The 5 psychological effects of Black Friday

As you well know, Black Friday is the last Friday in November and it turns out to be so famous for its discounts in most shops and online platforms. The stores are overcrowded and consumerism is prevalent in the cities. However, individuals normalize it without realizing what causes it all.

In this article we will see the main psychological effects of Black Friday in our mind.

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The psychological effects of Black Friday

For all the curious people who ask, this is what happens to us in the face of this avalanche of sales and discounts that makes us buy excessively.

1. Emergence of need

We are presented with offers that have an expiration date, which They are generating the urgency to acquire the product even if we do not need it. We get the impression that if we miss the opportunity we will regret it. From this moment, the person will think that he needs it, or rather, they have made him think that he needs it and that if he does not buy it he will feel guilty.

In addition, purchases are justified due to the proximity of Christmas, which progressively increases the term of urgency, and there they no longer escape the clutches of uncontrolled consumerism.

2. Anticipation

Companies plan this day in advance. For this they carry out large marketing campaigns either through email, television, billboards or radio.

Definitely, they fight for the attention of potential clients, generating different advertising campaigns to reach all buyer profiles. They achieve this by presenting their promotions as soon as possible and repeatedly, making a call to our more primary emotions, activating our limbic system, and in this way favoring our memory of happiness brand.

3. Let that offer slip away or be happy?

We have already seen that brands they play with our emotions in order to get more buyers. However, they also generate needs that are not congruent with the real ones. In this pulse, during shopping, perceived needs win.

In order not to risk customers not buying, there is careful planning. They start by presenting ads so that we fantasize about obtaining that product, which today we cannot buy. We imagine what it would be like to have it, coming to believe that we need it. Finally, it becomes an activity that activates the pleasure centers; there is a release of dopamine and endocrines producing a feeling of well-being.

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4. When buying, we put critical thinking aside

The fact of getting a discounted object produces pleasure, since we think that today and only today we will have the opportunity to obtain the much desired product. Also, through marketing strategies, they lower prices a bit even though they are still high. Nevertheless, make sure to make the markdown visible for the potential customer to see, and they present it to you as unique, so that you finally buy it. In short, we do not buy rationally.

This is also true for online purchases, and the convenience factor is added as there are no crowds or queues, which makes the checkout process easier. With this, impulsivity increases, since it is paid by credit card and people are less conscious of the expense.

5. Social pressure

We see that in our environment, the majority will take advantage of the offers to indulge themselves.

We do not want to feel excluded or go outside the norm. We wonder if it is worth spending that money now, some acquaintances try to convince us of the bargains, we see more and more advertisements, and in the face of such pressure in the end some need is generated. Finally, we fall into the trap and how not... we end up consuming.

How to mitigate the effects of consumerism?

After this journey through the minds of consumers we can better understand the reason for this Black Friday triumph, and how to reduce it. Knowledge is the first step to avoid excessive and unnecessary consumption. Let's be more cautious so as not to harm ourselves. As Zygmunt Bauman said, "Consumerism promises something it cannot deliver: universal happiness. And it aims to solve the problem of freedom by reducing it to consumer freedom. "