’s likely to have an opposite effect. According to research studies, consumers prefer uncomplicated smells that are simple and not overbearing.
5. They place more expensive items at eye level:
How products are organized are also designed to manipulate you. Stores strategically place higher-priced items at eye level, forcing you to crouch to find the more affordable stuff. Grocery stores are also known to place children’s cereals lower on the shelf so that kids can find them. A study also found that those cartoon characters on the boxes of certain cereals are designed to make eye contact with kids as they pass by.
6. Sales people at high-end stores intentionally act snooty:
Remember that famous scene in Pretty Woman when Julia Roberts gets chased out of a high-end clothing store for not being rich? She then returns, armed with her bags of expensive purchases, to rub her newfound wealth in the saleswoman’s face. Just like that famous scene, according to recent studies, snooty sales clerks make people want to spend more. The desire ‘to belong’…is a powerful force.
7. They tell you it’s “free” :
Online shoppers are not immune to manipulative sale tactics, either. Many online stores will offer free shipping if you have a certain number of items in your cart. What often happens is that a consumer buys additional things they don’t need to get the free shipping, even though they would be saving money by simply paying for shipping. For some reason, there’s something about the word “free” that triggers our brains.
8. They strategically place cheap items by the registers:
Ever find yourself checking out at a store and stocking up on random toilet brushes and candles? In the retail world, these are called “open-the-wallet” items and they’re designed to break you down mentally. If they can get you to reach for that candle, you’re more likely to make additional impulse purchases while you’re there.
There are obviously much more manipulation techniques, as marketers are very creative and innovative. What do you think about those methods? Are you against them as a consumer, or maybe you also use those techniques yourself in your marketing campaigns? Let us know in the comments!
