My adventures down a no-interest brick road
By Ray Allegrezza, Editor in chief -- Furniture Today, January 27, 2002
Ever think about the differences between what we want and what we actually need? They can be, and usually are, worlds apart.
In retail, regardless of the category, it seems the merchant that best creates the want is the one that captures the sale. The most recent proof of this premise was provided by the auto industry, which borrowed a page from furniture retailers and helped rewrite their own fortunes.
Over the past few months it was impossible for anyone to miss the seemingly nonstop barrage of ads from automakers offering — be still my heart! — 0% financing on 2001 and some 2002 models.
Of course, there were a few catches to those offers, but the tactic worked. The Federal Reserve Board recently confirmed a record surge in consumer credit during the time those ads ran on TV, radio and in print. Economists agree that reflected the surge in auto sales, and one was quoted as saying, "This tells us that the household sector is not overwhelmed with debt and will be in a good enough position to provide support for the economy."
Hey, that's great news for the economy, and for the auto industry. But how is it that Ford and Chevy and others offer the no-interest proposition to consumers and lure them and their wallets into dealerships like drowning men to a life raft, while our industry offers similar deals with far less success?
Could it all come back to want versus need? I think so. After a few weeks of watching those ads, I was lured out of my cave and spent two consecutive weekends visiting car dealers.
Those commercials had worked their magic. Logically, I had no need for a new car, but the thought of a zero-interest loan and me behind the wheel of a sexy new set of wheels put me in sensory overload.
In addition to doing a great job of creating what I call the want factor, which tends to make the heart beat faster and the mind work irrationally, the auto industry gets high marks for playing to the matter-of-fact parts of our psyche.
Go visit a new car dealer and take a look at the point-of-purchase materials. I had been considering a 2002 Ford Mustang. Each dealer had visually compelling, four-color brochures that, in addition to containing great product shots, provided a wealth of technical information on engine options, gear ratios, suspension and such.
Contrast that to what we typically find in a furniture store. Great looking furniture, to be sure, but often very little information about features, benefits and construction, or much of anything else designed to help create that heart-fluttering, somewhat irrational want.
My shopping odyssey ended with me buying a Ford Mustang … but not a 2002 model.
I bought a 1965 Fastback, which is going to need a lot of TLC. However, in my case, the purchase was a direct result of the want those car ads created.
I am not a betting man, but I would wager this: Create the want and you will start driving sales.
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