Study: Consumers who pay cash indulge more than those who use credit
It is 3 p.m. and a hungry consumer walks into your candy shop, looks in her wallet and decides to pay with cash instead of a credit card. This seemingly innocuous decision could very well influence her to buy something more indulgent, according to new research published in the AmericanMarketingAssociation's JournalofPublicPolicyandMarketing.
Authors Rajesh Bagchi and Lauren Block argue that because it feels more expensive when paying with cash versus a credit card, consumers are likely to indulge more - at least when it comes to impulse buys and immediate consumption products.