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13 Tricks Supermarkets Use to Make Us Spend More

For some of us shopping is yet another chore. For others, it is an irresistible pleasure (especially when they are not the ones to pay for it).
No matter which option you are, you must be aware of all the tricks large stores apply to manipulate customers into buying more.

#1 Wonderful smells

The scent of fresh bread or bouquets of flowers – they all make us feel so much better and consequently encourage us to stay there longer. That is why the staff do their best to fill the place with a variety of pleasant smells. Have you ever wondered why the bread ovens are so close to customers?

#2 Water-sprinkled fruit and vegetables

You must have come across some slightly wet fruits and vegetables. This is a fairly simple trick to make you believe that the products are very fresh.

#3 No windows or clocks

Think about your favorite supermarket and picture the windows or clocks. Difficult? Perhaps because there aren’t any! This psychological trick is to prevent us from controlling the time lapse. The more time we spend inside, the more likely we are to overspend.

#4 Goods for kids on bottom shelves only

All the colorful cornflakes boxes and plenty of other items must be within the reach of the little hands and arms. Parents know this feeling when you look into the trolley and you realize there are a few things you have never put inside.
Apart from that, it has been scientifically proven that children have a large impact on parents’ shopping decisions.

#5 Controlling chaos

Do you really think that products end up behind wrong price tags by mistake? It’s not always the case! The thing is that once you put something into your trolley, you would rather pay more than come back and put it back onto the shelf, having to stand in line again.

#6 Little space by checkouts

The design of the checkout area is to discourage customers from coming back to return the goods. That is why there is just enough space to push the trolley through. And that seems to be working.

#7 The most popular brand on middle and top shelves

The packaging is the key to success. Consequently, the most expensive and the most catchy ones are normally on the eye level. The cheaper ones are somewhere lower so that the customers will choose the top-shelf items.

#8 The music

The calm and quiet supermarket tunes are to give you the shopping mood. The sounds result in people spending 34% more time inside the stores as compared to ‘quiet’ supermarkets.

#9 Making the customer feel hungry

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pixabay

The smells we mentioned before have got one more important function – they make you hungry. That is why the ovens are close to the entrance to enhance the effect.
That is why you had better have something to eat before you go shopping or else you spend far more than you really need to.

 

#10 Multi-packs of mini-packs

Smaller versions of drinks or sweets are often sold in multi-packs. From the buyer’s perspective that means buying more for less. However, in practice it is not the case. This is a common trick applied by large shopping malls.

#11 Free samples

We all love free samples! Especially when they are sweet. The findings of the research published by Journal of Consumer Research prove that sweet things often cause the shopping spree and the customers are more likely to browse more luxurious goods, including watches or laptops.

#12 Dairy products and fish at the back

pixabay

pixabay

The bread is there to make our mouths water. What is the function of fish and dairy then? Well, to get to the aisle with these items you have to walk all the way through the supermarket. Of course walking past other items you are very likely to pick up a few things not necessarily present on your shopping list.

 

#13 Trolleys getting bigger and bigger

The test have proven that the bigger the trolley, the more we are likely to throw in. Or even fill it completely! The empty space encourages you to throw one more thing. Or two..

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