“50% off all newly released DVD’s”
-There’s nothing I want to watch at the moment but if it’s half price so I might as well buy some DVD’s.
How does it happen? It’s the biproduct of one of the most common marketing strategies- providing a sale that seems so good that the customer must jump on the offer right away.
I know that as a student with a part-time job it is very easy to receive a pay check and feel the need to use it to indulge in something that we truly enjoy. The problem is that many of us do not know what we really enjoy and as a result we take our fresh new pay checks straight to the mall to go shopping so that we can spend the money we worked so hard for. When I say we do not know what we really enjoy I am referring to the instances where someone goes shopping just for the sake of shopping. There is nothing wrong with shopping, everybody does it, the problem lies in not knowing what you are shopping for. If you decide to go to a mall without a clear understanding of what you are going to purchase, then chances are you’ll fall for the sale trap. From all of the examples of marketing strategies the sale trap is probably the most common
When this marketing strategy strikes the most
Of the 101 marketing strategies, the viscous sale trap occurs when you purchase something without any prior thought to making this purchase. The purchase is made simply because it is on sale. The most common instances of the sale trap occur when you purchase clothing, repair something, subscribe to some magazine, join a gym, or God only knows what else is purchased just because it is on sale. Chances you will not have money set aside for this impulse purchase, usually busting out the trusty credit card for this “once in a lifetime” deal (as most are promoted).Looking at the many different marketing strategies it’s usually the sales trap that cause many young people to fall into debt.
Personal situation with sales marketing strategies
Don’t get me wrong I am not judging, actually to be honest I almost fell for the sale trap today while I was brainstorming the concept for this article. I was downtown when some girls (obviously good looking ones dressed in revealing clothing) came up to me with a flyer for 20% at the Guess Store for one day only. I have purchased Guess Jeans before (pre-budget era) and I thought for a split second how could I let this offer pass me by. Then my frugal instinct kicked in, bringing me to the clear realization that I already have a nice pair of Guess Jeans and that 20% off a $160 pair of jeans is not much of a deal. The point of this story is that anyone at any given time is susceptible for falling for the ever so evil sale trap.
How-to avoid this sales marketing strategy
1. Write down your purchases before you leave your home. Do not ever walk into a mall to just “look around.” This will never happen and almost all of the time it leads to at least one purchase. Make sure you have a clear list of what you plan on purchasing so you do not get side tracked or confused looking through many stores unsure of what you truly need.
2. Bring exact amount of money needed. Obviously you should round up on your purchases so that you do not embarrass yourself by not having enough money. You can also easily find out prices of your purchases by checking online. This also requires that you leave your credit card at home (if possible). By not having any extra money you will not make those unexpected purchases, even if you absolutely want to. Effective marketing strategies will no longer work on you because you will be prepared with a budget.
3. Ignore all sale signs/ pushy sales people. Whether you have to bring your iPod or pretend you don’t speak English, at all costs avoid sales people. There job is to sell you stuff, period. They do not talk to because they want to help you out, they are paid to sell you stuff. Do not read any sales signs, no matter how amazing they seem. Chances are the small fine print usually states the sale only applies to some items, which you won’t figure out until you’re actually inside the store. You must also learn how to ignore internet marketign strategies. Those pop-ups may seem interesting but do you really need that new George Foreman Grill?
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This article reminded me of a “sale trap” that I came across recently. A select shop that I’ve stepped into a few times but have never purchased because of the ridiculous prices is having a going out of business sale. It turns out that even though they claim “everything is 50-80% off,” some bloggers have written about how the store deliberately fixed the price-tags so that even after 50-80% off, the consumer was actually paying the original price.
It also makes me think of how things in general are traps, dvds on “sale” are not that cheap considering how expensive they are ($100 box sets?!) in the first place…
Today I received a call from a friend saying that we should go to a certain store because sweaters are on sale. My obvious comeback was that I have enough sweaters for the winter. The response was that of a usual sale trap victim. The person was happy about the sale price. This is one piece of advice that my friends will never ever accept and many will just brush it off as me being cheap. What can I say? Maybe I am in the wrong by only having 6 sweaters when I should really have 16 sweaters.