Why we buy what we buy
Corporations spend on average 600 billion dollars a year on marketing globally. Close to 200 billion dollars a years is spent in the United States alone. The explosion of digital advertising and marketing has opened new frontiers to reach consumers. Whether you think some of these marketing ploys work on you or not, they do, there is something for every consumer of every product that exists.
The mindset of the consumer is something marketers are very familiar with. Even if you think you are completely independent in your purchasing decisions, you are not. There are specific marketing schemes for products for those who think they are not being cajoled into a purchase. The reason why all the junk food is always by the cashiers in supermakets is because companies know that the decision making process while shopping drains willpower and self discipline. Our systems crave glucose when in this state so the convenience of having all that sugar around us speaking to our subconscious can result in a mindless purchase of that candy bar. In his book The Code of the Extraordinary Mind, Vishen Lakhiani sums it up best, "We don't need the thousands of products that exist solely to fill a void its commercial creates." These voids are exactly what are preyed upon and aren't properly addressed. We can not spend our way into filling whatever voids we individually have. With the exception of those who are genuinely struggling within the ranks of poverty, and there are far too many, most of us are unfamiliar with the term subsistence level. It simply means living at a minimum. Most of what we buy today we simply do not need and I include myself I this purchasing group. The power of advertising is so strong that even when we are aware of it and it's purpose, we can fall into its web.
We don't need material items or excess food to feel good about ourselves. The satisfaction emotionally charged purchases renders doesn't last and only perpetuates a cycle of spending and this certainly doesn't fulfill our need to serve and be a part of a larger purpose. Setting and achieving our goals even small ones legitimately builds our self esteem and feelings of self efficacy. Being more aware of our buying habits will help increase awareness may and save us all some money in the long run.
The mindset of the consumer is something marketers are very familiar with. Even if you think you are completely independent in your purchasing decisions, you are not. There are specific marketing schemes for products for those who think they are not being cajoled into a purchase. The reason why all the junk food is always by the cashiers in supermakets is because companies know that the decision making process while shopping drains willpower and self discipline. Our systems crave glucose when in this state so the convenience of having all that sugar around us speaking to our subconscious can result in a mindless purchase of that candy bar. In his book The Code of the Extraordinary Mind, Vishen Lakhiani sums it up best, "We don't need the thousands of products that exist solely to fill a void its commercial creates." These voids are exactly what are preyed upon and aren't properly addressed. We can not spend our way into filling whatever voids we individually have. With the exception of those who are genuinely struggling within the ranks of poverty, and there are far too many, most of us are unfamiliar with the term subsistence level. It simply means living at a minimum. Most of what we buy today we simply do not need and I include myself I this purchasing group. The power of advertising is so strong that even when we are aware of it and it's purpose, we can fall into its web.
We don't need material items or excess food to feel good about ourselves. The satisfaction emotionally charged purchases renders doesn't last and only perpetuates a cycle of spending and this certainly doesn't fulfill our need to serve and be a part of a larger purpose. Setting and achieving our goals even small ones legitimately builds our self esteem and feelings of self efficacy. Being more aware of our buying habits will help increase awareness may and save us all some money in the long run.
Comments
Post a Comment