Discussing the influence of the word “free” is one of the most popular topics in today’s marketing psychology. Most of the people don’t even believe it but generally, the majority of them are greatly impacted once they hear the word “free”. Believe it or not, hearing this word or reading it somewhere changes the way we feel, we think, and act and makes us surrounded by thoughts to make an immediate action that highly probably won’t be reasonable. But in the moment of making this decision, nobody considers the consequences, and as a result, we may even face serious problems.
And if you believe that you can’t be so easily manageable by this simple word, you are mistaken because even the scientific research suggests that resisting the temptation when you hear that somebody offers you freebies is almost impossible because something changes in our mind and we immediately believe that these offers are reliable. The way our brain reacts when we hear just this four-letter word can be frightening as suddenly certain types of hormones are released and the speed of the decision-making process gets faster than you can even imagine.
The examples of the impact of “Free”
Having heard that a store is going to offer you a giveaway or you will have the opportunity to get an unexpected gift makes us look at a product or a service from a completely different perspective. This is the moment when people usually start critical thinking and their actions become automatic. Therefore, the power of FREE on our mind can be easily seen and there are many examples this word has on our psyche. Giveaways, freebies, promotions, and other types of chances to get unexpected benefits are just a few of the examples. People encounter offers like this every day and they don’t even know why these kinds of things seem so appealing to them.
When there’s risk involved
Bonus promotions is another great example of the impact of FREE on our mind. There are plenty of websites that offer promotions where you have the possibility to get bonuses in addition. For example, it’s a common marketing trick in the foreign exchange trading area. Forex is an international market where people buy, sell, or exchange currencies at an agreed price. By doing this traders can gain benefits or lose funds according to which price the currency pair was bought or sold at. But for effective trading strategies sometimes they need to read reliable reviews on the internet and this is why marketing education works for them. For instance, once a treader sees an article called the most advantageous bonuses in FX, they instantly click on the link and try to get benefits. These bonuses affect the minds of a trader and make them convinced that by reading this article they will truly have the chance to gain profits. Sometimes you really do have the chance to take advantage of these offers but considering the fact that it’s a common marketing trick, not all the offers are reliable. Of course, it doesn’t change the fact that the majority of traders comply with the marketers and click on the given link, but some people try to be more consistent which is why they decide to check the reliability first.
Therefore, most brokers try to be as subtle about promoting these options as possible. But as seen with plenty of upcoming FX brands, FX education resources, offering bonuses and other promotions can be a great way to catch the attention of traders and attract customers.
Why do people fall for ‘free’?
The reason for this kind of conformity that is not even controllable is pretty simple. People unconsciously believe that it’s always a good idea to get something for nothing in return no matter if it will be a bonus on the online casino website or a free trial at the mobile application. Therefore, businessmen often use this strategy because offering free things can easily catch their customers’ attention and help the business grow. Studies show that the impact of these branded giveaways or other promotional offers can be enormous on our psyche. This is why marketers often suggest that the companies give as many freebies as possible because the strategy actually works and it’s a well-tested method that has a great influence even on experienced customers.
The actual reason for the common tendency of accepting free offers lies in the word “free” itself. The power of free is a frequent topic of discussion in today’s marketing psychology as it has a vital impact on the process of decision-making. First of all, the word changes the way we act. Our behavioral patterns are deeply influenced by the desirable offers and as a result, we change our actions and become more willing to take part in these kinds of promotions. But it’s not only about our behavior and more importantly, but the word “free” also has even more impact on our emotional state. In fact, it’s the emotional trigger that is almost impossible to avoid thinking about getting at home with a bunch of free things once you get the information about the offer. This is because emotions are an integral part of the decision-making process. When we hear the word free suddenly we experience positive emotions of euphoria and as a result, we make decisions without even realizing how harmful their consequence may be and without keeping possible benefits and related risks in mind.
Bottom Line
What all these mean is that whether you like it or not, most of the time when you hear the word you make decisions automatically which means that the word “free” has an actual power to shape our decisions and push us to perform actions we don’t even intend. Sometimes these freebies and promotions are just part of the marketing strategies and don’t really work, but sometimes we can make profits from these deals for real. This is why all we have to do is to ask correct questions about why it is free and if it actually has any advantages. Try estimating the possible advantages and risks, think critically, and make the correct decisions.
