Episodes

  • Why You Buy More When You Touch the Product

    Why You Buy More When You Touch the Product
    Jul 5 2026
    Episode 93 of Behavioral Economics with Fexingo explores the endowment effect and why physically touching a product dramatically increases your willingness to pay. Lucas and Luna break down a 2024 field experiment where shoppers who held a sweatshirt for 30 seconds bid 67% more in a silent auction than those who didn't. They discuss why the effect is strongest for haptic-oriented categories like apparel and home goods, how online retailers try to simulate touch with video and VR, and what this means for your own shopping decisions. The hosts also touch on a clever trick: if you're shopping, put a product back on the shelf for 60 seconds before deciding—you'll break the emotional ownership spell. #EndowmentEffect #TouchAndSpending #HapticMarketing #BehavioralEconomics #ConsumerPsychology #ProductTouch #OwnershipBias #AuctionExperiment #RetailPsychology #ShoppingBias #EconomicPodcast #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast #DecisionMaking #LossAversion #LucasAndLuna #EconomicsShow #PodcastEpisode Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    8 mins
  • Why Your Brain Treats a Sale as a Loss Aversion Trap

    Why Your Brain Treats a Sale as a Loss Aversion Trap
    Jul 4 2026
    Episode 92 of Behavioral Economics dives into the psychology of sales. Lucas and Luna unpack a 2024 experiment showing that consumers actually feel a subtle loss when they see a '50% off' sign — because the brain frames pre-sale price as a forfeited reference point. They explore why a 40% discount feels better than a 50% one when the original price is high, and how retailers use 'sale' framing to trigger urgency without real savings. With examples from department stores and online flash sales, the episode reveals why your brain treats a discount as a loss of the original price, not a gain. A fresh angle in behavioral economics — perfect for anyone who's ever wondered why a sale doesn't always feel like a win. #BehavioralEconomics #SalesPsychology #LossAversion #PricingAnchors #DiscountFraming #ConsumerBehavior #RetailPsychology #DecisionMaking #CognitiveBias #LucasAndLuna #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast #Economics #RetailStrategy #FlashSales #ReferencePoints #MentalAccounting #PriceSensitivity Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    9 mins
  • Why Your Brain Treats a Flat Fee as a License to Consume

    Why Your Brain Treats a Flat Fee as a License to Consume
    Jul 4 2026
    This episode explores the 'flat-rate bias': why paying a fixed fee for unlimited access — whether at a gym, a streaming service, or a buffet — makes people consume more than they would with a per-use price, even when they'd be happier paying per use. Lucas and Luna dig into a 2015 study from the University of Chicago and the University of Minnesota that tracked 7,000 gym members: members who paid $80 per month visited the gym an average of 4.3 times per month, spending $18.60 per visit — more than twice the $10 per-visit fee. But those who bought a per-visit pass visited just as often and paid half as much. The hosts discuss why we fall for flat fees, how it affects streaming subscribers who binge shows they don't enjoy, and what the 'flat-rate bias' says about our desire to avoid the pain of paying. #FlatRateBias #BehavioralEconomics #SunkCost #GymMembership #SubscriptionEconomy #ConsumerBehavior #Overconsumption #PainOfPaying #MentalAccounting #RichardThaler #UniversityOfChicago #UniversityOfMinnesota #BuffetEffect #StreamingBinge #DecisionMaking #BusinessPodcast #FexingoBusiness #Economics Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    9 mins
  • Why Your Brain Treats a Price Anchor as a Bargain

    Why Your Brain Treats a Price Anchor as a Bargain
    Jul 3 2026
    In this episode of Behavioral Economics with Fexingo, Lucas and Luna explore the anchoring effect — how a single initial price can warp your perception of value for everything that follows. They drill into a famous 1974 study by Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky, where participants spun a wheel of fortune and then guessed the percentage of African nations in the UN. The wheel was rigged — but it didn't matter. Higher spins produced higher guesses. The same mechanism works in salary negotiations, real estate listings, and even menu design. Lucas and Luna discuss why a $5,000 watch makes a $2,000 watch feel like a steal, how car dealers use anchor pricing to make add-ons seem cheap, and why you should never be the first to throw out a number in a negotiation. They also touch on the practical takeaway: anchors work even when you know they're anchors. The episode closes with a forward-looking question about whether digital pricing — dynamic and contextless — might weaken the power of the anchor. #AnchoringEffect #BehavioralEconomics #Kahneman #Tversky #PriceAnchoring #CognitiveBias #DecisionMaking #Negotiation #ValuePerception #Economics #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast #ChoiceArchitecture #PricingStrategy #PsychologyOfMoney #BehavioralFinance #Heuristics #Marketing Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    8 mins
  • Why Your Brain Treats Cashback as Income Not a Discount

