Will shopping trolleys soon be fitted with side handles? The way customers push the supermarket utensil obviously influences their buying mood: shopping carts with side handles that have to be moved like a wheelbarrow generate more sales than conventional models with a horizontal push bar. This is the result of a test in an Austrian supermarket. As the researchers explain, the respective effects can be traced back to different muscle loads, which in turn are linked to psychological effects.
One may perceive it as manipulative – but sales-promoting strategies have long been standard in supermarkets and the like: The clever positioning of products, light sources, mirror surfaces and the optimization of many other aspects increase customers’ buying pleasure and thus sales. In this context, the focus of the consumer researcher around Mathias Streicher from the University of Innsbruck was the design of the shopping trolley – and specifically the handles. As everyone knows, the standard model has a horizontal bar on which the customer pushes the car in front of him.
Avoidance posture by the standard car?
As the scientists explain, research into relationships between certain muscle movements and psychological effects provided the impetus for their study. “Psychological research has shown that activating the triceps is a typical avoidance position and is therefore more likely to be associated with rejection or avoidance – for example, when people hold something undesirable at a distance by holding out their arms,” says Streicher. As he explains, there was reason to believe that this is exactly what happens with standard shopping carts. Because when pushing with a horizontal handle bar, the triceps muscle in the upper arm is activated in particular.
The scientists therefore developed an alternative shopping cart design for the study: the handle bar was removed and replaced with two side handles. As the researchers explain, this moves the cart like a wheelbarrow when pushed, activating the biceps muscles in the arms. “The idea was as follows: People bring desirable things like products into possession by moving closer, an activity for which the biceps is particularly relevant. We have therefore developed a trolley that automatically activates the biceps when it is pushed – an arm movement that is compatible with product selection and consumption, ”explains Streicher.
As far as theory and assumption – whether the concept actually has an effect, the researchers sounded out by means of a test in a supermarket in Innsbruck. The purchases that customers made with the newly designed shopping cart were compared with those made when using the standard versions. In addition, the 2359 test customers in the pilot test were asked about their impressions of their spontaneous shopping experience with the special shopping cart.
Increased sales are emerging
The evaluations showed: Customers who used a shopping cart with parallel handles bought significantly more products. Specifically: While people who were out and about with the standard version spent an average of around 26 euros in the store, the users of the converted shopping trolley made purchases for around 34 euros. The surveys showed that the results do not seem to be due to the novelty of the shopping cart itself, the mood of the customers or purely ergonomic factors, the researchers report. “It was very surprising to us that a small change in the position of the handles can have such a big impact on buyers’ expenses,” Streicher sums up.
Thus, the results now suggest that supermarkets are likely to generate higher sales and profits by providing their customers with shopping carts with parallel handles. As the University of Innsbruck writes, inquiries from the authors revealed that leading manufacturers of shopping trolleys had not even considered using parallel handles on their trolleys. They said they were “surprised” that the position of the handles can affect sales, the press release said.
From the consumer’s point of view, however, the message tends to emerge: Customers may have better control over their spending if they stick to the standard version of the shopping cart. “In any case, these shopping trolleys seem to act as a brake on shopping behavior,” says Streicher. As he emphasizes, this could also be associated with undesirable effects: “The braking effect could impair the efficiency when completing a daily routine, for example if a shopping cart that restricts consumption ultimately necessitates several small shopping trips to cover the same weekly requirement. More differentiated considerations are important, ”concludes Streicher.
Source: University of Innsbruck