It’s interesting to consider purchasing preferences and decisions from a psychological perspective.
11_consumerpsychology (.pdf)
11_consumerpsychology (Word)
Advertisers have long used tricks & tools from psychology to help influence our choices. If you look at advertising, you can see how advertisers appeal to our needs and use the levels of Maslow’s hierarchy to make us feel like we need their products (or how they’ll improve our lives.)
Here are some examples:
Now, it’s your turn! Take a look in Mr. Robson’s magazine pile (or your own magazines/newspapers) and find some advertising and look at it in terms of where the appeal would fit on Maslow’s hierarchy. Your job is NOT to look at the PRODUCT, but the way that the advertiser is APPEALING to your NEEDS. So an advertisement for food & beverage obviously deals with a product that meets our physiological/biological needs, but the advertisement might make us feel like choosing that product will help meet a need from a different level.