Shopportunist: How social media can impact your impulse spending

Companies spend a significant amount of time and money studying what makes shoppers tick. They will work on ways to tap deeper into human emotions and create marketing tactics that use deliberate and persuasive messaging. — Pay online photo created by jannoon028 - www.freepik.com

My daughter's cosmetics collection could rival that of a Hollywood makeup artist. With each hasty Ulta or Sephora haul, she introduces a plethora of pricey new products – concealers, moisturisers, lipsticks, brushes – to her beauty routine.

When I ask what sways her impetuous cosmetic purchase preferences, her answer is always the same: social media.