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I live 5,000 miles away from the U.S. in a country where Thanksgiving is definitely not a thing. But even here in tiny, turkey-free Cyprus, Black Friday is huge. Throughout November and early December just about every retailer on the island touts Black Friday deals to an enthusiastic population.
No one has Black Friday off work to go shopping. And most Cypriots have little to no understanding of the day’s original connection to Thanksgiving. There are no traditions or memories attached to the idea. So why are businesses here so keen to adopt the American shopping ritual?
The answer isn’t culture, it’s neuroscience. Understanding how our brains respond to Black Friday deals explains their global appeal. It can also help shoppers resist manipulation and save money and regret, and business owners move more merchandise year round.
This is your brain on Black Friday deals
European shopkeepers haven’t adopted the foreign custom of Black Friday because they love American culture. They do it because it helps them sell more stuff. And it works, apparently, even if customers have no emotional attachment to or even full understanding of the meaning of Black Friday.
In a recent piece on The Conversation, neuroscientist Tijl Grootswagers and psychologist Daniel Feurerriegel explain why that is. Normally we weigh purchases slowly and logically, they explain. Do I need this thing? Is it a good value? Would something else be a better buy? We check reviews and our budgets, give these questions a ponder, and then decide.
“But when we are put under pressure, that changes. The brain lowers the threshold for how much information it needs before deciding,” they explain. “Time pressure makes us decide faster and with less evidence.”
This instinct to make faster decisions under time pressure evolved to help us not spend so much contemplating what to do about the lion hiding behind the next bush that we end up as lunch. But Black Friday retailers have figured out how to hijack it to get you to buy stuff you don’t need or can’t afford.
They also lean into the logic-paralyzing power of scarcity. “While we’re browsing for a TV, the website says there are ‘only 8 left in stock,’ and ‘12 people have this item in their carts.’ Suddenly, it feels like a race. Even if you were not planning to buy right away, you might feel more compelled to ‘add to cart’ before it’s too late,” the neuroscientists continue.
Time is limited on Black Friday but so, often, are supplies. That further messes with our minds, they add: “When we believe something is in limited supply, we assign it more value.”
Under the influence of these various types of pressure, rationality tends to go out the window as we shift into making quick decisions with limited information. That can mean regrets for shoppers, but it counts as a huge success for retailers.
Arm yourself with psychological knowledge
Black Friday has spread around the world because it is, in the words of Grootswagers and Feurerriegel, a “masterclass in behavioral and brain science.” As I have personally experienced, its signature psychological tricks work far from their original context.
That means they can also work year round. Sellers should bear that in mind. Manufacturing urgency and scarcity with limited time offers, limited editions, and warnings that ‘only three remain’ works just as well in sunshine as snow flurries.
That’s an opportunity for caution but a warning for consumers. Black Friday, or any sale using similar psychological manipulation to create artificial scarcity and urgency, shortcircuits your brain’s ability to make sensible decisions.
If you know you’re being played in this way, however. You’re better placed to slow down, reflect on your true desires and financial position, and make smarter choices.
The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.
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Jessica Stillman
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