On spending wisely at supermarkets
Or how not to fall prey to hidden persuaders at supermarkets and fill your trolleys with items you don't need.
This post is in continuation of what I posted last week on Vance Packard and The Hidden Persuaders. Marketing has grown significantly since the days of Packard. But, many of the insights contained in The Hidden Persuaders remain true and relevant.
One area where considerable research has been done is on how to increase customer spending at supermarkets. How do the presto view, first impressions, ambience, cart size, supermarket design, shelf layout, smells, free sample, location of specific items, impulse items at checkout counters, etc influence consumer spending? The field is very vast. Unfortunately, not much research has gone into how the consumer can deal with these market forces and the hidden persuaders in practically every nook and cranny of a supermarket.
Hopefully, somebody in future will come out with a book on Seller Behaviour just as most marketing courses and textbooks are now titled Consumer Behaviour. I look at some of the lessons customers have to keep in mind while entering supermarkets and going through the purchase process.
This is just another part, though a small one, of a long term project of writing on how customers can counter pressure from corporates.
(About 3600 words, 20 minutes read)
