When shoppers met the smartphone, they quickly learned that the device was ideal for shopping around — while shopping in …
impulse buys
Why Shoppers and Shopping Centers Alike Now Embrace the Dollar Store
At one time, upper- and middle-class shopping centers turned up their noses at dollar stores, assuming that their presence would hurt the image of neighboring retailers, as well as the area as a whole. In pre-recession days, many …
Retail Shoppers: 3 Minutes to Check-out, Or I’m Out of Here!
Long lines are bad for business. An especially long line at a store’s checkout area can scare off some customers from making a purchase, or just leave the shopper aggravated—and less likely to come back. Also, the longer the …
Fashion Faux Pas: When Regular Deals Beat Flash Deals
Flash sales and daily deals from the likes of Groupon and Gilt succeed in two key ways: First, the big, prominently featured discount off the original retail price gets consumers excited by the prospect of a great value; second, …
Online Shoppers Search, Click, and Bargain-Hunt More Before Making Purchases
Online shoppers are getting smarter—and slower. Two years ago, consumers clicked on an online ad an average of 2.7 times before making a purchase. By early 2011, the average had risen by 15%, to 3.1 clicks. Consumers are also taking more time and are more likely to visit a competing site to check prices before pulling the trigger and …
204 Money Tips: Ways to Find Jobs, Get Free Shipping, Avoid Debt and Impulse Purchases, and More
Also: tips for cutting back on what you pay for everything from groceries to toys to your first home.
Careless Consumerism: How You’re Really Spending Eight Times as Much as You Thought
“If you choose to spend a dollar today, you are actively choosing not to have four dollars, or six, or even eight later.”
Impulse Buying 2.0: Groupon’s New Deals Tempt Anyone Who’s Hungry or Bored Right Now
Groupon, the runaway leader in the enormously popular group daily deals concept, is aiming to once again upend the way consumers leap for tempting, limited-time offers.
Why Retailers Prefer “Ship to Store” Over Plain Old Shipping to the Customer’s Home
During the past winter holiday shopping season, free shipping was a big trend. Retail giant Walmart, for instance, offered free shipping on some 60,000 items. Now, instead of continuing to expand free shipping services, Walmart is ramping up its “ship-to-store” program, in which shoppers order merchandise online that they’ll later pick …
The Secrets of a Master Retail Manipulator
Cheap trendy jewelry and amusing throwaway gifts are placed strategically to encourage impulse buys and lure shoppers further into the depths of the store, where pricier items—and the occasional celebrity—lurk. Consumers can’t help themselves.
Cheapskate Wisdom … About Why Auctioneers Talk Like They Do
“They talk like that to hypnotize the bidders. Auctioneers don’t just talk fast—they chant in a rhythmic monotone so as to lull onlookers into a conditioned pattern of call and response, as if they were playing a game of ‘Simon says.’ The speed is also intended to give the buyers a sense of urgency: Bid now or lose out.”
Pump Up Your Willpower: Why You Should Flex Your Muscles When You’re Too Weak to Fight Off the Urge to Buy
Here’s one of those weird-yet-fascinating, quirky-yet-perhaps-helpful research findings: People who clench their muscles—by, say, making a fist or tensing their biceps—show a brief spurt of improved willpower. So, if one of your long-term goals is to save money, you might be able to fight off the impulse buy urge when shopping by …
