As Christmas
approaches, most of us will be spending more and more time shopping and in this
article, "Consuming
Passion: Human psychology shapes the shopping experience" Kay Randall
explains the tendencies of shoppers. Randall also describes the different types
of products and methods used my different groups of people based on age and
gender.
Randall
differentiates the two methods based on gender. Men are more goal-orientated
thinkers who decide what they need before going to the store, as soon as they
arrive they find it and check out. Women, however, shop for the experience and
usually for nothing in particular, they are waiting for an item to spark their
interest. And females tend to take much longer shopping than men because we
love to try things on.
Not only are women
better at coordinating outfits from items throughout the store, but they are
quite more capable than men. Men have difficulty pairing a shirt and pant
together unless it is displayed for them, otherwise they will purchase only one
of the products and move on. That is why it is important for retailers to place
outfits in the same display for men while women do not need that aid. Also,
stores tend to place candy and gum on the lower shelves, like at the check out
at pharmacies, so children are tempted to grab it and beg their parents to
purchase it. Even elderly people are targeted in stores, by sales on certain
products at certain times of the day because most elderly people do not work
and have a fixed income, they also spend time shopping because of their
retirement.
Randall also
presents the different types of products in a store, such as pain killers or
cough medicine have minimal display because people will purchase these
utilitarian products when necessary and will not leave a store without it. But
luxury items like Godiva chocolate or fancy electronics are displayed to
attract attention and interest. If successful, these displays will draw people
to purchase these hedonic items, but people will take in to consideration the
price and quality of the good more so than if it were a necessity.
There are a lot of
factors that draw people to purchase goods: the store ambiance and aroma and
customer service are just two examples. Retailers know how to get your
attention and mainly your money, especially during the holiday season.
Do you agree with Randall's research? How do you complete
your Christmas shopping? What process works best for you? Do you find yourself
easily tempted by the candy and gum at the cash register of CVS, do you think
this method is productive in business?
I agree marketing is a major part of a businesses' success. Marketing to a consumer is not only a business, but an entire franchise: people make money for figuring out how to make people spend money. I certainly agree that even though they may be unnoticed by the consumer, small tactics such as placing candy on lower shelves are intended to target a certain group - children. Look at Abercrombie: they cover the store with attractive models and pictures, blast music, and douse the place with the overwhelming smell of their signature perfume to attract a teenage demographic. And so far, it seems to be working.
ReplyDeleteSince it is so easy to get caught up in the marketing game, I try to get my shopping done by going into a store with an idea of what it is I want so I'm not grabbing everything off the shelves - although I will admit I'm usually a victim of the tempting packs of gum at CVS counters.
I agree with Randall's research. Last year I took business and most of the marketing strategies we talked about were similar to Randall's research. Over one a school break we did a project about supermarkets. For example, we learned about how different colors and shapes have a great impact on shampoo bottles and that children's cereal is always placed on the bottom shelf just like the candy at the store.
ReplyDeleteIt is so easy to get caught up in all of this, to wander around the mall for hours buying anything and everything that looks cute. But I think that if you hone in on your inner man, Christmas shopping can be fairly easy. It might sound silly but if you write a shopping list (or a letter to Santa) then you are more likely to stay on target I believe.
When I do my Christmas shopping I go with my brothers. Having two other people there who also need to get there shopping done makes me shop faster and stick to just what I need. It's also nice to have a second opinion because I can be very indecisive and walk around looking for other things but when I'm with my brothers I tend to look at one thing and make the purchase.
Truthfully, I am dreading the hassle of Christmas shopping this year because it really has become a crowed marketing game.
When shopping for Christmas gifts, I think both genders can be very goal oriented--I see my mother making lists as to what she is going to get my dad, my grandpa, my sister, and me. But I definitely agree that women are more likely to browse. While my mom is content when I tell her just the stores or brands I like, my dad is not the same. For example, this past weekend my dad mentioned that there was an Under Amour outlet at the casino he visits regularly. I told him my sizes and asked him to pick me up something if it was cheap; but without the specifics, my dad was clueless as what to get me. He asked me to show me exactly what I wanted, while my mom would have just picked up a few shirts or running pants for me. I think the majority of women enjoy the thrill of shopping and thinking about what the person who they are shopping for would like the best. That's also why I think my mom gets more sensitive than my dad when it comes to rejected Christmas gifts. Me and my sister usually get one big gift--typically an electronic--and some other small gifts. My dad is usually in charge of the one big gift, since he knows exactly what to get. My mom, on the other hand, will get the clothes or the jewelry so we have more presents to open--and these are the presents that are more likely to be returned. I agree with Randall on this point--men tend to be focused on the one gift they are getting, and women tend to branch out, and "browse." I think this makes women more likely to be impulse buyers as well.
