Did you ever notice?

Just about anywhere I go I have noticed a very strange phenomenon. It is something that all stores and marketers should be aware of...it is also one of my pet peeves. Have you ever noticed that when you stop to look at something, someone else always comes along to look at it too? Doesn't matter if it is mangoes at the grocery store, light bulbs at Home Depot or a sign on the side of a truck. If you stop to look at it for more than 15 seconds, someone - a complete stranger, is bound to stop and look at it too. It's almost as if they're thinking, "hey that must be something good that I missed so I better check it out!"

This experience has happened to me countless times. One of these times that will guarantee a crowd around you is when you stop to look at a clothing rack. The store can be basically empty of customers, but because you're spending any amount of time examining the clothes (maybe to find your size for example), someone else will suddenly show up to look at the exact same thing. Coincidence? I think not! Can these people not shop for themselves? Do they have to have someone with an idea show them the way? I've often thought that I could create a good job for myself by being a "floor walker" - just float around stores examining merchandise and knowing that others will soon flock to the spot to satisfy their curiosity.

I think my most favorite time to illustrate this point was when my husband and I were visiting Italy and we had stopped to look at a restaurant menu posting. Now it was a Sunday afternoon, it was down a very small side street and there was absolutely nobody around in sight. But as we became engrossed in reading this very delicious looking menu, suddenly from the corner of my eye, I saw a woman coming toward us, as if out of nowhere. And guess where she stopped? Exactly next to us to take a look at that menu. When she saw what it was that we were looking at, she left. Now was there a particular reason she just had to be there at that precise moment?

Another rather bizarre moment happened to me many years ago when I was clothes shopping with my mother in L.A. While mom looked at her things, I took a break and just stood next to the racks, holding bags etc. Within minutes, someone actually came up to me and started feeling my clothing from behind! I turned in shock and that lady almost jumped out of her skin...she thought I was a store mannequin.

I don't know if your experiences are like mine. But I truly think companies would increase their profits if they just hired people to closely examine their products. Within no time at all, there would surely be crowds in for a keen look!