Sellers tricks: how not to buy too much

Today, marketers influence our subconscious using various psychological techniques. Advertising on TV or the situation in the store evoke certain emotions in us for a reason. This is a subtle calculation, the purpose of which is to get us to make impulsive purchases without listening to the voice of reason. The latest discoveries in the field of neuroscience allow promotion specialists to seduce us into rash shopping using hidden methods of persuasion that we are not aware of. How to protect yourself from neuromarketing techniques, says psychologist David Lewis:

1. Don’t buy out of boredom

People often go to the mall to have fun, dispel boredom or kill time. Remember: a sad mood and boredom can provoke you to purchase absolutely unnecessary things. Sometimes the point is not even in the product itself, but in the communication that the seller gives to the buyer. A person impulsively takes what the store employee offers, in gratitude for the attention paid to him. Often this happens at airports where you need to pass a couple of hours before departure. So think twice the next time you’re about to open your wallet.

2. Don’t spend money while playing

There are several more situations that are conducive to buying. The first is the game. When you’re on vacation, on a field trip, or at an amusement park, you perceive everything around you as an exciting game, and at the same time you get a lot of souvenirs, because you subconsciously consider buying knick-knacks as part of this game. You should not rush to spend money in circumstances in which you experience a strong emotional upsurge. We tend to make an attribution error, that is, to transfer the feelings caused by the situation to objects. The adrenaline rush after riding a roller coaster will make you feel sympathy for the person next to you. And the discount that you received by bargaining with the seller will cause a feeling of pride; and you will begin to desire the thing even more.

3. Don’t be influenced by the atmosphere

When you walk into a store, you are immediately exposed to numerous persuasion techniques. Have you ever noticed this? Smells, sounds, lighting, and colors are subtle ways to put you in a certain mood and entice you to buy. For example, in an expensive boutique, you will be tempted to spend a lot of money if you are greeted with pleasant classical music, exquisite fragrance, pastel colors and soft lighting. And some grocery stores use food-scented flavors to whet shoppers’ appetites. Whether you’re in a supermarket or a shopping mall, always remember that this is a huge and elaborate machine made for sales.

4. Don’t rush to buy if you’re offered a benefit.

All marketers are well aware of the “That’s not all” strategy. She has two varieties. The first is a reduction in the price already known to the buyer. For example, coffee, which you used to buy for 300 rubles, began to be sold for 295. Taking a can, ask yourself the question: “If the drink initially cost that much, would I buy it now or not?”. Experiments have shown that even a slight price reduction makes the product much more attractive. The second kind of “That’s not all” strategy is that you are offered something from above. This is a very strong incentive, because it seems to you that you are saving. But in reality, you will just spend money on something that you would not want to buy if you were not offered a second thing.

5. Do not believe when they tell you about your inferiority.

Sales messages that suggest we’re fat, bald, wrinkled, or smelly have only one purpose: to make us believe we need that particular face cream, hair loss shampoo, or super long-lasting deodorant. We begin to think that without all these products, our personal life and career will collapse, since we ourselves are clearly not up to the ideal. Never succumb to such obvious manipulation.

6. Spot False Connections

Advertisers often refer to our values ​​and positive attitudes to make a product more attractive. We see a photo of a popular actress with a handbag of a famous brand in her hands – and we buy the same handbag, because now we associate this thing with the success that we ourselves strive for. We are shown a happy family in a commercial, and we subconsciously associate this picture with washing powder, butter, or a baby food company. Such images may not even have anything to do with the product being promoted. But we will still feel that we are not buying a product, but something more – something that will bring us closer to our dream.

7. Think Pink Elephant

When you have an irresistible desire to buy something, imagine a pink elephant drowning in blue cream. Such unusual, vivid images in psychology are called thought stoppers. To help a person cope with obsessive habits, you need to install such images in his path. Since our conscious mind is incapable of holding several different thoughts at one moment, an imaginary fantasy situation will prevent it from concentrating on anything else. Often, just a few seconds are enough to stop thinking about buying and assess the situation rationally.