Consumer Psychology

Time

Understand why time is the one resource no one can make more of — and why selling time savings sells something priceless.

  • Intermediate
  • 9 min total
  • 11 chapters

What decision this helps you make: How to recognize time as a buying motivation and win by giving customers their time back.

What this topic is

Time is the ultimate scarce, non-renewable resource — you can always make more money, but never more time. As people get busier, "time poverty" grows, and they increasingly pay to reclaim hours: delivery, cleaning, done-for-you services, automation. Saving people time is a deep and growing buying motivation.

Why it matters

Because time is finite and precious, "we save you time" is one of the most compelling value propositions there is — and research links spending money to save time with greater happiness. Understanding time as a motivation lets you sell something people value above almost everything else, especially the busy and affluent, and often command premiums for it.

Who should learn it

Anyone building a product or service who can save customers time — and anyone trying to understand why "done-for-you," faster, and automated offerings command such loyalty and premiums.

What you will understand

  • See time as the ultimate scarce, non-renewable resource
  • Understand "time poverty" and why people pay to reclaim time
  • Know why saving time can be worth more than saving money
  • Recognize time-saving as a premium value proposition

Prerequisites

Common misconception

"People mostly want to save money." As people get busier and wealthier, many increasingly want to save time — and will pay to do it. Time is the one resource you can't make more of, so saving it is deeply valuable; research even links spending money to save time with greater happiness. For many customers, time is worth more than money.