Going to the supermarket can be a wonderful experience. Most people plan their 'flight' in advance and are more likely to leave at a specific time to avoid having to stand in long lines. Everyone wants their visit to be as quick and efficient as possible. However, these places work in a mysterious way and always make us spend more time in them than we planned. If you feel like you've been through this, don't worry. We've all fallen for the pitfalls these stores prepare for us, but it's never too late to discover them so we can do something about them in the future.
How does the supermarket trick you into making you pay more?
We've come up with a list of tricks these stores use to get us to buy more. See if you recognize any of them.
spacious shopping carts
Supermarkets set up several large shopping carts right at the entrance. Contrary to what you might think, this is not for your convenience, but rather an incentive to fill them up with products. No wonder you end up taking a large number of unnecessary goods home. According to Martin Lindstrom, marketing consultant and author of Brandwashed. During the scientific experiment, scientists doubled the volume of cars they bought, and this small change increased their purchases by 40%.
Holidays and events
Supermarkets take advantage of seasonal activities such as Christmas, Easter and Valentine's Day. This means that during the season you will see products (especially chocolate) referring to this holiday. Sometimes we buy these types of products anyway. When we have no direct desire to purchase these products, the supermarket has already created a demand for them.
Colors and scents
Another supermarket trick is to have fruits, vegetables, and even a bakery in the first aisle. why? According to an article titled "Grocery Shopping for Your Health" published by Butler University, this part is known as the "stress relief zone", a space that mixes smells and colors that make us feel healthy and prompt us to buy other things without thinking. The authors point out this in their article: “It is no secret that many people have a clear goal of buying healthy food in a supermarket, but the surrounding environment makes this goal difficult to achieve.”
hunger
Hunger increases the likelihood of running into supermarket scams trying to sell you more groceries. “Going shopping when hungry is a recipe for disaster, because it is tempting to give up and buy sweets and snacks. When the human body is thirsty for food, a person tends to lose self-control, especially when surrounded by food. Here is another point discussed in the article “Healthy Grocery Shopping” By Butler University Another 2015 study found that hunger increases purchases in general.
free samples
Free food samples are another way to encourage us to buy more. Have you ever been to a supermarket aisle and offered to try a piece of the freshest meat they sell? According to an article in Supermarket News in 2004, 68% of consumers in a supermarket in Indianapolis, US, said sampling had convinced them to buy these products. This, in turn, was beneficial to the store as it was able to increase the sales of some of the products it tried to promote from 600% to 2000%. This technology is still used today.
One modern way to sell is to display products in plain sight to encourage them to buy more. This makes you want to buy things regardless of the actual value of the product. For example, kid-friendly cartoon characters are often found on the morning cereal wrappers. When kids see it, they want the product right away. Therefore, it is placed at an ideal height that children can reach. This is why countries such as Chile and Mexico have banned the placement of fictional characters and cartoons on cereal boxes. This strategy aims to reduce the high rate of obesity in both countries.
Buy two and get a third
Another trap we always fall into is the "3 x 2" or "buy one get one free" deal. These symptoms may not be as severe as they appear. For example, in the case of "3 x 2", it is true that you get a 33% discount on each product. However, this is not accurate because you will only get the discount when you buy all three products. It may be more than you need. So if you need something in bulk or are buying a non-perishable product (like olive oil, toothpaste, etc.), this is a good deal as long as it doesn't raise the base price. Otherwise, it makes sense to think twice before buying a large amount of the product.
Just one cent off the original price
Supermarkets also use a trick called "psychological price", which is basically a way to determine the value of products based on their impact on consumers. There are different psychological pricing strategies and the most common one in supermarkets is "personal pricing". For example, a product with an actual value of $100 is advertised as "on sale" and sells for $99. This is because consumers perceive lower prices as a bit lower than they really are.
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