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to Christmas shopping, I agree with what everyone has been saying. I agree with Randall that women are more likely to browse than men. For example, every Christmas when my dad and I go shopping for my mom's Christmas gift, he picks an outfit that is on display. I am always more willing to browse through the racks and look for something I like. For Christmas shopping I try to make a list, but I am always willing to change it. I always end up browsing the store to see if I can find something I like better. I often find myself buying the pack of gum from the counter at CVS, even if that is not what I go in there for. I think that is a smart marketing technique because I have seen many people grab the pack of gum as well.
ReplyDeleteI agree that marketing plays a huge role in the success of most businesses. In fact, nowadays, it's become more about the marketing of the product than the actual product itself! There are all of these strategies and clever ideas to make people buy products but, when they do, the product does not nearly live up to expectations! If businesses spent half the time on developing a successful product as they do on marketing, it'd make the business much more successful.
ReplyDeleteI think a good example of marketing based on age groups would be stores like Abercrombie or Hollister - they're made out to be stores specifically for teenagers. Elderly people are not attracted by the loud music, dim lights, high prices, and overbearing scent. Of the same accord, teenagers aren't attracted stores like Dress Barn or Ann Taylor because they're not all that interested in purchasing business attire.
When it comes to Christmas shopping, I feel as though everyone is goal-oriented. We all know what we want to get for each different person and it's a busy shopping season so most people want to be in and out as quick as possible. However, on a regular shopping day, I agree that women tend to spend more time browsing than men do. Personally, my male cousins don't even go shopping! Their mothers go, pick out a few shirts and some jeans and they're content. However, I know that I would never let my mother pick out my clothes for me. I feel like the various marketing techniques absolutely pinpoint the differences among gender and age.
To some extent, I agree with Randall's research but I think that, like Kasey said, everyone can be goal-oriented when it comes to shopping. In my case, I tend to make a mental list, look up what I want beforehand, and then go shopping and try to get it done quickly. I will occasionally browse the sales racks but I like to stick to a plan. This is in contrast to my mom, who even when she makes a list, loves to browse to the point where it is exasperating sometimes. I think that the marketing strategies such as the gum and candy at checkouts or a specific look for a store definitely work. I know that I'll occasionally be tempted to buy some chocolate at the checkout and that I would rather shop at Roxy and Hollister than stores with really bright colors or that look like they cater to a different age group.
ReplyDeleteSince my mother was a marketing major, she used to tell me all of the tricks to trick a consumer when we would shop together. I think it is so interesting how most stores generally make their shop look appropriate for their audience. For example, when I was in middle school and would always shop at Abercrombie, my grandmother would hate going in their to shop for me because of the music. Also when I was younger, my mother used to always make me walk fast when going through some stores which I now know is because she did not want me to have time to look at what was on the lower shelves.
ReplyDeleteAs the Christmas season is here, I generally do most of my shopping online so then I avoid traffic going towards the mall and long lines. Online shopping gives you the opportunity to look for what you want and pick out a good outfit. Similar to what Randell said, I do like to browse around but for me it is on their website instead of at the store. I normally get tired looking around and get frustrated when I can't find something that I need. If I do go to the mall, I normally have a list situated like a man and want to get in and out of the store as quickly as possible.
I have definitely noticed these methods that are used by stores, especially during the holiday season. Major companies are encouraged to use pyschology as a way to draw in costumers. This discussion relates to the idea of priming. As soon as Thanksgiving is over, malls are clad in green and red, Christmas music is playing, and holiday sweaters and boots are displayed in store windows. By beginning the Christmas season early as the retailer, consumers are more drawn to begin their shopping early as well.
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to strategically placing certain items on store racks, I agree that this is a witty retail method. My father, for instance, has zero capability of planning nice outfits and tends to buy different items from the same section of clothing in order to create a relatively matching outfit. My mother and I, on the other hand, will search a store top to bottom in pursuit of the perfect shirt/sweater combo. By displaying men's outfits together and women's outfits separately, retailers are appealing to shoppers' strengths.
I definitely agree with Randall's research. The people who set up the layout of stores definitely do it in a particular way in order to attract certain customers to certain products. Even if I walk into a store with a particular item in mind that I need to buy, I end up spending an hour or more looking at all the other things the store has to offer. The way stores are set up make it easy to lose focus on what you need because you suddenly see a bunch of other things you want to buy.
