With no doubt most of us had the experience of impulse buying, which can be described as a powerful urge to buy a product without thinking about the worthiness of what we are buying. The shopping environment can increase the probability of impulse buying, for example online shopping. In the past, TV celebrities could drive purchase intention of items endorsed by them. However now, the presence of social media and influencers significantly drives impulse buying. In this era of constant advertisements and easy access to online shopping, it’s challenging to resist the urge of spending impulsively. This article explores the key drivers of impulse buying, and effective strategies to help you avoid this urge.

Types of impulse buying

Researchers have identified four types of impulse buying:¹

Accelerator impulse

People get motivated to purchase in advance for potential future needs.
Promotions like “buy one get one free” drive this type of impulse, as people are convinced they will use the purchase in the future.

Compensatory impulse

Consumers are impulsively buying as a compensation for failure or reward for success.
Advertisements for sweets and snacks often suggest that we should compensate or reward ourselves through food.

Breakthrough impulse

People can be triggered by unconscious problems or life issues to make a purchase which they assume can be life-changing.
Advertisers on Valentine’s Day try to encourage such purchases, for example jewellery shops encouraging to buy that ring and propose.
Another example of such purchase can be lottery tickets, investments in stock markets/cryptocurrencies, online courses, etc.

Blind impulse

This type of impulse refers to purchases that occur when people are very excited about a product or service and feel the need to have it immediately.
Such purchases are often triggered by friendly employees, warmth of colours in a store, ambient scents, influencer marketing etc.

Fear of missing out (FOMO)

This tactic is widely used by marketeers by adding titles like “deal ends soon”, “limited edition”, “only a few left” etc.
Consumers get a sense of urgency to buy or they will miss something valuable.
FOMO can also be triggered by new trends and events.

Tips to avoid impulse buying

Wait before making a purchase

Allow enough time to reconsider before making a purchase. Depending on the type of purchase, you can wait between 24 hours and a week.
In the meantime you can realise that you don’t need to make this spending and the impulse will go away.

Avoid triggers

Unsubscribe from promotional emails.
Avoid browsing websites where you mostly spend your money on unnecessary products.

Set a budget for your expenses

List all your sources of income and all fixed expenses.
Allocate a spending budget for living essentials.
Set a spending limit for non-essential items.
Consider setting a spending limit on your card.

Differentiate needs and wants

Understand that we are marketed to very aggressively, and you don’t actually need everything that you might want.
Try to see social media from a different perspective, almost every major social media platform consists of 20% ads. Not to mention also the influencers who often don’t indicate that their content is sponsored.