How to Identify and Resist Manipulative Sales Pitches [Shopping]

The idea that you need more than one of an item is generally pretty ridiculous, but limits make us competitive and think that we better grab up as many of this soon-to-be-unavailable product as we can. This pitch is designed to prevent us from thinking rationally when we think about quantity and often times it isn't even applied to a product that's any good:

This year, limits are showing up on anything a store wants to get rid of. You'll even see limits on items that might seem absurd to purchase in multiples, Shrum says. In its early Black Friday sale, Best Buy limited sale items -including $120 Blu-ray players and $280 laptops - to one per person. The two-day sale was too short to have a big impact on quarterly sales, but likely piqued shoppers' interest, says Michael Pachter, an analyst for equity research firm Wedbush.

If you see a limit on any particular item, take a moment to think before you act. Consider how many you actually need, for starters, but also look into the product and make sure it's worthwhile before you buy. Just because there's a limit doesn't mean you're necessarily getting a good deal, so grab your smartphone and compare prices, features, and reviews with similar products before you commit.

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