Save Money By Not Touching Stuff In The Store
Think you're already a savvy shopper and smart saver? Well here's a way to spend even less: don't touch. A new study shows that if you touch stuff when you're shopping, it increases your sense of ownership and makes you more willing to pay more for it. Here's how the study came to that conclusion:
To prove the power of touch, the researchers placed two products, a Slinky and a coffee mug, in front of 231 undergraduate students at the University of Wisconsin. About half were told they could touch the products, while the other half were prohibited from fiddling with them. Students were then asked to express their sense of ownership of the products, and to indicate how much they money they were willing to pay for both the Slinky and coffee mug.
The results were clear: those who touched the items reported statistically significant higher levels of perceived ownership. They were also willing to pay more to purchase the products.
If you don't want to spend more money, be careful what you touch," says Joann Peck, a marketing professor at the University of Wisconsin's business school and the study's other co-author.
I get it, "Look, but no haptics."
Want to Save Some Money? Shop Without Touching [TIME] (Photo: The Joy Of The Mundane)
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Comments:
Nintendo DS' old catchphrase was "Touching is Good" =D.
These studies are behind, when I worked at Mediaplay 8 years ago they said the exact same thing.
This rule also works in strip clubs.
what happened to the "touch me santa"?
when i worked in a toy store this was the entire point of having a toy demo table where the kids could touch things. we certainly didn't do it to encourage the parents to leave their little monsters with us for 'free babysitting'
i ABSOLUTELY INTENTIONALLY launched these:
[www.amazon.com]
just over the heads of little girls so they would look at it, watch it land, pick it up and drag their moms up to me to buy some. once the demo was in their hand, 99% of the time it stayed there until replaced by a new one in the box.
@Mypantsaremissing: because you had one? or maybe the boys' version:
[www.amazon.com]
actually, i fully admit, now, many years later, that i never launched the product from that link above the heads of little boys - i shot it right for them. they are foam and light plastic and no one got hurt. but little boys respond better to a direct assault.
@catastrophegirl: Hilarious, I guess children really do have the influence over parents to get whatever they want when they want it. Its amazing that it was that easy to sell it. No wonder most parents around here don't want to go near a toy store with their kids!
Ah, yes. Undergraduate students. S-o-o-o representative of the population as a whole! How many psychological studies are based on observing undergrads? Too many. Too many to count. But just enough to keep university psychologists employed.
Same thing applies to video games, in a way.
Growing up, I was aware of video games, but never really wanted one until my friend across the street got his NES. I stayed the night at his house and spent every moment of it playing his system. He only had Legend of Zelda, Super Mario Bros. and Duck Hunt, but those three games sold me on it.
To this day I wonder if I'd be as into video games as I am now if I'd skipped his sleepover.
here's something to think about: i actually used this concept to train myself out of impulse buying. there was awhile there when i would come home with a few extra things that i didn't really need, but for some reason felt i needed when i threw them into the cart.
now, when i get hit with an impulse, i grab the item & walk around the store with it contemplating whether i really need it or just think i need it, how long i'll use it before it wears out (or my need for it wears out), etc.
the sense of ownership from carrying it around seems to fulfill at least a part of the urge of owning something i don't need so i can rationalize the expense. since i started doing this, i'm happy to say that my impulse spending has dropped almost completely.
@mac-phisto: Wow, that's how I shop too. I touch everything before determining whether I want to buy it, but then I walk it around the store for a bit. If I still want it and have not rationalized my way out of it, I'll get it if I've got the money.
Most of the time though, I end up taking it right back to the rack/ shelf.
I don't know that it works because it creates a sense of "ownership." But it certainly helps the potential customer get a better idea of how the item works, and therefore would help spur a sale. Good methodology, predictable results, but faulty conclusions.
That's what I do too! I'll try on a ton of clothes, carry a bunch around, cull the pack, and buy only a couple things. I think Hmmmm, is this t-shirt worth $30?? Most often no.
@ophmarketing: Yes, perhaps they were baffled by the potential functionality of a slinky and coffee mug.
@Outrun1986: yeah, i NEVER tried to sell a parent on anything. always the kid. most parents will do it just to shut the kid up. i felt a little bad but i tried to make it up to the parents by reminding them that if they buy the cheaper heavy duty batteries for the loud noisy christmas toys then the batteries will die halfway through christmas day and they get their peace and quiet back until the stores open again.
that, and if the parents don't have enough willpower to teach their kid the value of not buying everything just because you want it now, they deserve to be a doormat for the kid
@Keavy_Rain: There is a huge difference between staring at a cartridge though and playing it. So even touching the cartridge wouldn't help, you have to play the game to know what its like. Its the same with toys really, you have to try it to find out how fun it is, instead of just stare at the box or package. Even viewing a video of a game and playing it are 2 different things, you won't know if you like it until you actually try it. Imagine buying a Wii just from watching a few videos and not trying it.
