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Buyer’s Remorse
When you buy something that is expensive, difficult to research, quickly outdated, or that you don’t truly need, you often feel a twinge of regret or doubt about your decision—did I really get the best deal? Was this the correct product for me? Will I need to buy the new model soon? Could I have done without this? This is called buyer’s remorse.
Overcoming Buyer’s Remorse
As a customer, there are certain purchases that you will make where you will feel buyer’s remorse. Chances are good that if you did your homework, you don’t need to feel this way. Otherwise, if there is a good reason for your remorse, such as new information about the transaction, it might actually be a good thing that will motivate you to seek corrective action. In either case, carefully review the information you have—what is it that made you choose to buy? What were your concerns? Has anything changed?
Marketing and Buyer’s Remorse
As long as you aren’t marketing a product or service that people don’t truly need, it’s ok for you to help your customers overcome their buyer’s remorse. It’s also a very powerful marketing tactic. For example, I recently subscribed to BusinessWeek magazine. On my first issue, I received the following note printed on the wrapper that was added to the normal cover:
You made a smart decision to subscribe.
Welcome to BusinessWeek — The world’s leading business magazine. We deliver the insight, information, and inspiration you need to make smarter decisions about business, finance, and your career. As a subscriber, you also have access to our broad network of business resources.
By emphasizing the benefits I would receive from my decision, BusinessWeek is trying to help me feel good about the decision I made and to quiet the dissonance I may feel as a consumer.
As a marketer, you can help your customers feel better about the purchase they made with you by re-emphasizing the benefits of your product or service. The good feelings your customers will have can reduce returns and late payments and increase positive word of mouth for your product.
Do you have any experiences where a company (un)successfully managed your buyer’s remorse?
on May 17th, 2006 at 9:21 am
I *live* buyer’s remorse. Everything I buy makes me feel like I either paid too much or didn’t research enough. The only times I don’t feel it is if I actually did spend the time researching (way too much energy) or found a crazy deal on something (then I experience “buyer’s suspicion”
on May 18th, 2006 at 11:51 am
Ara, it sounds like you need to incorporate one more element in your purchasing decisions—the cost of the search. If you do the research that’s worth it and then understand that any more search might get you a lower price but waste your expensive time, hopefully you’ll feel better about your purchases. They’d be the best you could do given your time and situation.
Maybe I should write a post about “buyer’s suspicion” some time…