Demonstrate Risky Consumption

Researchers at Indiana University and University of San Diego showed to study participants depictions of indulgent foods. In some cases, it was the food by itself and, in the other cases, the food being consumed by a person who was similar to the study participant in some way. The study participants were afterwards asked to taste the food and rate the tastiness.
     Those who had seen the depiction of actual consumption rated the food as more tasty than did those who had seen the depiction of the food by itself. This difference did not appear when the food used in the depictions would be considered more healthy than indulgent.
     It was as if seeing a risky food being consumed by somebody else gave permission to enjoy a the food. In this case, the risk was physical. But the general principle of increasing enjoyment by demonstrating consumption holds for all sorts of risky items

• Physical risk. “Is my health or safety or that of those I love in danger if I use this product or service?”
• Financial risk. “Am I paying too much money?”
• Time risk. “If I make this purchase, does it mean investing too much time for what I gain?”
• Social risk. “If the people I admire know I’m using this product or service, am I in danger of falling out of favor with them?”
• Psychological risk. “Does using this product or service conflict with the image I want to maintain of myself?”
• Functional risk. “Will the product or service solve my problem or meet my needs effectively and efficiently?”

     When the experience of using a risky product is difficult to describe or demonstrate, allowing the shopper to sample constitutes a self-demonstration.
     Put the sampling station in a well-lit, interesting area of your store where a number of people can gather at the same time. We want shoppers to be attracted by seeing others sampling and then not feel crowded when doing the sampling. We want the shoppers to hang around long enough to get their questions answered by friendly staff who are handing out the samples.
     Then make it easy to buy the product by having the merchandise for purchase adjacent to the sampling station.
     Sampling a satisfying product at no cost builds the sort of gratitude which can result in the consumer buying not only more of the sampled product at the full price, but also other products from the merchant.

Click below for more: 
Present Low-Risk Comparisons for the Nervous 
Label Freebies as Samples 
Use Synesthesia to Reinforce Store Image 
Relax Caution About Comparative Imagining