“Limited Time Offer”: Impact of Time Scarcity Messages on Consumer’s Impulse Purchase

Abstract

Constraining the time to avail promotional offers is a common practice employed by marketers to encourage sales. This research shows that the use of Limited Time messages in online promotions has a profound impact on consumer’s impulse purchases. Based on reactance theory, the present study employs a 2 (Limited Time message: Present vs. Absent) × 2 (Persuasion knowledge: Low vs. High) online experiment approach that provides evidence of the presence of Fear of Missing Out as a mediating mechanism in predicting the effects of Limited time cues. Moreover, the study reflects that impulse purchases induced by Limited time messages are low when consumers’ have knowledge about retailers’ persuasion tactics. Further, the results reveal that impulse purchases are more for consumers with high (vs. Low) buying impulsiveness. The findings offer insights into the mechanism and conditions that inform consumers’ responses to Limited time messages.

Keywords:

• impulse buying
• scarcity cues
• limited time
• persuasion knowledge
• fear of missing out

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).