PSY390: Buying online can be easier, cheaper, and more convenient than going to a store, especially when people use online promotions: Research Methods Assignment, SUSS, Singapore

“Buying online can be easier, cheaper, and more convenient than going to a store, especially when people use online promotions and cashback offers. As consumers shop online, however, it’s easy to get lulled into spending too much. The key to online shopping is buying right and set certain limits for yourself. Smart retail brands know their customers better than customers know themselves, trend scanning firm Trendwatching explains, which means retailers can offer an experience that allows customers to browse, test, and buy products in innovative new ways.

Online shopping can even give people more satisfaction than going to the stores. Research by Harvard professor Ann-Christine Duhaime found that humans get pleasurable dopamine hit from buying stuff, so “your brain tweaks you to want more, more, more — of ‘stuff’ and of stimulation and novelty”. Online shopping gives consumers a dopamine hit when they shop as well as when the order arrives, which can make online buys more physiologically rewarding than shopping in stores.”