Author Topic: Excerpt from "Inside the Mind of the New Consumer" book  (Read 4197 times)

Penelope Vandergast

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 101
Excerpt from "Inside the Mind of the New Consumer" book
« on: December 02, 2013, 08:31:52 PM »
This was just the saddest thing I've read in a long time. Can't afford a $1500 TV? Worried about what it will do to your family life when everyone is fighting over it? Guess what the solution is. (I actually thought this was going to have a seriously surprise ending halfway through when the $59 TV makes an appearance, but...no.) I only read the first page, couldn't take anymore.

https://www.bcgperspectives.com/content/articles/retail_pricing_treasure_hunt_inside_the_mind_of_the_new_consumer/

Dr. Love

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 14
  • Age: 39
  • Location: New York City
Re: Excerpt from "Inside the Mind of the New Consumer" book
« Reply #1 on: December 02, 2013, 10:36:51 PM »
You should read the rest of the article.  It's fairly interesting, and describes how people are shopping in a much more individualized fashion by purchasing premium products in a few key areas, while trying to cut spending in most others, i.e., aligning their spending with their priorities.  The seeds of mustacianism are there, even if the execution isn't up to par.

golden1

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1541
  • Location: MA
Re: Excerpt from "Inside the Mind of the New Consumer" book
« Reply #2 on: December 03, 2013, 07:23:38 AM »
Agreed, underneath the ridiculousness of having 4 televisions, the underlying message of the article is that people are saving money on things that they can to afford the things that bring them the most happiness.  I have no problems with that message and I live by that principle.  I live in a very modest homes, don't buy expensive furniture or fancy 1000 thread count sheets because that stuff doesn't matter to me, but I like electronics, which is my unmustachian weakness  (I am making attempts to curb this :P).  My mother in-law could care less about electronics and has no problem dropping money on expensive housewares.

dragoncar

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 9923
  • Registered member
Re: Excerpt from "Inside the Mind of the New Consumer" book
« Reply #3 on: December 03, 2013, 11:52:30 AM »
I liked the article.  I think many of us here do the same:  buy high-quality goods for life or get the dirt cheapest item.  It's been known for a while now that mid-range products tend to be functionally the same as their low-range counterparts with additional marketing and/or a shinier package.

joer1212

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 435
Re: Excerpt from "Inside the Mind of the New Consumer" book
« Reply #4 on: December 03, 2013, 10:34:47 PM »
This was just the saddest thing I've read in a long time. Can't afford a $1500 TV? Worried about what it will do to your family life when everyone is fighting over it? Guess what the solution is. (I actually thought this was going to have a seriously surprise ending halfway through when the $59 TV makes an appearance, but...no.) I only read the first page, couldn't take anymore.

https://www.bcgperspectives.com/content/articles/retail_pricing_treasure_hunt_inside_the_mind_of_the_new_consumer/

It was written in 2006, in the go-go era of overpriced real estate and lavish spending. This was just prior to the Financial Crisis. The whole tone of the article reeks of a bygone era of naivete and blind optimism. Alas.

Penelope Vandergast

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 101
Re: Excerpt from "Inside the Mind of the New Consumer" book
« Reply #5 on: December 03, 2013, 11:10:45 PM »
It wasn't the financial part to me that was so depressing, but rather the idea that family life would be BETTER when everyone in the house had their own individual TV in their own individual rooms. I really thought the guy was going to just buy one small $59 TV for everyone, and I would have thought that wad pretty cool.

MrsPete

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3505
Re: Excerpt from "Inside the Mind of the New Consumer" book
« Reply #6 on: December 10, 2013, 11:57:34 AM »
Interesting article, and I agree that the family's choice was depressing:  They chose to buy four TVs, luxury items, though they knew this would make things tight.  It also reeks of choosing material goods over people. 

I don't see that a family earning $100,000/year (not a bad wage at all, but it's upper-middle class, not wealthy -- especially since the father had to work two jobs to make this happen) can afford boxes of $40 chocolate and $85 skirts for the children.  Shoot, I don't have a $85 skirt, and I'm fine with that! 

I also disagree that people today are "highly skilled shopping experts".  I think most people make decisions based upon impulse or advertising.  Yes, people do comparison shop -- say when they're buying a big ticket item like a car or a TV -- but that tends to be a decision between Brand A or Brand B.  Where most people fall short is in making the choice about whether they should buy at all. 

the fixer

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1029
  • Location: Seattle, WA
Re: Excerpt from "Inside the Mind of the New Consumer" book
« Reply #7 on: December 10, 2013, 12:07:42 PM »
I know two consumers who definitely are not shopping experts. I was eating breakfast with them and they passed me the syrup, which prominently declares on the front of the package "no high fructose corn syrup." So I spin the bottle around... First ingredient: corn syrup. Second ingredient: some type of liquefied sugar. So you essentially get the same thing as HFCS.