Spending Behaviour Series

The Manipulation Of The SuperMarketsfrom

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According to myth, women were easily seduced while under the powers of Count Dracula. He would target them, they wouldnʼt feel his bite and would become addicted to the exchange before willingly allowing him to drain them of all independent life.

It is no myth, however, that people, mainly women, are targeted as the gatekeepers to the in-home family-care budget - people labelled as Primary Shoppers.

Neither they nor their purse feels the the painless bites of product range temptations, seductive promotional offers, loyalty bonuses and brand new product launches.

Primary Shoppers quickly become addicted to such exchanges, and willingly succumb to a dependent life. So for our Count - Whatʼs not to like about that ? If Dracula had a business - heʼd be a store.

In Home Family Spending: How you are seduced while shopping

Everyone already knows the common tricks of bread smell, samplers and Greeters, yet few know that the retail store layout is carefully designed and planned using Category Management.

This is the careful management of the different categories and the shelving display space, to ensure that the shelves hold just the right amount of products to maximise the profits per cubic inch of that shelf space.

Everything is planned to produce a visual display that is bright, tidy, and appealing. Complementing products are displayed closely together to jog the memory, promotional tickets and displays are all around the store.

Even the very number of shelves and their heights in each aisle are carefully planned and calculated. This serves to shape your choices and decisions for you.

In Home Family Spending: Why you buy things you donʼt really need

For most people, only about 1/3 of grocery shopping is planned and known before reaching the store, and tend to be the staples such as bread and milk. Another 1/3 is semi planned, and both these often appear on lists.

The final 1/3rd though is pure impulse purchase - offers, shiny boxes, new things to try, snacks, and sweets.

The ʻneedʼ is manufactured while in the store and of course, you buy things to satisfy your perceived needs. Also - Mom IS actually the gatekeeper to the home, and makes all sorts of decisions on the shopping trip.

She rewards the kids, treats the dad, indulges herself. She buys a variety of different things that different family members like - their favourites, and on many many occasions, buys some food or items which actually gets wasted.

In Home Family Spending: How to avoid wasting money

Just as garlic keeps our Count at bay, there are also things to be done in the supermarket to defend against unwanted influences.

1. Take cash. It hurts emotionally much more to use it than a card so you will be much more careful about your decisions

2. Eat before you go because if you shop while hungry, it makes sense that you will buy more food while it is right in front of you!

3. Making a list is obvious but sticking to it can be difficult in the face of store seduction - so order online and eliminate all that temptation

4. Take your own bags, because youʼll tend to know how much will fit into them, and avoid buying them a the checkout if your store charges for the bag!

The best way though, is to understand more thoroughly how you are manipulated and where exactly all your money goes.

There are 14 different way in which our brain thinks about money and In Home Family Spending is only one of them. By understanding the details of how much and how often you spend within these 14 ways, you can start to control your personal finance budget.

By matching up your money in and your money out, setting goals, and forecasting amounts and limits for each area, you will have assistance from the money tracker and you will become a savvy shopper not a sappy shopper.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Mark has many years experience in personal finance and has been responsible for helping thousands of people through the difficulties of managing debts, loans, and insolvency. Most recently, Mark is co-authoring a book with best seller Robert G Allen, while

building a group of consumer brand focused businesses, including financial education, an online university, and local business consultancy. This includes launching an international coaching academy to teach his original methods and systems to business entrepreneurs and companies.

A former CEO in Financial Services, Mark is the author of the personal finance books Negotiating Breathing Space with your Creditors, and Debt Management Secrets.

You can find his blog at www.markdonnan.com and can sign up there for his regular free webinar series on Mastering Money.

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