"Neuromarketing" and Financial Literacy

Okay, we’re getting close to that time of year when even the best of us are forced out of our comfort zone…Shopping – why do we always end up looking to purchase one gift or a couple of groceries, then end up spending $50 or $60 (or more!) before leaving the store?

One author has spent his career learning why this happens.  Marketing guru turned consumer advocate Martin Lindstrom (Brandwashed: Tricks Companies Use to Manipulate Our Minds and Persuade Us to Buy) has studied the new field of neuromarketing – and is claiming that areas of our brains light up when we buy!

He’s found a number of what he calls “hidden motivators” that retailers use:

1.        SUPERSIZE CARTS

The amount of groceries we buy is directly related to the dimensions of our cart.  In fact, larger carts are found to entice us to spend 37% more.  And, consumers spend 30% more when they have children with them.  And 70% of people spend more time shopping when they are with someone else.

2.      NOSTALGIC MUSIC

Christmas music is a perennial hit for marketers. “It’s an old trick—it makes us feel nostalgic, like we’re children again,” says Lindstrom, who calls the phenomenon “rosy remembering.”  In other words, it takes us back to life in simpler times. As a result, we tend to spend 17% more than when generic music is playing.

3.      THE “DENOMINATION EFFECT”

Now we know why the cashier counts out the small bills when giving change – fact is, we’re much more likely to spend smaller bills than to break down larger ones.  In fact, a 2009 study showed that breaking a $100 bill to make a purchase is 48% harder than spending exactly the same amount using smaller bills.

4.      “VANI-SIZING”

Wonder why the size 10 pants fit you when they never did before?  Vani-sizing—when stores make clothes bigger so we think we can fit into a smaller size—is “in nearly every store out there,” says Lindstrom, and works on both men and women.  (In three different stores, a pair of men’s pants with a 36-inch waist was found to actually measure anywhere from 37 (at H&M) to 39 (at the Gap) to 41 (at Old Navy.)

5.      MIRROR MANIPULATION

Beware!  Your dressing room mirror may not always reflect reality.   Stores play with light, adding a slight tint of rosy color to fitting room mirrors to make us look fresher and more tanned.  There’s typically quite a difference in the way we look in a dressing room compared to stores on the sales floor.

6.      STORE SPEED BUMPS

Stores study the way we walk around and shop and design around these patterns.  Retailers are even installing what the shopping industry calls “speed bumps” on the floor.  When we feel these bumps, we usually slow down and look around, averaging a 15-seond delay, which studies report leads us to spending as much as 17% more.

7.       SAMPLING

Even the most innocent toothpick-speared fruit or bite of pizza tells us we’re hungrier.  Studies even show that up to 40% of people who take in-store samples will begin buying food – whether or not that was what they are shopping for.

8.      INTERRUPTIONS

Large displays and canned pyramids cause you to interrupt your thinking – for a special deal or to read the package.  Studies prove that when we’re interrupted, we lose focus and are more likely to spend.  And what we’re seeing in a display may not be a better deal…we’re willing to spend up to 15% more for the very same product when it’s on a display or marked as a “special”.

9.      THE CREDIT CARD “DISCOUNT”

When we’re offered the opportunity to receive a percentage off purchase by opening a credit card at the register, we’re falling for a major retailer trick.  First, if you do open the account, the salesperson typically receives a bonus.  And second, research shows that you spend an average of 30% more with a credit card.

So, now you’re armed with the methods to defend yourself against overspending, right?  If not (or even if you are), don’t forget to register for 2011 INSPIRED: Financial Health, our annual fundraising event on Tuesday, November 8.

#1 New York Times bestselling author David Bach (Smart Women Finish Rich and The Automatic Millionaire) will keynote a night of inspiration to become financially healthy – and we’ll hear from several local corporate professionals on specific topics including Christine Halbrook, Chrysalis Board member.  Event workshops include:

×          Leaving More Than Memories – The Gift of Estate Planning presented by Christine Halbrook, Attorney, of Dickinson, Mackaman, Tyler, and Hagen, PC

×          6 Steps to a Secure Retirement presented by Matt Fryar, CFP, of Wells Fargo Advisors

×          Keeping Your Financial Assets Safe presented by Jodi Paardekooper, CAMS, CFSSP, of Bankers Trust

×          Insuring a Future presented by Brad Whitman, Partner and General Agent – Central Financial Group, of Aviva USA

This event delivers on the Chrysalis promise to educate our community about the value of financial literacy and economic empowerment.

