6 ms·

Regarding Amazon: "Oh, you bought a wallet? Here are twenty wallets of the exact same type but with slightly different colors that you might want to buy, too"

wlesieutre 9y ago
I told this story in the recent Amazon recommendations discussion, but I bought a pair of speaker stands from them and before it was even delivered they sent me an email saying "HEY BASED ON YOUR BROWSING HISTORY MAYBE YOU'D LIKE THESE OTHER 10 SPEAKER STANDS!"
- jon_richards 9y ago
  I've heard the argument that this prevents buyer's remorse. Not sure if it has any merit.
  - differonzi 9y ago
    What are the (general) financial consequences of buyer's remorse?
    - njarboe 9y ago
      For Amazon with a generous return policy, when a person has buyer's remorse, they can return the item. Lost sale.
  - CodeCube 9y ago
    wait, wouldn't this cause buyer's remorse? like, if I just finally decided to buy some product ... being bombarded with all the other options suddenly makes me rethink my purchase decision, "oh but what if this other one is more gooder!?!?!"
    - sogen 9y ago
      Exactly my thoughts, you might see there something with better/more reviews.
    - jon_richards 9y ago
      I think the argument is cognitive dissonance and confirmation bias generally function to make you more happy with the one you bought already when presented with other alternatives.
      - chongli 9y ago
        I thought that cognitive dissonance was the buyer's remorse. I've experienced that a few times in my life. Now I've got no qualms about immediately taking stuff back.
Semaphor 9y ago
For books this works pretty well for me as I tend to read genres in bursts. If I just read a scifi books, I'll read a bunch more before going back to fantasy ;)
- ballenf 9y ago
  The equivalent for books would be "you might like this paperback copy or a large print version of the book you just purchased along with 3 other editions!"
badwolf 9y ago
Buy a Dyson vacuum cleaner on Amazon... For the next several weeks Amazon thinks I've taken up the popular hobby of collecting vacuum cleaners
- inopinatus 9y ago
  To give some justice to the algorithm, after purchasing my first Dyson I wanted to replace all my vacuum cleaners with Dysen.
  - tgb 9y ago
    How many vacuum cleaners do you have?
    - deleted 9y ago
      [deleted]
    - freehunter 9y ago
      Not the same person, but I have three. I have a roomba for everyday sweeping, a Bissell for actually cleaning the carpets not just sweeping them, and a Black and Decker handheld for the stairs, the car, and other places it's hard to take a full vacuum or a robot.
    - barking 9y ago
      One per house, like everyone else!
      - TheRealDunkirk 9y ago
        Plebeian. One per floor per house, of course. You don't want to have to carry them up and down stairs.
        cestith 9y ago
        Nouveau riche. All houses should have one floor. Why use stairs or elevators when you can just buy more land?
nkrisc 9y ago
My Amazon homepage is full of stuff I already own. Even worse is their internet-wide remarketing makes it so I see stuff I own on many of the sites I visit. There was however one moment where Amazon got it right: they recommended to me a book that only a week earlier I had purchased on a whim from an independent bookstore with cash. Creepy good.
- wfunction 9y ago
  > There was however one moment where Amazon got it right: they recommended to me a book that only a week earlier I had purchased on a whim from an independent bookstore with cash. Creepy good. That is creepy. Any way it might've been more than just a coincidence?
  - hohenheim 9y ago
    Well there was this sometime ago: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14406583 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14406583 Though that was Google.
  - nkrisc 9y ago
    It's possible, but it was a book in a relatively unusual niche that I have a hobbyist interest in. It was a book about the archaeological and linguistic study of proto-Indo-European people (PIE) and their origins and spread by means of horses and the, at the time novel, wheels. I had previously purchased a book or two on linguistics from Amazon so perhaps there is only a small set of popular books in that category for their recommendation algorithm to pick from.
    - wfunction 9y ago
      Ah, yeah, that would explain it. Thanks!
lostphilosopher 9y ago
"Amazon seems to think my recent purchase of an air conditioner was just the gateway to an air conditioner collecting hobby." That's probably not exact and I don't remember where in my social feeds it came from, but I loved this.
patmcguire 9y ago
It's probably correct by expected value. You're just not the multiple wallet type. I'm sure there are people who'd want five wallets, eight different shoe styles, multiple cuts of pants... Your indifference is subsumed in the sheer size of others' consumption.
- phkahler 9y ago
  Dude it's a wallet not a coach purse.
  - freehunter 9y ago
    I have multiple wallets. I have one I take on business trips that contains my work ID, American Express, business cards, etc. All stuff I normally don't carry with me. I have an everyday wallet with cash and my bank card and stuff I need everyday. And if I'm dressing up, I don't want to ruin the lines of my suit so I have a far slimmer wallet that just has my ID and space for one credit card. I mean I'm not accessorizing with the latest seasonal fashions, but there are utility reasons to change the kind of wallet you're carrying for different purposes.
    - D-Coder 9y ago
      That's great, but you're the only person in America who does that.
- kerbalspacepro 9y ago
  You're right that there are categories of products that this absolutely works. When I buy clothes, books, media... even tech, then I probably will buy something related. But there are some "one-off" purchases that Amazon doesn't need to hound be about.
maxxxxx 9y ago
Funny story: A while ago I took an Ayurveda class (Indian medicine) and part of it was doing an oil enema. There are devices for this that are also used by a certain population for sexual pleasures. Bought one on Amazon and for months I couldn't show my Amazon page to other people because it was filled with sex toys....
- birdman3131 9y ago
  It is possible to delete things from your amazon history. https://www.amazon.com/gp/history https://www.amazon.com/gp/history
- type0 9y ago
  And the lesson here would be not to get involved with Ayrveda.
  - freehunter 9y ago
    Or more specifically, not pour random fluids into your butt for some mystical health benefit. Only for pleasure.
    - maxxxxx 9y ago
      Actually I would recommend it. It's quite nice :-)
- drizzzler 9y ago
  lol
- Semaphor 9y ago
  My favorite sleeping mask is made by Joy Division, a blindfold sold as a sex toy. When I replace it every 1-2 years (or earlier in case I was on a flight…) my Amazon page is full of sex toys ;)
  - lostlogin 9y ago
afarrell 9y ago
The fact that Amazon doesn't have a way to recommend complimentary products ("oh, you just bought a tent? You probably want some bug spray") boggles.
- fletchowns 9y ago
  Isn't that what the "frequently bought together" suggestions are?
  - icantdrive55 9y ago
    And that algorithm works. I once bought an obscure heli-coil. It knew to recommend the right bushings, and right pitched screws. It knew I would problally need the extra stuff. The price was low enough to chance it. Traditional retail needs to up their game. That said, I refuse to pay for Prime. Why--I just bought too much unneeded stuff. I'm currently trying to only spend on what I really need. Including spending a lot to impress pretty women. I figured if they are impressed with seemingly fancy chit; I don't need it. Or, we'll spend your money? I'm quite the guy? I wasen't born this way, just evolved? And every man knows when to pull out the equal card? At an overpriced dinner? Never again. How did I get on this tangent?
  - freehunter 9y ago
    Yeah but they should show that in the recommendations, not just when I'm at the product page.

