Per a paper in the latest issue of the Journal of Consumer Psychology titled ""Wetting the Bed at Twenty-One: Embarrassment as a Private Emotion," people can feel just as embarrassed buying sensitive products in person as they would online.
This seems to go against common knowledge, doesn't it? You'd think that people would feel less sheepish buying condoms, home test kits, tampons, and Viagra privately and online, but the study finds that not to be the case.
Apparently, the mere act of purchasing the item causes consumers to judge themselves. When the purchase is made at the store, we can at least walk out and remove ourselves from the very context in which the "act" was committed. While the study found that the negative feelings associated with in-store purchases gradually dissipated, the intensity of embarrassment felt when buying the products online did not lessen.
If you think about it, embarrassment is a powerful emotion. It's potent enough to keep consumers from purchasing necessary medical products or practicing safe sex,
I think a study like this would be of great value to marketers and policy makers that have a vested interest in getting their products in as many households as possible. They ought to find ways -- perhaps through advertising or by implementing social awareness campaigns -- of changing well-entrenched perceptions about products that many people may feel too embarrassed to buy. In the end, everyone wins: you have a more informed consumer who procures the product he or she needs, which in turns benefits the company's bottom line.
Have you ever been too embarrassed to buy one of the products listed above? Do you feel less embarrassed buying them online than you do in the store? Do the findings surprise you?
For more posts you won't want to miss, click here: How to Understand People
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This seems to go against common knowledge, doesn't it? You'd think that people would feel less sheepish buying condoms, home test kits, tampons, and Viagra privately and online, but the study finds that not to be the case.
Apparently, the mere act of purchasing the item causes consumers to judge themselves. When the purchase is made at the store, we can at least walk out and remove ourselves from the very context in which the "act" was committed. While the study found that the negative feelings associated with in-store purchases gradually dissipated, the intensity of embarrassment felt when buying the products online did not lessen.
If you think about it, embarrassment is a powerful emotion. It's potent enough to keep consumers from purchasing necessary medical products or practicing safe sex,
I think a study like this would be of great value to marketers and policy makers that have a vested interest in getting their products in as many households as possible. They ought to find ways -- perhaps through advertising or by implementing social awareness campaigns -- of changing well-entrenched perceptions about products that many people may feel too embarrassed to buy. In the end, everyone wins: you have a more informed consumer who procures the product he or she needs, which in turns benefits the company's bottom line.
Have you ever been too embarrassed to buy one of the products listed above? Do you feel less embarrassed buying them online than you do in the store? Do the findings surprise you?
For more posts you won't want to miss, click here: How to Understand People
Related posts:
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