Where do I get those coloured pencil things??
@Definer-not-defined: I find that if I'm carrying something around, sooner or later I'll get really tired of carrying it. And then I know I don't actually want it.
Hence the genius of the automobile test-drive.
@Definer-not-defined: I can hold it until I'm blue in the face, but it doesn't do a thing for me. Of course, my reaction to the BUY IT impulse is usually a very fast, knee-jerk HELL NO, THAT'S [insert actually reasonable price], RIP OFF. If I don't get that or if the outrage at the price goes away quickly, I know it's something I do, in fact, want. Of course, it's also mildly emotionally painful when I get the money out of my wallet. Am I maybe a bit too miserly?
@mac-phisto: That works until some idiot security guard claims you must have pocketed the item since you didn't purchase it.
Had that happen at Best Buy when I decided against a CD after walking around the store with it. Had to show security I had put it back on the rack, yet they still refused to believe I didn't steal it. Got a pat down as I was getting sick of the shit, and returned every bit of what I purchased (~$250 worth of stuff for my dorm room).
That's an interesting study, but over the years, I've found a personal trick to keep myself from buying something: I pick it up and carry it around for a while.
It sounds counter-intuitive from the article above, but here is how it seems to work in my psyche. When I encounter something that makes me go "ooo, I want that", and I can't fight that off, I'll pick up the object, and physically carry it around during my shopping trip. During that time, the idea of the item being a new and shiny object seems to wear off a bit, and 90% of the time, I find I will return the item to the shelf, unpurchased, content to have simply held it for a while.
And for the remaining 10%, well, a LITTLE sparkle in life isn't bad now and then, is it?
This phenomenon is also what retailers call "petting" (seriously!). But once you are aware of it, the reverse is often true - I have put many an item back without purchasing once I had a chance to pick it up and look more closely at it.
This "touch-and-buy" technique works especially well at the checkout counter with impulse items. Notice that most are at eye level or lower for easy access. (And parents, notice where the kiddo impulse items are located - right at your child's eye level.)
But with some items, a close inspection and picking it up is enough to make you go "ewww, who'd buy this piece of crap!"
@Outrun1986: I did buy a Wii based off those commercials where the Japanese men came to people's houses and gave them Wii's. Whenever people ask "Why is the Wii so popular?" I mention the ads. They really do sell you on the system.
My Wii doesn't get a ton of use (Xbox 360 is still my primary console, with PS3 second) but the Wii games are as fun to play as they show in the ads.
Interesting argument, but how about the reality of testing a product? Or getting information about it? And in some cases, touching can put someone off of buying it.
For example, I won't buy a shirt unless it's 100% natural fabric, and even then, if it feels nasty (some cheaper cottons or wools), I won't even think about it. Or how about computer keyboards? People who grew up with typewriters often prefer a certain "feel", and you can't learn that by looking.
@cuchanu: Heh. I've been hearing that line since the 80s when I worked in a record store during college.
I worked at Gamestop for 2 years and found that if I just handed the customer the discount card and put the magazine down infront of them and made them leaf through it I could always get them to buy it. Once it was in their hand they were mine! >:) bwahaha!
@LogicalOne: Does this mean that next time a study is run, you'll volunteer your time to be a more representative participant? Most people say no, or, if they say yes, only for some exorbitant amount of money. Most psychology programs don't have the funding to pay the number of participants required for reliable analyses. Thus, requiring undergraduates to participate in research for credits is usually the only feasible option.
Well, everyone is different, so these types of test are general true. I will pick up an item and debate about it in my head as I'm shopping for other things. I don't buy on straight impulse most of the time now, because I don't like to buy anything if I feel pressure of regret. I got pressured by some guy on the street to buy his shitty CDs and I just bought them to get away from him. Now, I don't buy anything from people who pressure me, and take most purchases into serious consideration before buying them.
@LogicalOne:
On this study the undergraduate student's age is perfect. The 18-25 age bracket is the prime age for the marketers and companies want to know how to exploit them better.
@hippybear:
Agreed. This works for me as well! Also, not using a cart or basket helps. Instead, hold stuff in your arms. After a while, you can't carry anything else, and your arms are tired, so you start putting back the things you need the least. Works like a charm!
@catastrophegirl: @catastrophegirl:
I read on some website (it was a story about fun kids products that were eventually recalled, linked from digg) that these were recalled at one point due to someone getting their eye gouged out or some other serious injury. Glad to see that you were defying those odds on a daily basis.
This is why I do what my mom taught me when I was a little kid- hold my thumbs. Works like a charm, and I very rarely buy things I do not need.
I was always told, "Put it in their hands, create a sense of ownership."
But that was my dad talking about girls.