The fashion industry is about people. Clothes are the closest things to our skin. Psychologists can identify problems caused by this industry. Clothes can affect the way we and behave. Their is a symbolic association with certain outfits that can create a shift in identity. So, here are a few tricks that sellers do to maximize retail space and make you buy.

img src: https://www.dovile.co/personal-branding

Promoting Novelty:

There's a reason that people would sleep outside certain stores like "Apple" waiting for to buy the new product. According to neurological studies, being exposed to something new and novel will increase how much dopamine is released into our brain.

 Stores add new products every few months to keep displays fresh and exciting.

Create a Sense of Reciprocity:

Stores, especially grocery stores, offer samples for free. This will probably make you feel a little obligated to buy that item; after all they gave you something for free, so you should give back, right? This powerful tool is the principle of reciprocity.

Build a Community:

People, especially shoppers, like to feel like they belong to something. Brands have the opportunity to make every shopper feel like they belong to something bigger than just a sale. For example, retail company 'Revolve' gives customers a chance to be featured on their Instagram account by using #REVOLVEme hashtag. This creates a sense of belonging to this brand and makes you feel a part of the group.

Invoke Urgency:

People don't like missing out on things. Urgent situations promote quick decision making which is handy in marketing.  Words like "Flash Sale", "limited edition", "few items left in stock " make buyers think that they must take immediate actions.

Telling a Story:

Studies show that reading stories activate neurological senses, including oxytocin which powers trust and empathy. Telling a story behind an item create value. Brands explain to where the item came from, who made it, its history; which creates transparency for people.

Luxury brands uses this a lot especially heritage brands with long history and story behind it.

Power of Exclusivity:

It starts with "Scarcity Principle" which implies that the more rare or un-attainable something is, the more valuable. 

Luxury brands create limited quantities and set qualification for people to buy. 

Hermes has mastered this concept, you can't buy what you want even if you are a millionaire. They decide what you can get and when, they create a wish list and a waiting list for their costumers. People need to build up credit to be able to get an Hemes bag. First you buy accessories and spend 8000$-11000$ to be able to buy a Birkin bag (worth 12000$).

Disclaimer:

Photos are not mine, they are sourced through different sites.

If there's something I'm guilty of, is seeing other's achievements and forgetting mine. It is good to be motivated by others,  however sometimes it leaves us with a feeling of being non-achievers. Especially now living in the world of speed,  social media, where everyone seems to be perfect, we can't help but feel a little off.

Most of us are guilty of seeing other people and wishing we would achieve their looks, or wishing we have our own successful projects, our own influencial platforms.. And the problem lies in seeing all these things and forgetting to appreciate what we are and what we have. And even the people we look up to , they too has someone they look up to, and even you have people that look up at you and appreciate your traits and persona. So it is really normal and this thought humanize the whole thing.

What we sometimes forget is that social media is meant to show a person's best qualities only, it highlights it. Which is not bad, but how about reality?
However, the solution doesn't lie in saying, it is only "Instagram,  YouTube.." because these people work hard and we don't want to deny that. You don't want to look at people's flaws in order to be superior and feel better.  On the contrary, the key lies in raising your own spirit and remembering that you too have worked hard, you too came a long way. And no one can take away that. We are an evolved product of yesterday's events.

Now if there's one thing I'm sure of is that we are all proud of something we achieved, we all came a long way from our older selves, we evolved. And we are all different and unique in what we do. Everyone is good at something and would excel in it more than anyone.  In all areas of life, I'm sure we would stand out,  and we should never forget that.

Work hard for tomorrow but don't forget to appreciate today and yesterday.  Don't be stuck with where you are, but do appreciate where you are. And remember to keep going up and while you're at it, give yourself a pat on the back and look down and see that while you were rising up you became higher than where you were.