wlesieutre 9y ago

I told this story in the recent Amazon recommendations discussion, but I bought a pair of speaker stands from them and before it was even delivered they sent me an email saying "HEY BASED ON YOUR BROWSING HISTORY MAYBE YOU'D LIKE THESE OTHER 10 SPEAKER STANDS!"

jon_richards 9y ago
I've heard the argument that this prevents buyer's remorse. Not sure if it has any merit.
- differonzi 9y ago
  What are the (general) financial consequences of buyer's remorse?
  - njarboe 9y ago
    For Amazon with a generous return policy, when a person has buyer's remorse, they can return the item. Lost sale.
- CodeCube 9y ago
  wait, wouldn't this cause buyer's remorse? like, if I just finally decided to buy some product ... being bombarded with all the other options suddenly makes me rethink my purchase decision, "oh but what if this other one is more gooder!?!?!"
  - sogen 9y ago
    Exactly my thoughts, you might see there something with better/more reviews.
  - jon_richards 9y ago
    I think the argument is cognitive dissonance and confirmation bias generally function to make you more happy with the one you bought already when presented with other alternatives.
    - chongli 9y ago
      I thought that cognitive dissonance was the buyer's remorse. I've experienced that a few times in my life. Now I've got no qualms about immediately taking stuff back.

Semaphor 9y ago

For books this works pretty well for me as I tend to read genres in bursts. If I just read a scifi books, I'll read a bunch more before going back to fantasy ;)

ballenf 9y ago
The equivalent for books would be "you might like this paperback copy or a large print version of the book you just purchased along with 3 other editions!"

badwolf 9y ago

Buy a Dyson vacuum cleaner on Amazon... For the next several weeks Amazon thinks I've taken up the popular hobby of collecting vacuum cleaners

inopinatus 9y ago
To give some justice to the algorithm, after purchasing my first Dyson I wanted to replace all my vacuum cleaners with Dysen.
- tgb 9y ago
  How many vacuum cleaners do you have?
  - deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]
  - freehunter 9y ago
    Not the same person, but I have three. I have a roomba for everyday sweeping, a Bissell for actually cleaning the carpets not just sweeping them, and a Black and Decker handheld for the stairs, the car, and other places it's hard to take a full vacuum or a robot.
  - barking 9y ago
    One per house, like everyone else!
    - TheRealDunkirk 9y ago
      Plebeian. One per floor per house, of course. You don't want to have to carry them up and down stairs.
      - cestith 9y ago
        Nouveau riche. All houses should have one floor. Why use stairs or elevators when you can just buy more land?

