Avoid Being Hoodwinked Knowing These Retail Psychology Tactics

While shopping, customers might think they are in control. The truth is most large retail firms use clever tactics to control the customers spending habits.

Color coordinated displays are used to attract buyersColors Can Control

One thing shoppers probably never pay attention to is the color surrounding them, color is significant and can induce strong feelings in people.

Hospitals stereotypically have green walls, and patients usually wear green gowns. Green is the color of relaxation. This is because green is synonymous with nature and nature is calming.

Purple can persuade customers to spend more money which is why a lot of shops incorporate purple into advertising displays and color schemes.

Red is all about passion and speed. It can be used to make an impact. Most budget retail stores use it in their color schemes to catch the eye of potential customers. Red signifies bargain prices and is usually the color used in most advertisements and sale banners.

Blue is a calming color and is often the color scheme adopted by supermarkets so that customers will feel relaxed and therefore stay for longer and spend more money. People are also supposedly more productive in blue rooms.

Yellow is not a good color to put in retail stores, although it is a positive. It is also said that people lose their tempers more in yellow rooms and babies will cry more often. It is difficult for the eye to take in color yellow and it speeds metabolism, making people stressed and therefore deterring them from staying around.

Research says that when humans search for food, they learn to avoid toxic or spoiled objects, which is why most food isn’t packaged in blue, black or purple colors. When food is offered to a group of study subjects which has been dyed blue, they will often lose their appetite. Green, brown, and red are the most popular food colors. Red is commonly used in restaurant decorating schemes because it is an appetite stimulant.

Fresh produce are featured at the entrance since groceries want to sell them fasterStore Layout

In the artificial environment of a large retail store, with its straight lines and bright lights, the customer is made to feel vulnerable; therefore many shops will make rather noticeable yet smart changes to the storage space to get maximum sales. The most profitable impulse buys and special offers are placed on aisle ends where shops are designed to ensure the customer passes as many ends as possible.

Most of the prices in stores end with 99, 98 or 95 cents. This is usually a sign that the product is old stock and needs to be sold quickly. Sales assistants in big electrical chains will usually steer the customer towards these products.

Supermarkets usually put the groceries at the rear of the store, forcing customers to walk through the more profitable non-food areas. But fresh fruit and vegetables are almost always at the front door because fruit and vegetables look healthier and fresher in the natural light. In contrast, meat and fish need a clean white light; otherwise, they look old and tired.


Lighting is a crucial part of shopping aesthetics. Some stores found out that when they used energy efficient lighting, their sales went down because the lighting wasn’t strong enough. This was partly because the clothes looked like they were a different color. Therefore most stores keep the lighting bright, except for the lingerie department where some women feel more comfortable in dimly lit rooms whilst looking for underwear.

In pharmacies and perfume counters, most of the products are set in what they call “Triangular balance” which works on the idea that the human eye will always go to the center of a picture. They put the most prominent, tallest and most expensive products at the center of each shelf and arrange the other sizes next to them. The customer will naturally pick the center product which will coincidentally be the most expensive product.

Tabletops and boxes positioned next to racks allow women to handle the trousers and tops. Some shops will deliberately mess up the clothes, so people feel more comfortable rummaging through. Most people are nervous about going through neat piles and younger people like the look because it suggests the shop is trendy.

Music is also essential, research has proved that French music played in a supermarket’s wine aisle boosted sales of French wine. The following day, German folk music led to German wines flying off the shelves.

A good rule of thumb for the discerning shopper is not to go food shopping on an empty stomach and to look at the bottom shelves where the cheaper products are kept.