I ran acrossLog In that I thought was really interesting and I wanted to share with all of you. Apparently, in 2009, Walmart was enjoying some more customers than usual, former Target shoppers who traded down due to the economy. Walmart wanted to hang onto these new customers when the economy improved, so they started a nation-wide campaign to make Walmart stores more pleasant to shop in. They widened the aisles, stopped piling up inventory on pallets in every corner, and started ordering about 9 percent less inventory. Customers loved the New Look -- however, they bought less! After experimenting with the idea for a year or two, Walmart's profits were down. This prompted them to go back to putting out more inventory on the floor again and letting things get cluttered and disorganized. And what do you know? People bought more. Apparently, seeing a disorganized mess brings out the treasure hunter in shoppers, who are reminded of thrift store shopping when things are cluttered and messy. Also, I have heard that when people see a lot of inventory out for display, it makes you think that with all that stuff out there, there must be lots of bargains, which makes us want to buy more. So beware, everyone! Just because things are disorganized doesn't mean that there's bargains there. Do your research and keep track of prices and their cycles so that you aren't bamboozled into thinking there's a bargain where there is not one.
I wonder if this is because of the thrift store mentality as you've put it, or if it has more to do with the fact that the more messy, confusing a store is, then the more time someone spends in that store looking for what they want, which inevitably means that they'll find things that they don't want but think 'Ohhh that's a nice deal I'll pick that up!'
That's an interesting psychological tactic to me. When I think about it, I have to admit, that I feel a lot more relaxed if I go to a shop where there is plenty of clutter. It makes me feel like there is the possibility of haggling and finding bargains, and often I am right. I like to think that I can find something unusual or special in those boxes and packages. At the same time it occurs to me that the intelligence of corporations should never be underestimated.
I guess that explains why my local Walmart remodeled the store a year ago and made the layout worse and more confusing. Now pets and pet food are right next to the snack aisle and makeup is right next to the toys. The old way was more logical and had items that were similar displayed close to each other. Now if you need a dog collar, you have to walk through the potato chip aisle.
Like most people here, I've never noticed that the more cluttered a place is, you're led to buy more because of the reasons already stated. But it's more like a heads-up to me. The next time I walk into a store that's deliberately scattered up to awaken the treasure hunter in me, I'll be able to beat the temptation.
Ha! They are trying to get you to buy snacks for you when you get them for Fido! I hate when stores completely change the layout and then you have to look for everything and learn your way through all over again. A couple grocery stores here have redesigned the insides and moved products all over the place. Makes me crazy and makes shopping take longer! I am happy to say that I am not one of those people. I hate that kind of clutter in the store where there is so much stuff you can barely turn around. It's downright claustrophobic! I don't like going into a store that is dusty either, or that has an odor.
That doesn't seem logical to me at all. If a store is messy and disorganized, I don't shop there. To me, it tells me they are not doing their job, and they don't take pride in it. I think Walmart is making up excuses. If I see piles of stuff and pallets everywhere, I don't want to go through it. I don't have the treasure-hunter gene, I guess. Then again, I don't like shopping at Walmart. I only go there as a last resort.
I don't normally shop at Wal-mart so I can't talk about any difference in clutter. I hate clutter and I don't like to shop in cluttered stores. I'm not sure why, but I just can't think in a clutter. I avoid it at all costs.
Yeah, and that's apparently what people told Walmart, which caused them to remodel in the first place! I thought it was particularly interesting that customer satisfaction soared after the new plan was implemented with wider aisles and less inventory, but customers stopped spending as much, so they went back to the old system to bring back spending. What does that teach us? I think you may have hit the nail on the head right there as to why cluttered aisles sell. We see all that stuff, and we think surely, with all that stuff, there's a bargain in there! Or maybe this place will be like a thrift store, and if I just work a little harder, I may find an amazing bargain. Whatever you're thinking, you're having to think a lot more, which is tiring. People who are tired make worse decisions than usual. For example, tired people just want to go home, so at this point, just throw it in the cart, whatever it costs. Tired people are willing to take Walmart's word for it that something is an amazing deal. Tired people are much more susceptible to grabbing an impulse item and throwing it in the cart because, hey, they deserve it after all this shopping. I'm sure Walmart loves tired people!
When I walk into a Walmart up here in Canada it's a complete disaster zone. However, walking into a Target it's seemingly well organized and spotless. Maybe it's my more introvert or socially reserved nature, but I tend to prefer Target in that regard. It's cleaner, but that's likely due to less traffic in the store as well.
I only keep track of an item's price if I'm saving up for it, so I go online and see if the price has went down or stayed the same. I never expected that shoppers would be enticed to buy more from disorganized stores, I guess they assume that just because it's not neatly displayed, then the price must be cheap, because that's the way it usually is, right? Well, I'm not an impulse shopper anyway, so I doubt their marketing strategy has any effect on me.
Sounds like I said, they're trying to get you to buy more rather than keep you happy. If you're passing by the snack aisle while shopping for something, let's say as you said some pet food and a dog collar, you're more likely to think as you pass by, "Oh I'd quite like some mars bars now that I think of it!"
Yeah why would a company care about keeping you happy as long as you're spending more money? If they don't make enough money then they're out of business. However, there should be a balance because they should realize that sooner or later they're going to lose a lot of customers because I'm sure that many people won't shop at the store anymore. They may be making the treasure hunters keep coming but they have to look at the big picture.
I have no idea what this says about human nature. I suspect that they majority of Wal-mart customers are bargain hunters. Perhaps some people do think messiness means bargains. Years ago I worked for a big department store chain. After Christmas was a huge shopping day. I spent have my time cleaning up the area because customers always assumed that the best bargains were located at the bottom of the stack. I finally learned to leave it messy until it was almost closing time. Me too. I don't buying a little extra for a clean and clutter free shopping experience.
I must confess I'm particularly attracted, too, by a messy store, mostly because I rely to find bargains which I'd ultimately buy to give a pleasant look for my bedroom rather than deliberately look for one and to potentially not find it whatsoever. It's a psychological matter, that's true, but at that moment you don't actually think about whether or not is a successful one, right? At least Walmart had genuinely implicated itself into giving its buyers a more reliable service, but it wouldn't have been fair to make a charity out of it either, in my opinion.
Interesting. I never knew this, it would make sense. When you know where everything is on the shelf you are less likely to buy something. But when you have to pass 3 pallets on macaroni, cereal, and salsa on sale it feels like a bargain you can't pass up. Because everyone is always looking for saving and it makes it "easier" to find savings that way. Plus, I find that most people are cluttered in their normal life because there is "method to their madness." Obviously it works the same for Walmart. I always wondered why they left pallets in the isle.
