Hacker News Reader

Comment by AussieWog93 | Hacker News Reader

I run a pretty large online retail business, and the reality is that cheap tat sells an order of magnitude more in volume compared to higher quality, more expensive items.

Consumers are impulsive[1], and get a genuine rush from spending money and receiving pretty packages.

Things like listing rank (ie, being the top item in Best Match), eye-catching pictures and low prices, in that order, matter far more than how useful the product is, because the utility of the product itself is irrelevant to this kind of consumer.

[1] Or, more specifically, the consumer dollar is impulsive. Non-impulsive people are far less likely to fritter away their money on cheap retail purchases.

View on HN

> [1] Or, more specifically, the consumer dollar is impulsive.

This exactly. When folks buy the idea that their primary identity is as consumers, they loose the ability to resist all the psych-ops marketing constantly thrown at them (at least at those living in Occidental countries).

In contrast, people who consider themselves first as creators---those who work to produce something of value, out of a desire to serve others through one's work (this is broader than just the 'creative class')---may be much more restrained and selective in their purchases. "Will this tool enable me to work more effectively?" "Will this item last long enough?"

>In contrast, people who consider themselves first as creators---those who work to produce something of value, out of a desire to serve others through one's work (this is broader than just the 'creative class')---may be much more restrained and selective in their purchases. "Will this tool enable me to work more effectively?" "Will this item last long enough?"

In my experience this is just the lie those people tell themselves to justify indulging in the same impulsive consumerist behavior albeit usually higher price points than the unwashed masses.

Look at how HN and Reddit, examples of places dominated by upper middle class culture, fawn over the products and brand those demographics consider to be befitting them. It's the same exact kinds of statements and praises that you see the bluer collar crowd applying to different classes and price points of products in other filter bubbles.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com