Why We Buy Things We Don't Need

What Influences Me?

Honestly, I think most of us have bought something and later wondered why we even wanted it in the first place. It’s easy to assume we make completely independent choices, but when you really think about it, a lot of those decisions are shaped before we even notice. Most of the time, it doesn’t feel like persuasion in the moment; it just feels like wanting something.

What stood out to me from Persuasion by Charles U. Larson is how influence doesn’t always happen through direct arguments. A lot of it is more subtle than that. It comes from repeated exposure, who is delivering the message, and how things are presented, which slowly shapes what we pay attention to and what ends up sticking with us (Larson 27–28).

Why Trends Feel so Convincing

One big reason for this is social influence. When something keeps showing up on TikTok, gets reposted on Instagram, or is constantly used by influencers, it starts to feel more real or important. Even if you don’t actually know anything about it, the fact that “everyone has it” makes it feel like it must be worth something.

Research on persuasion also points out that people are more likely to be influenced when they’re repeatedly exposed to a message, especially in social environments where it feels like other people are already on board (EBSCO). It’s not just seeing something once and deciding you want it; it’s seeing it everywhere over and over again until it starts to feel normal. And once something feels normal, you stop questioning it as much.

This connects to ethos, because credibility doesn’t always come from actual expertise. A lot of the time, it just comes from familiarity or popularity. If something feels widely accepted or if someone seems relatable enough, we tend to trust it more than we probably should.

It’s Not Really Just About the Product

Another thing I’ve noticed is that ads rarely focus only on the product itself. Instead, they sell a feeling or a lifestyle. They show confidence, happiness, success, or belonging and then connect those emotions to whatever is being sold. So it stops being “I want that item” and turns into “I want to feel like that.”

That connects back to Larson’s idea that persuasion isn’t just about information; it’s about how meaning is shaped. The way something is presented can completely change how people respond to it, even if the actual facts don’t change (Larson 55). And honestly, that’s what makes it so effective; you don’t always realize it’s happening.

So…Was It Even My Decision?

What’s interesting to me is that persuasion usually doesn’t feel obvious while it’s happening. It’s not one big moment where you suddenly decide something, it’s smaller influences building up over time until it just feels like your own idea.

Now I catch myself noticing it more, like when I suddenly want something just because I’ve seen it everywhere, or when something feels popular for no real reason. It makes me question how many of my decisions are actually mine versus just shaped by everything around me.

What’s something you’ve bought that you think you didn’t really decide on as much as you thought you did?

Sources:

Larson, Charles U. Persuasion: Reception and Responsibility. 13th ed., Waveland Press.

EBSCO Research Starters. “Persuasion.” EBSCO Research Starters, 2022, https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/psychology/persuasion.


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