TLDR: WATCH THE VIDEO (click above)
Free delivery is a powerful motivator for products to tap into. But is there a flipside?
Today, I dive into Instacart to find out. Instacart lets you buy groceries from home. This sounds great: No more waiting in checkout lines or lugging bags!! I’m in 🎉.
There’s just one problem. I keep buying the same things. 🤔
What’s going on?
The $27 Goal Effect 💰
Let’s look at how Instacart actually works. You open the app and pick your local Safeway. A screen pops up: ‘Spend $27 and unlock free delivery.’ Now, why $27? It's neither too small to ignore nor too big to discourage you.
What Instacart is doing here is using the power of an attainable goal. If they told you to spend $100 to get free shipping, you might hit the 'close app' button. But $27? Challenge accepted.
A goal like this can be a powerful motivator. Marathon runners run faster around the 2-hour and 4-hour marks. Why? Because we humans naturally pick up the pace when we're closer to the finish line—or in Instacart’s case, to checkout.
And if you can save $7 in the process? You’re a happy shopper.
The Double-Edged Sword of Algorithmic Influence ⚔️
But not so fast. Because apps like Instacart run on algorithms, and algorithms run on our past behavior. Bought hummus last time? Do it again and get 20% off! 🥴
Instacart knows: past behavior predicts future behavior. That’s comforting. Tomorrow we’ll still be the same person (who loves hummus)! But we also want to grow.
And that’s the thing. Instacart's personalized shopping experience delivers the goods. But it may also amplify your consumption patterns, leaving you with the same old shopping cart. This is boring for us (and less than ideal for society). 🫤
For PMs, the question becomes: How do we balance algorithms to give recommendations people want while also pushing them out of their bubbles occasionally? 💭
Today, we’ll deconstruct some of the key components that make Instacart so effective. We’ll look at goal gradients, the ‘good deal’ effect, and the nature of habits.
We’ll spend a lot of time on their Cart page to figure out how they’ve flipped the script on us, turning fees into savings. Ticketmaster, take note! Someone at Instacart clearly understands framing. 🎫
3 things you’ll learn from this teardown:
🛒 What’s the $27 Goal Effect? And how Instacart got me to buy more with this
🛒 How we assign value to products and the importance of getting a good deal
🛒 Why habits drive algorithms & how Instacart COULD use this to encourage healthier consumption
I’ve already applied your discount so this teardown is FREE!! 😜
Have a friend who would enjoy these teardowns? Click the button below to refer them (& earn some great rewards)👇
Questions about your product? Email kristen@irrationallabs.com.
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