ReplyDeleteThe point he makes about how women spend more time in stores because they are looking around the whole store to put together an outfit to buy is exactly what I do. I can spend over an hour in one store trying to put together the best outfit from the selection in the store. I also need to make sure that there is nothing else in the store that I would want to buy more than what I decide to buy. Men on the other hand see one thing they like and immediately buy it to get out of the store quickly.
Because of all the temptations the stores provide me with, I am now trying to shop online more so that I am not running around for hours trying on everything in the store. I can see everything on one page and choose in a couple minutes what I want. This will be a great way for me to do my Christmas shopping because whenever I go to a store to buy a gift for someone else, I always end up buying so many things for myself as well. Shopping on the internet for that one specific gift for someone else will not allow me to grab things to buy for myself.
My experience with shopping has supported Randall's research, and I have found that women, including myself, are more likely to browse than to go into a store looking for a specific gift. This research deals with the stereotype for men to hate shopping, while some women see it as their favorite hobby. I think that men's tendency to go into the mall with a specific gift in mind is due to the fact that they would much rather be doing something else and do not want to waste time. As Randall said men are by nature more goal oriented and they see making lists and going in knowing exactly what they want as more efficient. Women are more likely to experience this "shopping high" from finding the perfect pair of shoes, than men would be. Of course there are always cases where women show men's stereotypical behavior, but I think that they makes lists more often because their lives are so busy that they do not have the time to browse through the store as much as they would like. I agree with what many of the girls have said, that marketing plays a huge role in the
ReplyDeleteI think that marketing play a huge role in the success of a business. Everything in a store is specifically planned and thought about, everything from the color of the walls to the music playing has been proven to add to the ambiance of their store and attract customers
I agree with Randall, women and men are both two completely different types of shoppers. When I go to the mall with my best girl friends we look in every store and browse around, not looking for anything specific. When I go to the mall with my guy friends, I am constantly harassed about taking too long, browsing and being too indecisive. I usually give them a hard time about just picking out the first thing they find that fits their need instead of looking for something nicer or cheaper. Due to that, we rarely go shopping together which benefits both parties. However, during Christmas time I think the attitudes of both sexes meet in the middle. Women become more goal oriented by making premeditated lists of who they need to buy for and what they are going to buy. Men become a little more indecisive because they want to find the perfect gift not just one that will do.
ReplyDeleteOver the summer, I took a class in Marketing and Communications in Fashion and learned about the many techniques retailers use when trying to attract a customer. You can observe their channels of marketing, trendy clothing brands usually market via social media and internet ads while older brands may market via commercials and newspaper ads. Placement of items is also essential, did you ever notice how cosmetics, jewelry and handbags are usually at the entrance of a store? People are typically more apt to buying accessories then investing in clothing. I believe that the whole shopping experience is defined by the way in which things are marketed to reach your target and by peoples perceptions of different stores.
I definitely agree with Randall's study and these methods of marketing are productive in businesses. I can say from experience that I shop not only because I need clothes to survive, but I find a pleasure in exploring clothing stores and the various options it has to offer. Searching for new and cute clothes serves as a hobby for me, and I can spend hours at the mall just looking and trying on clothes just for the fun of it, not because I necessarily need new clothes. However, I know that most of my guy friends shop only when they need a new specific item, not for enjoyment. Once they find what they need, the shopping experience is over for them and they do not continue to shop for fun like many girls do. For me, I would rather spend all day at the mall searching for new, cute, stylish clothes and not have a specific item in mind than shop for a specific reason and finish once I achieve my goal.
ReplyDeleteWhen I go to stores like CVS and I'm not in a rush, I usually leave with more than I had anticipated to buy. I admit that I am usually easily tempted by candy, gum, magazines, and other things I don't need at the register. I think that this is a great method of marketing products in businesses and ultimately increases consumer sales. I think it's interesting how much of an influence product placement has on the overall success of a business, and I definitely agree that its influence has the power to make or break a business.
I completely agree that men and women are completely different shoppers. But I also agree that it can't be that general either. I think, like most said, that it completely depends on the store. I know, if my dad and I walk into Home Depot, all I can think about is getting out. I literally have never been to a store that I've had less interest in. I get to the point where I start picking random objects off the shelves and asking my dad "is this what you were looking for?" in hopes to guide his focus back to what we went there for. In that respect, I think men shop like women.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, the minute I walk into a clothing store I could be there for hours- in fact, many times I have been there for hours. My dad on the other hand, would literally rather sit next to a smelly man on a bench outside of the store doing absolutely nothing rather than shop.I never understood it until I went to Home Depot. So I completely agree that stores are catered to a certain customer, but I think those little details completely make someone a male or female shopper in those situations.