nkrisc 9y ago

My Amazon homepage is full of stuff I already own. Even worse is their internet-wide remarketing makes it so I see stuff I own on many of the sites I visit. There was however one moment where Amazon got it right: they recommended to me a book that only a week earlier I had purchased on a whim from an independent bookstore with cash. Creepy good.

wfunction 9y ago
> There was however one moment where Amazon got it right: they recommended to me a book that only a week earlier I had purchased on a whim from an independent bookstore with cash. Creepy good. That is creepy. Any way it might've been more than just a coincidence?
- hohenheim 9y ago
  Well there was this sometime ago: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14406583 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14406583 Though that was Google.
- nkrisc 9y ago
  It's possible, but it was a book in a relatively unusual niche that I have a hobbyist interest in. It was a book about the archaeological and linguistic study of proto-Indo-European people (PIE) and their origins and spread by means of horses and the, at the time novel, wheels. I had previously purchased a book or two on linguistics from Amazon so perhaps there is only a small set of popular books in that category for their recommendation algorithm to pick from.
  - wfunction 9y ago
    Ah, yeah, that would explain it. Thanks!

lostphilosopher 9y ago

"Amazon seems to think my recent purchase of an air conditioner was just the gateway to an air conditioner collecting hobby." That's probably not exact and I don't remember where in my social feeds it came from, but I loved this.

patmcguire 9y ago

It's probably correct by expected value. You're just not the multiple wallet type. I'm sure there are people who'd want five wallets, eight different shoe styles, multiple cuts of pants... Your indifference is subsumed in the sheer size of others' consumption.

phkahler 9y ago
Dude it's a wallet not a coach purse.
- freehunter 9y ago
  I have multiple wallets. I have one I take on business trips that contains my work ID, American Express, business cards, etc. All stuff I normally don't carry with me. I have an everyday wallet with cash and my bank card and stuff I need everyday. And if I'm dressing up, I don't want to ruin the lines of my suit so I have a far slimmer wallet that just has my ID and space for one credit card. I mean I'm not accessorizing with the latest seasonal fashions, but there are utility reasons to change the kind of wallet you're carrying for different purposes.
  - D-Coder 9y ago
    That's great, but you're the only person in America who does that.
kerbalspacepro 9y ago
You're right that there are categories of products that this absolutely works. When I buy clothes, books, media... even tech, then I probably will buy something related. But there are some "one-off" purchases that Amazon doesn't need to hound be about.

maxxxxx 9y ago

Funny story: A while ago I took an Ayurveda class (Indian medicine) and part of it was doing an oil enema. There are devices for this that are also used by a certain population for sexual pleasures. Bought one on Amazon and for months I couldn't show my Amazon page to other people because it was filled with sex toys....

birdman3131 9y ago
It is possible to delete things from your amazon history. https://www.amazon.com/gp/history https://www.amazon.com/gp/history
type0 9y ago
And the lesson here would be not to get involved with Ayrveda.
- freehunter 9y ago
  Or more specifically, not pour random fluids into your butt for some mystical health benefit. Only for pleasure.
  - maxxxxx 9y ago
    Actually I would recommend it. It's quite nice :-)
drizzzler 9y ago
lol
Semaphor 9y ago
My favorite sleeping mask is made by Joy Division, a blindfold sold as a sex toy. When I replace it every 1-2 years (or earlier in case I was on a flight…) my Amazon page is full of sex toys ;)
- lostlogin 9y ago

afarrell 9y ago

The fact that Amazon doesn't have a way to recommend complimentary products ("oh, you just bought a tent? You probably want some bug spray") boggles.

fletchowns 9y ago
Isn't that what the "frequently bought together" suggestions are?
- icantdrive55 9y ago
  And that algorithm works. I once bought an obscure heli-coil. It knew to recommend the right bushings, and right pitched screws. It knew I would problally need the extra stuff. The price was low enough to chance it. Traditional retail needs to up their game. That said, I refuse to pay for Prime. Why--I just bought too much unneeded stuff. I'm currently trying to only spend on what I really need. Including spending a lot to impress pretty women. I figured if they are impressed with seemingly fancy chit; I don't need it. Or, we'll spend your money? I'm quite the guy? I wasen't born this way, just evolved? And every man knows when to pull out the equal card? At an overpriced dinner? Never again. How did I get on this tangent?
- freehunter 9y ago
  Yeah but they should show that in the recommendations, not just when I'm at the product page.