MISTAKE #61: You think you’re an impulse purchase and that it’s a good thing

Do you think your product is priced low enough that it is little more than a rounding error on the shopping trip or an easy impulse purchase? 

You might be right, but there is probably a lot more going on under the surface.  And a lot more you need to be thinking about.

 Relying on impulsive buyers to make impulsive purchases is another dangerous game to play.  By definition, impulse purchases are unplanned, emotionally-driven decisions making them unpredictable and relatively uncontrollable.

While every product sale is generally a good sale, consider the possible consequences of relying too heavily on impulse purchasing:

Impulsive buyers still need to find the product:  Getting your product in front of impulsive buyers at the right time, in the right place can be very tricky.  Retailers value the limited amount of high-traffic, highly-visibility space available to capture these incremental sales.  They’re looking for products that have built-in demand which drives the potential for unplanned purchases.  Realize it is difficult to demonstrate sufficient sell-through solely based on impulsive buying.  And it is difficult to keep your product merchandised where it will consistently deliver impulse volume.

Impulsive purchases still require an emotional trigger:  Impulsive buyers don’t buy every item they see.  Your product still needs to trigger an emotional unmet need better than other products to get in the basket.  It requires exceptional packaging to stop, hold, and close unsuspecting shoppers that didn’t realize your product was about to meet a need they didn’t consciously realize they had.

Impulsive buyers can just as impulsively buy another product:  Don't anticipate significant repeat purchase or loyalty from impulsive buyers.  You’ll get some return sales if your product is great, but the same dynamics that lowered the barrier to buying your product also keep the barrier low to moving on to another item in your category or an item in a completely unrelated category.

Impulsive buyers need instant gratification:  Hopefully, you don’t have a product with a delayed benefit that you’re expecting to deliver a lot of impulse sales.  Hopefully, you realize that the same need that drives the urgency of impulsive buying carries over to urgent expectations of a surprisingly satisfying consumption experience.

Impulsive purchases can be more likely to produce buyer’s remorse:  Marrying someone you’ve just met typically doesn’t translate to a lifelong, healthy marriage.  In a less catastrophic manner, buying an item on impulse (particularly more expensive items) can lead to buyer’s remorse.  At best, these are one-time transactions.  At worse, they lead to increased product returns or poor word of mouth or customer reviews because the product wasn’t right for the buyer and caused disappointment. 

While impulsive purchasing will always exist and can be an important source of incremental volume, it should not be a core strategy for the vast majority of products.

You may want to reconsider the role you expect (or are trying to make) impulsive purchases to play.  Make sure you understand and appreciate what it takes to trigger those purchases. What seems like an accidental decision on the part of the shopper is typically a far more planned and deliberate process on the part of the product.