Fear of commitment - to buy

Everyone is either showing off or complaining about how much stuff they bought online during isolation. People renovating, landscaping, setting up an office space, sourcing expensive materials for their side hustle, and I am laying here eating popcorn like: really? 

Of course, I have signed up for a few newsletters with the promise of exclusive discounts onselectedproducts, after all, I am only human.

This being said, I have been sitting on multiple shopping carts without committing to buy, and the reasons for this are various and extravagant:

Today is Friday, I will do it tomorrow

I am on a bus, I will do it at home

It’s too late, I will do it with more light

I need to post an article, I don’t have time today

The total is not an even number

Maybe there’s something else I want, let me check my spreadsheet

It was 40% off when I signed up two months ago, now it is full price again

Mercury is in retrograde

I need to pay for shipping?!

Bottom line: Not happening!

This got me thinking about all the money I’ve saved by not committing to my shopping cart during the lockdown.

Let me rephrase that.

This got me thinking about all the money I’ve spent on actual things that I wanted, compared to random stuff that looks like something I’d buy, during the lockdown.

At this point in time, between targeted ads, newsletters, sales, and ease of online shopping, there is almost no difference between shopping in person while looking at all-of-the-things and doing it online, except for one tiny detail:

Knowing the total before you checkout.

As I said, I am human so I don’t mentally add up everything I put in my physical cart. But looking at that total in my virtual cart it’s a crucial part of my online shopping experience.

Imagine me at Sephora, looking at all the pretty things, swatching all the glitters, picking a few items up because I saw them online and this alone is enough to compel me to buy them. Then I approach the till, picking up a few more travel-size items because they are in front of me while I wait, and if that works for children and candy at the supermarket, why not for me at Sephora? Finally, I get to the check-out and a person distracts me with extreme contouring and more items on sale on the counter while quickly scans all my items and presents the total to me matter-of-factly. Am I going to look like I don’t have money, or worse, I have a budget? In Sephora? Music is going to skip, a spotlight will shine on me, alarms blaring, and everyone will be disappointed at me if I don’t buy my full cart. Not happening!

But I have an anti-marketing theory: if there was a pre-checkout, completely automatic, not leading to an exit, not contributing to the queue, safe from judging eyes, I would not buy most of the items I am carrying in my cart.

The same would apply for literally any store you can think of. For some I’ve heard it’s toolbox kind of things or gardening, for others is bookstores. What shop works its marketing magic on you? Leave me a commentdownbelow.

To confirm my theory I have tested something: I have filled a cart online, edited it until satisfied, waited until the end of lockdown, went to the store, looked at all the pretty things and bought only the items I had in my cart. I have left very satisfied with the in-store experience, my wallet is happy, and I have no regrets nor clutter.

I am saying this while we enter Christmas limited edition deals territory. I may add some exceptions to my scientific experiment in an upcoming article. I’ll keep you posted.



Image: via