Rein In Extremeness Aversion

In the research laboratory, as in your retail store, when consumers are presented with a good-better-best array, some of those consumers will be drawn to the middle alternative and others will be drawn to one or the other of the extremes. The research findings and the in-store experience indicate that this tendency lasts throughout a shopping trip. The person who avoids the extremes on the first choice mostly does the same for the other items on the shopping list. The person who goes for one or the other of the extremes at the start tends to stay with that choice strategy.
     Researchers at Stanford University and University of Florida-Gainesville say there are genetic influences in whether a shopper avoids or embraces compromise choices. Knowing this could be helpful to you when your customer base includes families. If you find a tendency in one family member shopping with you, expect to find it in others.
     Researchers at Northwestern University, University of South Australia, and University of New South Wales were more interested in determinants in the shopping situation than in heredity. After reviewing 142 studies, they said that, overall, a middle alternative is more likely to be selected than one at either end. But shoppers are drawn to choosing one or the other extreme when the salesperson describes price-quality tradeoffs that are simple to understand or the shopper is picking a pleasure-oriented nondurable item, such as fashion clothing.
     Individual research studies provide two more pointers for retailers who find it best for the customer to select one or the other extreme to purchase:

• Research findings from University of Hong Kong and National University of Singapore indicate that when a customer appears to be in an upbeat mood, they’re more likely to select either the first or the last alternative you propose than to select a middle alternative. So if your objective is to sell the first or the last, help the shopper get upbeat. 
• Trim off the extreme extremes in your sales presentation. When the weightlifter loads up the barbell for a total 130 lb. lift, they’ll put the 50 lb. weights on first, then the 10 lb. weights outside the 50 lb. ones, and then the 5 lb. weights outside the 10 lb. ones. Keep the shape of that barbell in mind. When you are wanting your shoppers to move out from the center, only a minority will move all the way out to highest luxury or deepest discount alternatives. 

For your profitability: Sell Well: What Really Moves Your Shoppers

Click below for more: 
Attend to Genetic Influences in Selling
Strengthen the Price-Quality Link
Influence the Compromise Choice Process
Strengthen Your Barbell Retailing
Go Fourth in a Five-Item Horizontal Choice