There are some commodities that are very much demanded and being sought by most consumers but are not among the bare necessities that most people would need to be able to survive. Cigarettes, liquor, beer, cars, cellular phones, and so on, are some of the things that people can live without and are really more of leisure items that people want to have.
Perhaps the best thing to sum this all up is that thanks to effective promotional strategies done by most people, such has been implanted in their minds and has become a status symbol of sorts that differentiates them from the common class. This phenomenon is only natural. People want to be ahead of the rest in most cases and this is evident.
For a better understanding here are some articles that can best elaborate on such an issue:
The Psychology of Consumers
The Psychology of Marketing
Originally posted on May 5, 2006 @ 9:43 am