Why can’t you resist shopping? It turns out you are being tricked by merchants!

In 1943, when 17-year-old Ingvar Kamprad founded IKEA in the forests of southern Sweden, he would never have imagined that more than half a century later, his creativity would have such a revolutionary impact on human life. Today, IKEA is all over the world, and you will find that once you enter an IKEA store, you will be tempted to buy. Look at this, hmm, it goes well with my home, and look at that, wow! Two for half the price, why not buy it? Wait, why is it so difficult to buy only the things on the list?

Some researchers have analyzed that half of consumers' spending is unplanned, some of which is things they forgot to write on the list, but consumer psychologists estimate that there is another form of shopping, which is impulse buying.

Every year on Black Friday, also known as Double 11 in North America and Double 11 in China, many people become "victims" of impulse shopping among the millions of online shoppers. Black Friday is a typical example of people being unable to resist temptation.

A survey by the Bank of Montreal found that 55% of Canadians bought things they may not use at all because...they were on sale. More than half of the people who participated in the survey later regretted buying unnecessary items. The survey also found that people under 30 are most susceptible to this kind of emotional shopping.

In addition to online shopping, physical merchants also have a lot of tricks. Take IKEA for example. Its store layout is its unique marketing strategy. In the 20th century, architect Victor Gruen used lighting and space to increase the attractiveness of window merchandise. His design tried to attract the attention of passers-by and then stimulate them to shop. Today, people call this technique the "Gruen effect." For example, you go to IKEA to look for a piece of furniture. After walking around and stopping, you hold delicate napkins, candles and flower pots in your hands. Then, at this moment, you are experiencing the so-called "Gruen transfer" psychological effect.

IKEA's creative director is responsible for the display of goods in the mall, including the overall layout. They pay close attention to the impact of floor layout on customer behavior. The grid layout emphasizes speed and convenience, the free layout is more exploratory, allowing customers to freely visit more areas in the mall, and the runway design establishes a loop, allowing customers to browse products in a specific path.

However, IKEA's merchandise layout is like a maze, so customers will walk farther. The longer customers shop, the more products they see. At the entrance, most customers will notice a box with yellow bags next to the elevator. Under the guidance of the lights, your eyes will be attracted to the sample room, and before you know it, you will be on the sightseeing route. Using lights, customers can be guided to different areas and choose different products.

Generally speaking, customers only visit one-third of the entire mall, but IKEA's layout allows customers to visit more places. However, there are also customers with clear goals who want to make a quick decision. IKEA can meet the needs of both types of customers at the same time. A researcher in London investigated an IKEA and completed a hand-drawn route map like this. The heat map of this sample room was drawn using data. It seems that route guidance works.

As for the window display method invented by Victor Gruen, in fact, all stores, from IKEA to local grocery stores, have countless data. Based on reliable data, IKEA is becoming more and more "understanding you". It will constantly make adjustments based on the consumption habits of different regions, so that it can sell more products. Starbucks, which we are all familiar with, also has superb marketing technology.

Since its establishment in 1971, Starbucks has nearly 30,000 stores in more than 30 countries around the world. In 2017, Starbucks ranked 22nd in the world with a brand value of 44.23 billion US dollars. Starbucks uses its own coffee beans, hot water, milk, and paper cups to sell products with a cost of 3 to 5 yuan at a profit margin of nearly 10 times. With such a low cost-performance ratio, why do people still go to Starbucks?

The core secret, in addition to top-quality roasted coffee beans, is an added value called experience. In Starbucks, there is a principle called "just say yes", which means that, without violating the principle, you should unconditionally say yes to customers. For example, if you feel that the coffee is not tasty after drinking half of it, you can ask them to make another cup, for example, you can ask for a cup of espresso and a cup of hot water to mix American coffee yourself.

Finally, and most importantly, it is to build a third space with style, taste, and class, so that customers are willing to come here to talk about life, ideals, careers, and even willing to bring their teams here to work. Experiential marketing is to make you like Starbucks products through hearing, vision, smell, taste, and even touch. Therefore, many tasteful white-collar workers and some businessmen who want to improve their taste think that Starbucks is a symbol of cultural identity. According to the research of the Monell Chemical Aroma Center in the United States, "If consumers are in an environment with pleasant smells, such as a space full of coffee or biscuit aromas, not only will their mood improve, but it may also make their behavior more charming, and even show altruistic and friendly behavior."

Since merchants are full of tricks, how can we avoid being tempted? First of all, it is best to take the time to make a list before shopping: for whom and what do you need to buy? For example, if you are a housewife, before going out shopping, your list should clearly list: ties and shirts for your husband; dolls and skirts for your daughter; clothes and skin care products for yourself; and dishwashing liquid, laundry detergent, food for the whole family, etc. When writing a list, you will not only have a clear shopping goal, but also think about the value of each item you buy to you and the people around you.

However, even with a shopping list in hand, many consumers will still go astray and continue to embark on shopping trips again and again on impulse... So, again, please follow the shopping list 100%! But some friends may feel that those "optional" items that are usually between "necessities" and "unnecessary" will suddenly lean towards the direction of "I have decided to buy" because of the price drop.

In fact, in addition to the value of the things bought, consumption also brings people psychological satisfaction. At this time, it is better to directly regard this "ambiguous" consumption as an expenditure of psychological pleasure. But the point is - this expenditure also needs a clear budget.

Whenever we find scarcity and shortage, our internal competition mechanism seems to be activated, causing us to get carried away with shopping. Therefore, it is extremely necessary to plan our consumption needs in an orderly and rational manner. I hope everyone will be a winner this Double Eleven!