Research indicates that people confronted with their mortality spend more money at retailers. During a natural disaster, when consumers are hearing about widespread causalities, they’ll stock up on emergency supplies. But after the dust settles, they’ll go for the indulgences over the necessities. Consumer psychologists call this Terror Management Theory.
Is it morally right to take advantage of people’s desires for merchandise if they’re shopping because of a fear of death? My answer is that it’s fine for you to deliver value by relieving your customers’ anxiety. The three caveats for me are these: Don’t violate the law to make them feel good. Don’t gouge people by charging excessive prices. And don’t pressure people to buy when they’re seeming to struggle with temptation.
TMT research finds that the urge to splurge sets in after the extreme fear passes. And the motivation to buy comes from a desire to increase self-esteem, since self-esteem gives a sense of control. So your selling message is that the purchase will help shoppers feel better about themselves.
Because different people have different sources of self-esteem, they’ll seek different items. Researchers at Stanford University and Duke University had women think about a terrorist attack and then choose a reward of chocolate cake or fruit salad. Among those who had previously said that their body image contributed greatly to their self-esteem, thinking about the terrorist attack increased the frequency of selecting the fruit salad by 15 percentage points. But among those who had previously said that their self-esteem came from considerations other than their body image, thinking about the terrorist attack increased the frequency of selecting the cake by 50 percentage points.
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