Maybe I'm Still 8 Years Old

Today I got out of a final presentation in my Marketing Research class, and after a little break at Specs to celebrate (woohoo!) I wondered what to do with the rest of the beautiful afternoon. Sitting in my living room, a friend made a list of all the things we could do, which consisted of (but not limited to): sleeping, eating, sneezing, fainting, couching, hopscotch, jumping, drinking. . . the list goes on. Of course, hopscotch caught my attention and I said, lets go get fuzzy pictures to color!
Now, I know that we are supposed to outgrow certain interests and consumption behaviors and usually by my age, maybe I should be more enticed by a more "mature" after-school activity, but I'll tell ya-- an afternoon sitting on the front porch and coloring a velvet poster with markers... not much beats it.

Consumption of the Ridiculous

American's are notorious for being somewhat gluttonous in our consumption of... well, pretty much everything. Especially with those being constantly put in the media (the rich and famous), it becomes second nature to say, well of course Jay Leno has spent millions of dollars on cars, and yeah, so what that girl in your class owns 50 pairs of boots?

It gets to a point where people are simply consuming for the sake of consuming. It is engrained in our culture that to spent thousands of dollars on unnecessary, frivolous material possessions is actually a thing to be admired, and even set as a goal. Watching things like MTV's Cribs, I am sure there a thousands of adolescents aspiring to have a photo of themselves in the bottom of their pool like Rick Ross.

However, with our ridiculous consumption habits it shouldn't be surprising that Pizza Hut is coming out with Hot Dog stuffed pizza crusts and this latest creation-- the Crown Royal Cheeseburger pizza, with mini cheeseburgers as the crust! Look appetizing?

But here is the surprising part-- these over the top pizza creations aren't even available in the U.S.! They are currently offered in some parts of the Middle East and in the U.K. Hate to admit it, but I'm kinda curious about the cheeseburger pizza...

Coachillin'

I usually don't think that social media really influences my consumption habits. And maybe by businesses directly marketing to me, yeah, it doesn't seem too effective. But activities and events are definitely effective at getting to me through social media. I haven't been able to get on Facebook in two weeks without crying inside because of all the Coachella posts and I am sad I missed it this year.

With all the posts and buzz and hype on social media about Coachella, it definitely influences me to save up so I can go again next year.

Desperate situations

An evil cold virus has decided to descend upon me and never leave, and I was forced to give in to the purchase of cold medicine earlier this week. Generally, I try to avoid the use of medicine and simply fight through the sickness with some peppermint tea and hot showers, but as the pressure set in behind my eyeballs and I found it impossible to pay attention in class, I figured I needed to explore other options.

Of course, serious cold medicines-- the good ones that you have to ask the pharmacist for-- are a specialty product that CVS can charge whatever they want for. Thus my splurge money for Pond Skim has now been lost to an ounce of decongestant nasal spray. In this situation, my consumption behavior was forced by an inconvenient timing of a nasty cold. I wish I could have saved my money for funner things (Beer Fest anyone?) but I suppose, desperate times call for desperate measures. And this way I will get to enjoy Pond Skim without grossing everyone out with my phlegm.

Summertime and the Livin's Easy

As summer is fast approaching, I notice I am much more susceptible to marketing ploys that play into the idea of summer. Summery colors, commercials and advertisements with images of outdoors and happy people outside, shorts, floral patterns, and bikinis seem to call my name.

 “Buy me, buy me—it will make summer so much closer” the flip-flops cry to me from the shelves. Of course advertisers, merchandisers, and store managers all know this and plan their packaging, ads, and store layout accordingly.

Once again, I feel as though both I and the marketing geniuses win in this case. They get to make more money because I feel the urge to spend money on things that I don’t really need—but I feel better because of it. It makes me feel closer to summer, whether or not it’s true. So where’s the harm in that? Besides that maybe my wallet is a little lighter after I leave the store. 

Rationalizing Spending

After looking more carefully at my consumption behavior over the past week, I realize how much rationalization comes into play when making purchasing decisions.
Normally, if I came across an $8 slice of cheesecake, I wouldn't think that it was worth my money. However, last week I encountered an $8 slice of raspberry white chocolate truffle cheesecake and rationalized, "I'm on vacation!" and swiped my debit card without a second thought. The rationalizations of "I'm on vacation", "It's spring break!" and "I'll save my money after break" were commonly occurring thoughts when spending money over the past week.

Even if the purchases I was making weren't in my best interest ($10 margarita anyone?) I was able to make sense of them, and thus relieve myself of any dissonance I would normally feel about spending that much money. I have a feeling that I am not the only one who is feeling a little guilty looking at my bank statement after spring break.

Resolutions and Their Impact on Consumption

What is it about the impending Spring Break that seems to make the gym so much busier?
The same thing that occurs after every bout of New Year's resolutions, I suppose.

Right before an event, like Spring Break or class reunions, the idea of looking your best becomes highly salient, which in turn leads to things such as working out, eating healthy, getting nails and hair done, etc. However, once the event passes it often leads to reverting back into old habits.

I definitely won't complain once spring break passes, as I much preferred my uncrowded spinning classes from before the idea of wearing a swimsuit on the beach became salient to the masses.

Every Blind Date Has A "But..."

Moonlight Basin's status reads

7 inches of fresh powder and it's still falling!!

