Why iPhone Has the Payment Window at the Bottom

Whenever you buy an app on the iPhone, the payment window is all the way at the bottom of the phone. In this video, I’ll explain why this location is intentional and why this position influences more people to click that purchase button. So the main principle involves a concept that I'll call simulation fluency. Research shows that people have a stronger desire for objects when they are physically closer to those objects because they can more easily simulate themselves reaching out and grabbing those objects. In fact, this effect occurs when objects remain at a distance, yet when a reaching tool is placed on the table because they can simulate grabbing that tool and then grabbing the object. And based on that idea, businesses can influence you to click their buttons and to buy their products by merely getting you to simulate that clicking behavior more vividly. So with the iPhone, Apple increases this simulation fluency by positioning the purchase button closer to the bottom because this location is closer to the user’s fingers. Users can simulate themselves pushing that purchase button more easily and they misattribute that ease with a desire to push that button. You can refer to my book, The Tangled Mind—and, in particular, Chapter 2—for exactly why that happens. But again, this effect happens not because of the location but because people can more easily simulate clicking that button. And based on that core idea, there are many other factors that facilitate this simulation. In my one of my other videos, I describe hidden cues in Amazon that influence our buying behavior. Well, there’s another devious cue that I never mentioned. Whenever you conceptualize a concept, you activate sensory experiences. In The Tangled Mind, I use the example of juggling. Now, I’m going to list certain actions and I want you to determine whether each action is being depicted right now. Answer quickly—yes or no. Catching. Kicking. Punching. You probably answered “Yes” only for catching. And you’re correct. However, with kicking vs. punching, people need more time to determine that punching isn't being depicted. Can you figure out the reason? Our brains have mirror neurons. When you saw me juggling, you activated those muscles in your own arms. Then, when you were making the decision for kicking vs. punching you could easily tell that kicking wasn’t involved because your leg muscles weren’t activated. However, with punching, you could more easily simulate the motor action of punching because of the heightened activation in your arm muscles. Therefore, your brain was a little bit confused and it needed more time to make that distinction for punching. But the key point is that when certain muscles are activated in your body you can simulate those motor actions more easily. And you’re more likely to perform those actions. So how does this involve buttons or Amazon? Well, you just saw a video of me juggling. But the same process occurs with static images. If you see a picture of a motor behavior, your body activates the same physiological response. And if you look at the main buy button on Amazon inside that button, Amazon has a small graphic of a mouse click. When you see this graphic, you activate your muscles involved with clicking. And, because of that heightened activation, you can simulate clicking that buy button more easily. Not only does this effect happen with images—like this graphic—but it also happens with words. In one study, people turned a knob once they understood a sentence. If people were supposed to turn that knob counter-clockwise they responded faster with a sentence like, "Jack opened the jar. " While reading that sentence, they activated the same physiological response in their body. And thus, they were faster when they were turning that knob counter-clockwise because it was congruent with their muscle activation. And a lot of research confirms that merely reading action verbs will activate the same physiological responses in our bodies. And, based on that idea, you see another sneaky technique in Amazon’s button. Not only do they have this graphic, but they also include the word “click” as part of their trademarked phrase. This word seems innocent, yet when we read the word “click” our brain needs to understand that verb by activating the muscles responsible for clicking. And, thanks to this heightened activation in our fingers we can simulate ourselves clicking this buy button more easily which increases our desire for that purchase. So whether a button is physically closer to your fingers or whether it has images or words that prime the motor action of clicking

businesses can influence you to click their buttons and to buy their products by merely getting you to simulate that clicking behavior more vividly. And if you want to learn many other interesting principles that influence our buying behavior you can read The Tangled Mind, which is densely packed with that information.