The Invisible Strings: Psychological Traps that Guide Our Shopping Choices
Let’s crack the code to subconscious shopping behaviors
Hi my name is Danielle. I’m an impulsive shopper and I horde clothes out of guilt.
There I said it. They say the first step to solving a problem is admitting you have a problem. My problems are my shopping style and my closet management style. They have both left me stuck in a vicious cycle of buying “good enough” clothes at the last minute and then unable to get rid of those clothes because I spent my hard earned money on them.
I’m bringing this up is because it’s a new season and I have been chomping at the bit to get back into shopping. But lately I have found myself fighting bad habits and impulses so I paused and dug deep to understand how I ended up in place where 90% of my closet was expendable to ensure I would never end up there again.
If the The One Piece At a Time Framework is the philosophy to build a well rounded wardrobe that’s stylish in a strategic and sustainable way, my manifesto gives me focus to ensure I pick pieces that fit my needs.
But what about my psychological barriers? You know the unconscious biases that defy logic & hamper effective decision making? Don’t be ashamed we all have them and I wanted to identify mine and combat them or at least manage them. And in honor of that I thought I would share with you some common psychological barriers to shopping and how to combat them so that we can all make better and informed decisions.
Do You Buy One New Item and All of A Sudden Need to Buy a Whole New Outfit?
Have you ever bought a dress, a pair of shoes, or a handbag, only to realize you can't match it with anything you already own? So in order to make this new purchase wearable you purchased additional items to go with it.
This is known as the Diderot Effect—a phenomenon where one purchase creates a cascade of additional purchases just to assemble a complete outfit. In order to wear that special pair of shoes, you find yourself needing new pants and a top, spending way more money than you intended.
Prevention Tip: Before buying a piece, think of three ways to wear it with the pieces already in your closet. This ensures you can easily integrate it into your wardrobe without needing to purchase something else to make it work. The longer it takes to wear a new item, the less likely you are to wear it at all.
When You Shop Sales Do You Focus On the Original Price of Items to Guide your Purchases?
Do you love a good a deal? Do you only shop when there is a sale? Does it not even matter what you buy as long as you can say it was 50% off to justify the purchase?
If you find yourself being influenced by the original price of an item on sale regardless of the item's actual value you just might be in the chokehold of a cognitive bias called the anchoring effect. This is the tendency to rely too heavily on the first piece of information offered (the "anchor") when making decisions.
Truth Moment: I just fell prey to this in February. I got an email from Saks Off Fifth for sunglasses on sale for 50% off. I knew I wanted to buy more shades so I jumped and ended up buying a pair of St. Laurent shield style shades and although I love them they were not exactly what I envisioned when I mentally added shield style sunnies to my list. The reason I bought them was because the original price was $475. My mind perceived them as higher quality and a better deal because of their original price.
Prevention Tip: Keep a wishlist of desired items or gaps in your wardrobe. Use shopping apps to set price alerts for specific items you need so when the price drops you’re ready. This strategy puts you in control, making your purchases more about need than impulse.
Do You Love To Shop For an Occasion, Because You Have “Nothing to Wear” In your Closet?
Do you like to shop as a solution to a temporary issue, for example buying new clothes for a single event like a concert, wedding or vacation? If you are a type A take action type of person this bias is probably kicking your butt and you don’t even know it. This is called action bias. It’s common among people that prefer action over inaction, often in response to solve a problem or situation. At the root of this impulse is a desire to resolve discomfort quickly.
Truth Moment: This is my Achilles heel. The only time I ever shopped is if I had an event to go. My discomfort was the fact that I really didn’t have anything to wear for non-work events because my closet was one dimensional (all work attire) and non-functional at the same time. Shopping impulsively and mostly off-line left me grabbing whatever was in front of me and what was usually in front of me were not pieces that I loved, or even liked just items that seemed to “work”.
Prevention Tip: I’m currently working on this. I don’t have all the answers, but I believe shopping slowly and strategically with your entire wardrobe in mind, rather than just one event should help.
Do You View Every Single Item In Your Closet as Valuable or with Sentimental Value So You Can’t Get Rid of Anything?
Is it hard to part with items, especially those unworn or still with tags?
This could be the endowment effect, which makes decluttering difficult because you feel each item holds substantially more value than it actually does.
Truth Moment: I really in my heart of hearts struggled with this because of my issues with spending money. I use to view decluttering as throwing my hard earned money away. I like money. I like to save it, I like to grow it so spending money is hard.
Prevention Tip: I’m improving at this by being critically evaluating pieces during closet clean-outs. I ask myself: Is the item worn out, ill-fitting, or simply not your style anymore? If yes, it’s time to let it go.
Which barriers resonate with you? Let me know how you overcome them—or if you struggle with them, share that too!