Well, obviously I'm going to come skiing. But, I take that status at its word-- I don't check the weather report, I don't check an extra snow report. And now here I am, in the Moonlight Lodge typing my blog on my phone. Wind is blowing so hard when you go down a run it pushes you back up. It makes for longer runs, but not very enjoyable runs. Now, they weren't lying- the snow is coming down and there is fresh powder. But the powder is blinding you and the wind is threatening to close a powderhounds favorite lifts. Thus, the power of leaving stuff out in advertising. This idea reminds me of a "How I Met Your Mother" episode I saw recently. Lily is trying to set Robin up on a blind date and tells her "He is sweet and nice and has a great job." Ted then rightly points out that when setting someone up there is always a "but..." As in, "He's great (but he has a peg leg)" So, in my blind date with Moonlight I missed the fine print. "The snow is great (but you won't get to enjoy it because it's so windy)". Next time I'll remember to find out the "but"

Seize the Deals?

"Hey, guys-- tonight is 1/2 off appetizers at Applebee's."
"Awesome, let's go!"

Are we actually interested in 1/2 off appetizers? Certainly not. My roommate suggests appetizers at Applebee's and my mind automatically goes to, "Aw man, I'm gonna get the biggest margarita they have." Hold up. . . aren't drinks full-priced? Yep. But I was ready to hop in the car and drive all the way down 19th in order to get "1/2 off appetizers" when in actuality, I'm going there to get $7 drinks.
It is not a logical connection to make once you look at it objectively, but it makes sense at the time. Restaurants and stores do that all the time-- they use a discount on one thing, knowing that you will come in (when you wouldn't have otherwise) and buy more than that at full price. Ingenious.


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What Pop Culture Says About You

It is a common notion, as we have discussed in class, that how and what we consume in a way defines who we are. We can’t just have the plain metal paperclips anymore, because choosing the colorful, glitter paper clips will show people how happy-go-lucky you are. Arguably the most self-defining consumption choices we make are our consumption of media. The concerts we go to, the movies we watch, the magazines we read generally say more about our personality than the brand of potato chips or type of blender we buy.

 

I read a recent article on The Onion that discussed how we relate to our peers through pop culture and our choices in music and movies. "‘Jean-Luc Godard, Stanley Kubrick, Billy Wilder—you simply need to know who these men are if you want to call yourself culturally literate,’ Campbell said of the three iconic [film] directors whose creations could not have less utility to his daughter as she searches for a way to achieve a sense of belonging among her fellow middle-schoolers.”

 Especially when I was younger, the type of music I listened to defined my friend group. 

 However, that may have been a special circumstance, as going to local concerts was the weekend pastime of my circle of friends at that time. Had music and concerts not been the focus of our time spent together, music may not have defined us as much. But now, even if it isn’t so important as defining who we’re friends with, there is definitely a “type” or “personality” attached to the person you see reading Forbes versus People magazine. Do we consider the stigma attached to different types of media and pop culture when deciding whether or not to engage? Probably. Whether consciously deciding based on what other people think or not, the personality or ideology around that magazine probably has a large influence on whether or not you pick it up. Or maybe you just really hate the Kardashians, so you grabbed that Forbes instead—probably a good choice, as people walking by will now assume you are a wealthy intellectual instead of, well… the type of person that reads about the Kardashians. 

images:

personal photo

http://nickhetcher.com/freedecoratingideas/?attachment_id=68

Game Shows v. Shopping Choices

While doing some routine textbook reading and enjoying my post-dinner bottle of Sunset Wheat, I was intrigued by the discussion of sensations, game shows, and the pushing of our ‘sensational boundaries’. A significant reason why this caught my attention on this particular evening was that today, while I sat silently taking notes in Reid Hall, my roommate conquered America’s most epic obstacle course on the ABC reality show Wipeout.
(If you haven’t seen Wipeout before, I recommend you watch this clip in order to get up to speed.)

It is interesting to compare the way in which my roommate will surpass swinging pendulums, rotating beams and bouncing red balls to the way in which I choose what brand of cheese to buy. It is all a matter of taking notice of some stimuli and blocking out other stimuli. We utilize a variety of cognitive tools, such as schemas, heuristics, and information processing in order to determine what information to take in and what stimuli is left as background noise. My roommate has a much larger incentive (50 grand can buy a lot of cheese!) to ignore the shouting of audience members and various undulating mechanisms than I have to tune out the marketing schemes of Kraft or Velveeta. This illustrates how we can utilize automatic and controlled processing depending on our level of investment in a given decision or situation. Panda is, for several reasons (fame and fortune, to name a couple) highly invested in her performance on Wipeout, while I am much less discerning when it comes to the sensations and stimuli present in my hypothetical dairy-shopping environment.

So let us all crack another Sunset Wheat and wish Panda the best of luck in avoiding that bombardment of stimuli—for she has a lot more on the line than the 2 dollars I may or may not choose to spend next time I’m at the grocery store.

Post-Christmas Drama Induces Shopping

Post-Christmas shopping has always been a love/hate relationship for me.

Once again getting to shop with nothing but my own selfish desires in mind is refreshing and much less stressful than attempting to guesstimate the wants of friends and family. However, after having divulged every last penny from my checking account prior to Christmas I find myself encountering serious buyers remorse after most purchases. "I should really be putting this back into savings" I tell myself, as the total dollar amount clicks upward on the cash register with every pair of shoes that passes over the scanner. 

Whoops.

The main times I find myself shopping lately are for a few simple reasons. 

1. Got a hot date-- obviously, I need a new LBD (little black dress)

2. Got a new job-- obviously, I need a new pair of gray slacks to reinforce how sophisticated I am. 

3. Got in a fight-- these new shoes, this new bedspread, and this cheeseburger will definitely make me feel better. And I guess I'll get this bottle of wine, in case that doesn't work. 

I am definitely an emotion-driven consumer. Maybe I should invest in a therapist instead-- it would probably be cheaper than all of my shoes.