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This reminded me of a basic consumer thing that must have a name and several good discussions, could someone help me out here? The thing (framed as wine)- Lots
by the_cat_kittles 13y ago
This reminded me of a basic consumer thing that must have a name and several good discussions, could someone help me out here? The thing (framed as wine)-
Lots of people like some accessible, simple tasty wine. Some keep drinking it, others develop a taste for some other wine based on their initial like of the first wine. Some of that group then develop another taste based on the second (which was based on the first), and so on. The point is that by getting one wine a couple times, you tire of it, and it also prepares you palette/preferences to really like something that has some continuities and some contrasts with it. It seems like the audience narrows as you go through each step, partially because you probably won't appreciate the Nth wine until you have gone through the others, in order more or less. As you go along this chain, you are more willing to pay higher and higher the further you go.
Some other chains I could think of like this (minus the "paying more as you go" where it doesn't really apply): Music genres, Coffee (almost any food really), Fetish porn, Text editors, so many more...
What is this concept called?
- archangel_one 13y agoThere are things in economics called Veblen goods (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veblen_good http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veblen_good) which become more desirable as they become more expensive. They seem related, but not exactly the same phenomenon you describe.
- philwelch 13y agoA cynical term would be "hedonism treadmill", since once you level up in quality, after a period of amazed novelty you're no happier than you were with the last option and itching for another upgrade.