Want to make a sale? Pitch in public and give the customer more space

The research, titled ‘Psychological Reactance Among B2C Sales Prospects’, is published in the Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management. It examines how the physical sales environment affects customer behaviour in private and public settings. 

Researchers Bitty Balducci and Minjoo Kim, both Assistant Professors of Marketing at the university’s Carson College of Business, found that people are more likely to resist a sales pitch when it occurs in settings they perceive as private – such as their home or a members-only location – compared to public spaces, malls or retail stores. 

The findings are based on a series of experiments that tested how people respond to sales offers in different physical settings.  

In one scenario, participants were less willing to engage with a product demonstration when approached at home, compared to being approached in a retail store. 

Another experiment compared reactions in an exclusive airport lounge versus a main airport terminal, with participants again showing greater resistance to a sales pitch in the more private setting. 

Psychological response called ‘reactance’ 

The driving force behind this pattern is a psychological response known as ‘reactance’. This occurs when people feel their freedom to choose is being threatened. 

“Psychological reactance is a kind of mental pushback,” Kim says. “In more private settings, customers feel a stronger need to protect that freedom, which can make them more resistant to sales efforts.” 

Interestingly, the researchers also found that simply increasing the physical distance between the salesperson and the customer reduced feelings of reactance and made participants more willing to engage, especially when in a private setting. 

“Small cues, like how open a space feels or how close the salesperson stands, can shift how customers respond,” Kim explains. “If salespeople want to reduce resistance, especially in more personal settings, it helps to give customers space and emphasise their freedom to choose.” 

For salespeople and sales managers alike, recognising and respecting customers’ sense of autonomy can help sales interactions feel less intrusive – and more effective, according to the research.  

“Sales professionals spend a lot of time perfecting what to say, but paying attention to where and how the conversation happens can go a long way toward building trust and improving results,” Kim observes. 

You can find out more about the study here.