    Why Your Brain Treats Cashback as Income Not a Discount
    Jul 3 2026
    In this episode of Behavioral Economics with Fexingo, Lucas and Luna explore the 'cashback illusion' — why people treat cashback rewards as income rather than a price reduction, even when the math is identical. Using a 2025 experiment from the University of Chicago showing that consumers spend more freely with cashback than with an equivalent upfront discount, they unpack the mental accounting error that retailers exploit. They also discuss how credit card companies design rewards to feel like a bonus, not a rebate, and what that means for your spending psychology. A natural donation segment ties the conversation to listener support. #CashbackIllusion #MentalAccounting #BehavioralEconomics #ConsumerPsychology #UniversityOfChicago #RewardsPrograms #CreditCards #SpendingHabits #DiscountFallacy #WindfallEffect #PainOfPaying #DecisionMaking #Economics #BusinessPodcast #FexingoBusiness #BehavioralScience #MoneyMindset #RetailStrategy Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    8 mins
  • Why Your Brain Treats a Price Match as a Trap

    Why Your Brain Treats a Price Match as a Trap
    Jul 2 2026
    Lucas and Luna explore why price-match guarantees actually reduce shopping around. Retailers like Best Buy and Home Depot rely on a behavioral quirk called 'cognitive closure' — once you see a price-match promise, your brain stops searching for better deals, even when the guarantee is hard to use. The hosts break down a 2024 study from the Journal of Marketing Research showing that price-match policies increase purchase likelihood by 22 percent but rarely result in actual claims. They also discuss the 'endowment effect' in reverse: shoppers treat the matched price as a loss if they don't buy immediately. Specific data points include how only 3 percent of consumers successfully file a price-match claim, and how the average savings from claims is just $11. The episode closes with a practical tip: when you see a price-match badge, consciously force yourself to check two other stores anyway. #PriceMatchGuarantee #CognitiveClosure #BehavioralEconomics #RetailPsychology #BestBuy #HomeDepot #JournalOfMarketingResearch #EndowmentEffect #ConsumerBehavior #PricingStrategy #LossAversion #ShoppingBias #Economics #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast #DecisionMaking #Bias #MentalAccounting Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    8 mins
  • How Your Brain Treats Monthly Subscriptions as a Fixed Cost

    How Your Brain Treats Monthly Subscriptions as a Fixed Cost
    Jul 2 2026
    We explore why your brain mentally reclassifies recurring subscription fees from a discretionary expense into a fixed monthly cost, like rent or a utility bill. Using the example of the Adobe Creative Cloud suite, we discuss research from MIT and Stanford showing that people drastically underestimate their total annual subscription spend. Lucas and Luna break down the 'subscription neglect' bias, how companies like Netflix and Spotify exploit it with annual vs. monthly pricing, and a simple mental trick to reset your perception. Find out why shifting to an annual plan might actually cost you more in the long run, and how to audit your subscriptions effectively. #SubscriptionNeglect #BehavioralEconomics #FixedCostFallacy #Adobe #Netflix #Spotify #ConsumerBehavior #Bias #SpendingHabits #MIT #Stanford #PsychologyOfMoney #MonthlySubscriptions #AnnualPricing #Economics #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast #DecisionMaking Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    7 mins
  • Why Your Brain Treats a Debit Card as a Withdrawal With Fee

    Why Your Brain Treats a Debit Card as a Withdrawal With Fee
    Jul 1 2026
    In this episode of Behavioral Economics with Fexingo, Lucas and Luna explore the hidden pain of debit card spending. Drawing on a 2020 study from the Journal of Marketing Research that found debit card users spend 12 to 18 percent less than credit card users in the same scenario, they unpack why paying with a debit card feels like an immediate loss while credit feels like a delayed promise. They discuss the concept of 'pain of paying,' the role of transaction transparency, and how framing a debit transaction as a 'withdrawal with a fee' changes behavior. The hosts also touch on how banks and retailers exploit this bias, and offer practical takeaways for listeners to reduce their own spending friction. Listeners will learn why carrying a debit card might actually help them curb consumption, and how to use mental accounting to their advantage. #DebitCard #PainOfPaying #MentalAccounting #SpendingBias #BehavioralEconomics #FrictionCost #TransactionPain #CreditCard #SpendingBehavior #ConsumerPsychology #2020Study #JournalOfMarketingResearch #Economics #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast #PersonalFinance #CognitiveBias #DecisionMaking Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    7 mins