Buyology: Truth and Lies about Why We Buy

An eye-opening look at consumer behavior

I was initially interested in this book because I am familiar with Paco Underhill's work on retail behavior and saw that he wrote the foreword for Buy-ology. Overall, it's a great book that challenges how much we really know about why we buy what we buy.

In a world that is increasingly cluttered with advertisements coming at us from every angle, Lindstrom presents findings from his research that actually peered inside the minds of 2,000 people as they were presented with various forms of advertisements and logos. His findings suggest insight into why some brands work and others don't. He also tells some stories from the ad game with known brands like Calvin Klein and American Idol. It's an interesting read for those who are fascinated by advertisers' constant pursuit of the consumer dollar.

Another fascinating book I devoured this week and highly recommend is The Emotional Intelligence Quick Book

5 out of 5 people found this review helpful.

IN THE SWEET BUY AND BUY

Do you buy something because you need it? Umm, perhaps. Did you really want the last item you bought? Maybe. Neuromarketing guru Martin Lindstrom has invested years of research into exploring the reasons why we buy, how we are affected even subconsciously to make a purchase. Of course, this is fascinating information for marketers but it was even more intriguing to me as a consumer (especially in today's economy). Just as biology is a study of living organisms, Buy-Ology is a study of living buyers and sellers.

Breathes there a woman alive who hasn't wondered why on earth she bought a blouse she has yet to wear? Or, at our house a husband who hasn't bought something for his workbench that remains shiny and unused?

Lindstrom brings to light precisely how marketers use science and religion to sell. For instance, just as in religion think of how top selling brands utilize symbols. I can spot my brand of detergent from across a store simply by the symbol on the front of the box, and that symbol elicits a good response from me.

One statement I found a bit intimidating was that we make 90% of our decisions subconsciously or due to a subconscious reaction. I'm still pondering that. I'd really like to think that my buying decisions are made quite consciously with an eye to our budget, but I know that's not so when I remember my tendency to overspend during holiday seasons.

Now, blue is and always been my favorite color. But, I didn't know that the sight of a robin's egg blue Tiffany box made women's hearts beat faster. And, a number of stores and product lines seem to believe that sex sells while Lindstrom says not so.

The data in Buy-Ology isn't at all dry as you may find yourself on quite a few pages. And, Don Leslie's reading makes the discoveries even more enjoyable.

- Gail Cooke

3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

Fascinating

I¿m probably older than your average reviewer. I was once in advertising several decades ago. And I¿d like to commend the author of Buyology, Mr Martin Lindstrom, on a wonderfully informative and entertaining book. The kind of work we did is light years away from the world Lindstrom has introduced me to in his book. I¿d love to have my time over and compare the strengths of neuromarketing with what we blithely took for market research decades ago. Mind you, it worked for us then. The consumer has changed; the world has changed; we¿re all more closely connected in time and space because of our online and broadcast technologies. The consumer is a different being to the stereo types we worked with. Buyology underlines the social phenomenon that accompanies the communications environment ¿ we have to be understood as individuals rather than stereotypes for advertising to work. And the way to do that is to go back to what makes us all human ¿ the workings of the brain and our inbuilt cultural identities. Buyology is a fascinating study and a great read.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Buyology Review

Buyology is a fantastic piece written to show humans how they think and act in basic everyday market situations. Lindstrom provides many situations and experiments on the neuroscience of the human mind and applies statistics to show society and marketers on how selling and buying works. Product placement, product colors, pictures on packages, it all has a special role in the buying process that our brain goes through. Studies have shown that it takes on average about two seconds for us to make a purchasing decision. Lindstrom and his crew used EGG and fMRI tools to look even deeper into our minds as consumers. The brain studies conducted expose a vast amount of information on what works and what does not when we shop. Shocking facts about cigarettes and their sales are linked together. He touches on addiction, and why we continue to buy more and more of what we want, even if we know it is hurting us. "...Five weeks later, the team leader, Dr. Calvert, presented me with the results. I was, to put it mildly, startled. Even Dr, Calvert was taken aback by the findings: warning labels on the sides, fronts, and backs of cigarette packs had no effect on suppressing the smokers' cravings at all. Zero. In other words, all those gruesome photographs, government regulations , billions of dollars some 123 countries had invested in nonsmoking campaigns, all amounted, at the end of day, to , well, a big waste of money." (Pg. 14) This was quite interesting on how the cigarette companies are required to put risk labels and health risks on the packages, and some even paste gruesome pictures of blackened lungs on their cigarette boxes; but really, they are not doing anything to the human when purchasing that box of tar. The book also focuses on product placement, and how is has been observed to not work on costumers. Because of TiVO and DVR fast forwarding, companies are loosing time on commercials because people skip them or jump ahead to get to the main show. This has not stopped direct advertisers, because no they are placing products in movies and television shows alike! This ensures that consumers will still see their television stars typing on a mac while drinking a coke, and so on. Lindstrom covers subliminal messaging and how is still works today. In 1957 a producer flashed the picture of a Coca-Cola bottle for less than 1/3000th second on television screens. America was alarmed, and thoughts and lawsuits stirred. In 1957 subliminal messaging practices were banned. Buyology sifts through marketing strategies to discover whether or not subliminal messages are used today in the marketing world around us. Superstition, rituals and why we buy are linked together in Buyology. Along with the truth about personal rituals with products and why we buy them are secretly linked."Subliminal messaging has even been shown to influence how much we are willing to pay for a product." (Pg. 76) A study was conducted on how much more likely one was to pay when served an alcoholic beverage from a waiter that was smiling vs. a frowning or angry waiter. Results? You will have to read to find out. Do our senses have a say in what we buy? When we see that signature robin-egg blue Tiffany boxes, or the smell of a new car? Buyology explores how our senses are fine tuned to color, smells, and touch of various products. Buyology is a must-read for marketers and consumers alike. Readers will swim in an ocean of data that this book has to offer. An excelle

