Your FOMO’S going to make me RICH!
Your FOMO’S going to make me RICH!
Here’s how,
You might not believe it, but almost 60% of sales are driven by what companies call ‘Fomo marketing!’
FOMO is an abbreviation for ‘the fear of missing out.’ Missing out on events, experiences, situations and, in this case, things.
Human beings are hardwired to fear ‘opportunities.’ Unfortunately, this very psychological trait is taken by most brands who manipulate us into buying their products or experiences through Fomo.
Now you might think, how can advertisements and products manipulate me into purchasing their items? Am I not rational?
Good news, you aren’t. Advertisements and messages are displayed so the customer feels that if they do not buy it ‘the right way, they might ‘regret’ it later.
To understand this, let’s understand the concept of ‘Risk Avoidance.’ As human beings, we fear investing in something that we think might not help us in the future.
On the other side, risk avoidance also leads to the fear of missing out on great opportunities, e.g. ‘if I don’t buy this product, maybe you might miss a great future?’
In the second example, you want to avoid the failure of letting a great opportunity pass by; human beings have an obsession with grabbing every opportunity they get, and brands take advantage of this obsession quite simply.
To give you an example, here are some lines advertisements and brands use to trigger FOMO,
You’ll miss this Offer…
This is your last chance to buy…
Time’s running out!
Last few spots left…
If you notice carefully, each of these messages translates one signal to you, ‘If you don’t take action now, you will regret it later.’ This very signal will make you buy things you don’t need with money you don’t have.
The ‘Offer for a limited time’ trick is one that many companies play; this is usually during the holiday season (Diwali, Christmas), and this plays a psychological trick on the consumers to take the opportunity and buy the product.
You will see how customers will decide they need a new fridge or a new oven, specifically during these times, most of the consumers don’t even need to purchase these items, but the euphoria of the festival, the pretty little discounts and their ‘limited offer’ will pull you in this web of purchasing just another item.
