Why we Buy (Paperback)

by Paco Underhill (Author) "Comfortable shoes, the American commercial camouflage uniform-khaki pants, olive polo shirt, no aftershave and good, thick, dun-colored socks..." (more)
Key Phrases: older shoppers, merchandising materials, male shoppers, New York, The Gap, Lincoln Center (more...)

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Shuster (2000)
• ISBN-10: 1842030221
• ISBN-13: 978-1842030226
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (151 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #5,982,394 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

46 of 49 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Valuable, but keep expectations low, November 6, 2000

By	Russell Belfer (San Mateo, CA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Why We Buy: The Science Of Shopping (Paperback)

I found this book to be interesting, if not mind-blowing, with a lot of basic observations about the shopping experience and the need to make measurement a fundamental part of the way we approach business. The book treads a line between feeding you specific anecdotes and findings from Mr. Underhill's research and giving you a framework for thinking about measuring and tuning your business, but it doesn't commit fully to either path. You may be left feeling like there were not actually that many interesting examples nor was a methodology sufficiently fleshed out to be useful.

I view this book as the non-scientific underpinnings of a science (contrary to the sub-title of the book). Mr. Underhill seems like the gentleman scientists of a couple hundred years ago, making excellent and valuable observations, but not having clearly articulated a scientific method that can be applied broadly. This book is certainly worth reading (and for some it may be a real eye-opener), but I feel that a definitive text on the study of buying behavior has yet to be written (or, at least, discovered by me). In favor of this book, it is a fairly easy and quick read, where perhaps a more comprehensive book would not be as accessible. Consider it ...

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Retailers, manufacturers and consumers should read this book, December 27, 1999

By	"papierman" (US) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Why We Buy: The Science Of Shopping (Hardcover)

This is a book both McDonalds and Ralph Nader would love. In this book, Underhill suggests different methods to maximize retail sales. Some include, for example, common sense solutions such as raising or lowering products so as to fall within the person's view range. Others are based on his research, such as putting a product you're pushing to the right of the best-seller. Many people will gravitate to the desired product (think of it as the magician's trick of "forcing" a card).

The book further discusses the different age groups, family configurations, and genders, and how they shop, maximizing the efficacy of signage and packaging, etc. It has many hints to increase sales over short and long periods of time.

It also advocates making stores more family-friendly. As a parent that has failed to successfully negotiate the Gap Kids' fixtures with a stroller and thus decided not to shop there again, I heartily agree with Underhill's suggestions.

Consumers should also read this book to understand the insiduous (and fascinating) means retailers are using to manipulate them into further purchases. We all know how playing Christmas music is supposed to get you in the mood to buy more. This book details different subtle ways in which retailers are modifying their stores to entice you to buy. My favorite: placing a hopscotch game on the cereal aisle, forcing parents to slow down and become more vulnerable to kids' requests for the latest Sugar Bombs. If you feel that retailers are the enemy, this book will provide further proof.

39 of 43 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not science, but still substantive..., March 25, 2002

By	Ernest Kim "An Average Joe" (Corvallis, OR USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Why We Buy: The Science Of Shopping (Paperback)

If you've read some of the reader reviews for this book you'll probably detect a bit of a trend. If you're a scientist or student in search of a tome that provides insight into the causes of specific purchasing behaviours this is not the book for you. If, on the other hand, you are a practitioner (i.e. someone who works as a marketer or perhaps owns or manages a retail establishment) "Why We Buy" provides many, many anecdotes that you will find useful in your everyday life.

This is something that few business books can claim -- immediate practical benefit. Plus, Mr. Underhill's casual writing style is easy to read. My only critique is that the middle third of the book gets a bit dull and repetitive, but the first and last thirds are wonderful.

In short, I would highly recommend "Why We Buy" to anyone who works in retail, whether you're in the front office or on the front lines. I would not recommend it to people in academia as it probably will not provide the "scientific" substance that you're looking for.