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Good read

Good book, very insightful. However, I could have done without the author using "I" and other arrogant sounding statements so often.

Good read

It tends to be wordy but its great material makes it worth it!

It was good!

In my opinion the book was good at explaining main idea that focused on the brain activity and its reaction to the external stimuli such as ads. He brought some interesting points, such as the real effects of the warning on tobacco packages. Lindstrom's voice is clear and enthusiastic. However, I find his book little too vague and repetitive. He did not provided any of the real world applications on how consumers and sellers should apply his theories and methods or something that would be of much interest and utility in today's world.

Really enjoyed

This was a very interesting look at how advertising affects all of us. It's not at all as I thought. As I have watched American Idol, sure I notice that they're drinking COKE, but I didn't realize that more people pick up on that, than the Ford commercials. I guess because I looked forward to the Ford commercials, with the contestants driving the cars,I assumed that it was the one that would trigger everyone. However, I was wrong. The logic they use in this book is very interesting. I think this would be a very useful read for anyone who plans to spend advertising money for anything.

Interesting!

I always find books that back up their claims with psychological experiments fascinating. I'm glad to see that the author used these studies as a basis for his claims. This book tells you the science behind why people buy and what goes on in our brains that causes us to want to own a product. I think this is a great read for anyone interested in social psychology, buyer behavior, who works in advertising/marketing, or just anyone who wants to understand why some companies and brands are so successful, and maybe also understand why they buy the things they buy. It's a great read!

Must read, great information about marketing and why we as consumers do what we do and buy what we buy.

I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in learning more about marketing and why we react the way we react to certain ads, brands, etc. This is simply a great book and one I would define as a MUST READ for anyone in the marketing space.

Neuromarketing made simple

Lindstrom does a good job reinforcing the concepts that Marketing is different now, and we can and should implement science into our strategic planning.
I would read Paco Underhill's stuff on consumer behaviors as well.

Buyology, Why we buy

"Scientific studies of why we buy is a scary process. Although it is very interesting. I believe most people will find this type of predictability an invasion of their privacy. Despite that idea, I would recommend this book to anyone who has the slightest interest in the psychology of buying. If you own or run a business this should be required reading. It will give you a better understanding of the customers perspective of why and how they buy products or services

Breezy study of neuromarketing

This fun, useful and occasionally scary book demonstrates that author Martin Lindstrom is both well-versed in marketing practices and deeply engaged in academic research into neuromarketing. As a result, he can discuss findings from the latest studies involving brain scans, measured attention and recall - and explain how they relate to sales and purchases. This book could be twice as long and still be hypnotic; its main weakness is that Lindstrom breezes through study after fascinating study, giving each one only a few pages. However, that said, those interested in rationality, free will or communication will find much of interest here. getAbstract recommends it to them and, of course, to anyone making sales and marketing decisions.

Overall Great Writing.

Recommended for anyone that wants a good insight into our daily lives. Lindstrom adds insight into to what we purchase and what we do with little or not thinking. Very throughout and backed up very well. Researched through and through and it shows in his writing. Highly regarded and recommended by myself (a student of communications and marketing) (as we all technically are in our day to day lives.)

A decent read...small enough to give it a shot if you're on the fence

This wa a pretty good book. My recommendation: if you can't make up your mind as to whether or not you want to read it, I say give it a shot!

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