This is your brain on online shopping

Few things are actually scarce on the internet, but marketers don’t want you to know that. Help us reach our goal We’re aiming to add 3,000 financial contributions from readers by December 31 to help keep Vox free for all. Recurring monthly or annual gifts, in particular, help us plan and weather a notoriously unpredictable industry. Will you help us reach our goal by making a contribution to Vox today? [Yes, I'll give]( From countdown clocks to low stock alerts, online markets have a grab bag of tricks to try to get you to buy more and buy faster and create a sense of urgency around your purchases. Sellers nudge you to believe time is running out on your buys, even though that’s generally not the case. Your brain on online shopping is the subject of one of [my recent stories for Vox](. It takes a look at the ways e-commerce platforms use psychological triggers and subtle touches to increase sales. For example, they know the quantity of ratings and reviews on an item often matters more than the quality. They also know that if they tell you there are only three hotel rooms left, you’re likelier to make a reservation — and you might not realize the three-rooms-left thing is a lie. With the holiday season in full swing, it feels pertinent to keep in mind that maybe you should take a beat before buying that extra gift. —[Emily Stewart](, senior correspondent   The psychological traps of online shopping, explained [Black and white image of hands holding credit card surfing laptop]( Getty Images/Vox Online retailers have all sorts of tricks for getting consumers to buy more and buy faster. The people who create those tricks don’t really even try to hide them. A cursory Google search reveals all sorts of marketers advertising their tools to help merchants boost sales. They boast countdown timers that are “a great way of creating urgency and encouraging shoppers to buy your products” and low stock counters that employ “psychological triggers” to ignite a sense of scarcity and increase sales. Some companies offer sellers tools to show how many people have added an item to their carts, ordered it, or looked at it, and they’re open that these numbers can be real or random — as in, made up. A travel website tells you there are only three hotel rooms left at a certain price ahead of your next vacation, or an e-commerce platform tells you that you only have 10 minutes to buy that dress in your shopping cart. Sellers and marketers know that [fomenting a sort of fear of missing out will indeed push you to act, whether or not it’s true.]( The same goes for showing ratings and reviews, for marking something as a top seller, for indicating someone else in your network bought the same item before. Sometimes what you’re being shown is real, sometimes it’s not, and oftentimes, it’s impossible to know what’s actually the case. “It’s kind of buyer beware,” said Harry Brignull, a user experience expert who has tracked deceptive design, often referred to as “dark patterns,” for more than a decade and is currently working on a book on the matter. [Read the full story »](  [Learn more about RevenueStripe...](   The White Lotus’s explosive season finale, explained Who died (and who survived) at The White Lotus. [Read the full story »](   Help us reach our goal We aim to explain what we buy, why we buy it, and why it matters. Support our mission by making a gift during our year-end campaign. [Yes, I'll make a gift](   Sam Bankman-Fried’s arrest is the culmination of an epic flameout After quickly amassing political and philanthropic influence, the former billionaire has been arrested for fraud. [Read the full story »](   More good stuff to read today - [A practical guide to getting laid off]( - [In search of an attainable New Year’s resolution]( - [Why are Christmas movie “miracles” never miracles at all?]( - [Why we’re relitigating the Casey Anthony case now — and why we shouldn’t](  [Learn more about RevenueStripe...]( Manage your [email preferences]( or [unsubscribe](param=goods). If you value Vox’s unique explanatory journalism, support our work with a one-time or recurring [contribution](. View our [Privacy Policy]( and our [Terms of Service](. Vox Media, 1201 Connecticut Ave. NW, Floor 12, Washington, DC 20036. Copyright © 2022. All rights reserved.