Here’s where to register:  http://www.eventbrite.com/event/1856393523?ref=ecal

2011 INSPIRED Financial health with Author David Bach

Click here to hear David Bach speak about the chrysalis inspired event!

Chrysalis After-School Program at Hillis Elementary

Chrysalis staff visits every funded after-school program several times per year (at least once per year unannounced). Yesterday Brooke Findley stopped in at Hillis Elementary, where 14 girls were learning about choices related to drugs and alcohol. Brooke's favorite quote heard from one girl: "Why would anyone hurt themselves by not being safe in their choices?" Good question. Chrysalis After-School is the ideal venue to discuss these things. A special thanks to partners at Employee and Family Resources for providing the information and leading the session.

Media's Portrayal of Women

A new film premiered at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival that sent a chill through its audience.

Miss Representation is a new documentary exploring how the media’s portrayal of women has had a tremendous –and negative- impact on the progress of women in society.  The film reveals how mainstream media directly correlates to the under-representation of women in positions of influence and power in the United States.

As explained on the film’s website misrepresentation.org:

In a society where media is the most persuasive force shaping cultural norms, the collective message that our young women and men overwhelmingly receive is that a woman’s value and power lie in her youth, beauty, and sexuality, and not in her capacity as a leader. While women have made great strides in leadership over the past few decades, the United States is still 90th in the world for women in national legislatures, women hold only 3% of clout positions in mainstream media, and 65% of women and girls have disordered eating behaviors.

Here are just a few of the alarming statistics shared in the film:

·          American teenagers spend more than 10 hours a day consuming media, most of it filled with content that objectifies women and distorts their bodies.

·          53% of 12 year old girls feel unhappy with their bodies, 78% of 17 year old girls feel unhappy with their bodies and 65% of women and girls have an eating disorder.

·          Rates of depression among girls and women have doubled between 2000 and 2010.

·          Girls are learning to see themselves as objects.  The American Psychological Association calls self-objectification a national epidemic: Women and girls who self-objectify are more likely to be depressed, have lower confidence, lower ambition and lower GPAs.

·          US Advertisers support this content – they spent $236 billion in 2009.  Because of deregulation – “This is the first time in human history that marketers have dictated our cultural norms and values,” according to Caroline Heldman of Occidental College.

·          Women respond to advertisers’ messages of never being good enough: American women spend more money on the pursuit of beauty than on their own education.

The results?

·          67 countries in the world have had female presidents or prime ministers.  The U.S. is not one of them.

·          Women make up only 17% of the United States Congress.

·          Women and girls are the subject of less than 20% of news stories.

And this is just the tip of the iceberg.  Although the film is a wake-up call, the producers are vigorous about developing tools to teach girls and young women about media literacy, and to work toward change in media and advertising industries.

I’ve registered to host a screening of Miss Representation, which will provide us an opportunity to view and share the powerful messages of this film.  I have also ordered an educational curriculum to provide Chrysalis After-School programs the opportunity to teach and reinforce the importance of changing the industry, and changing the way we view, learn, and resist its negative messages.

If you’d like to see a short trailer for Miss Representation:  http://vimeo.com/18985647

Thank you for making this critical work possible.

Drake University Women's Basketball Team Partners with Chrysalis

Chrysalis was honored to bring the Wonder Girlz After-School Program participants to the Knapp Center on Friday. The Drake University Women's Basketball Team hosted our four Wonder Girlz and staff for a visit. The Women discussed health, wellness, and personal safety and the Wonder Girlz taught the team a new cheer! We welcome this exciting partnership and look forward to visits with more Chrysalis After-School programs!