Every rand counts as South Africans urged to outsmart retail marketing tactics

South Africans are being urged to recognise the psychological techniques retailers use to encourage spending as household budgets remain under pressure.

As South Africans continue to grapple with rising living costs, consumers are being urged to recognise the sophisticated marketing techniques retailers use to encourage impulse spending and take greater control of their household budgets.

From strategically placed essentials to enticing sale signs and loyalty programmes, retailers carefully design shopping experiences to influence purchasing decisions, often resulting in customers spending far more than they originally intended.

Sarah Nicholson, customer experience manager at JustMoney, said retailers invest heavily in understanding consumer behaviour and use a range of psychological strategies to increase sales.

"Retailers spend millions of rands every year to understand how customers make decisions," Nicholson said.