How We Sell

For this, Underhill, a quiet, almost awkward man, has become a minor phenomenon. In the months since his book came out, he's been featured on nearly 20 National Public Radio segments. He has been interviewed by country-music stations, the Christian Broadcast Network, and a flagship polka station -- which, as he notes, "doesn't usually do books." Pacomania reigns.

And, at the same time, Envirosell is booming with new clients, new assignments, and new opportunities to add to the stock of tapes that feed Underhill's ability to decode the continuing evolution of shopping behavior. Despite his newfound fame as a successful author and shopping guru, Underhill still makes it a point to spend time "in the field," keeping his eye engaged in anthropological observations. On any given day, he and his researchers are more than likely holed up in a store somewhere, shooting tape and looking for new insights. Fast Company caught up with him in one of his rare moments back at his office.

How has your book and your work contributed to people's understanding of retailing?

The point is that we either love or hate shopping. This book holds up a mirror to the shopping experience, so that people can read it and see themselves. And that's what brings interest. What we do sure ain't rocket science. I mean, it's not as if we invented some magic black box. On the other hand, there's a very distinct logic that runs through much of what we do. We can tell you, "If you do this or that in a store, here's what the consequences will be."

Why are those consequences particularly important now?

There are a couple of critical issues here. One is a basic realization in the business world, whether we're talking about retail goods or consumer products: The marketing engine that we have built with some care during the 20th century still works, but it doesn't work nearly as well as it needs to. As more people realize the degree to which it does not work, they are reaching out to different sources for information or inspiration.

Increasingly, too, in our time-pressured culture, retailers are recognizing the importance of purchase decisions that are made or that are heavily influenced at the point of sale. More and more, people today tend to park their brand predisposition at the door. As we approach the 21st century, the notion of somebody being "a Chevy man," in the way that there were loyal Chevy men in 1957, is almost passé.

So we can measure brand awareness, brand image, and purchase predisposition. But even with all of those measurements, a lot of people walk in the door of a CompUSA thinking about buying one brand, and they walk out having bought another. I go into an auto showroom to look at a Ford Mustang, and if I don't like the salesperson, I get frustrated. So I leave, and then I head to the Nissan dealer. These days, we're all quicker to bail.

And I think that we consumers are eminently more cynical than we used to be. We've been flimflammed, manipulated, and marketed to, and we're starting to see through the facade. We are more experienced. Our tempers are shorter, and our patience is thinner. As consumers, we are becoming aware of our power -- the power to pick up our toys and go home, or to go somewhere else to play.

Are you saying that the old tricks simply don't work anymore?

They still work. No matter how much smarter or more experienced we have become, there's still something called "retail magic," where someone is able to put something out there in a way that makes us fall in love with it and have to have it. What is different now is that the same old tricks don't work with everybody. The older we get, the more experienced we become. And while people from generation X and generation Y are definitely manipulable, they are still more streetwise than you and I were when we were their age.

Also, while we live in a world in which there are global brands and identities that almost everyone recognizes, we also see some measure of heterogeneous complexity. There are a lot of subpopulations to sell to, more than there used to be. On the same sidewalk, you'll see some people who wear brand names on the outside of their clothing, others who think the label is best kept inside, and others who don't care. So stores need to find subtle ways to broaden their reach. One way to do that: Stores can adjust their music. Old Navy, for example, does a great job of playing contemporary music, "oldies," and some jazz, and through its music selection, the company makes a cross section of people feel welcome.

Which shoppers are most ignored by merchandisers?