In the bustling corridors of Balogun Market, a shop owner arranging her priciest items at eye level may not realize she’s applying principles of behavioural science—yet that simple act is a practical lesson in human psychology. Across Nigeria, businesses are increasingly relying on subtle psychological strategies to improve outcomes, often without formal training in the field.
A few years ago, stepping into a bank branch in Lagos meant long queues and rising tempers. Fast forward to today, and the customer experience has transformed dramatically. While digital upgrades played a role, much of the change stems from behavioural insights: cues that shape perception and experience.
“We learned that how long people feel they’ve waited matters more than how long they actually wait,” explained a consultant who has worked with major Nigerian banks. By introducing digital screens with tips, improving visual queues, and encouraging staff engagement, complaint rates dropped significantly—even though transaction speed remained unchanged.
This taps into a key concept from behavioural science: occupied time feels shorter than unoccupied time. It’s a subtle but powerful principle now shaping business environments throughout Nigeria.
Outside corporate offices, similar strategies play out daily. At a popular food stall in Surulere, customers gladly wait for their turn, drawn in by the owner’s open preparation style. Watching the food being made builds anticipation and value—a concept known as the IKEA effect, where witnessing or contributing to a product’s creation increases emotional attachment.
Behavioural science is built on the idea that humans don’t always act logically. We rely on mental shortcuts shaped by our surroundings. Nigerian entrepreneurs, often instinctively, are tapping into this truth—turning everyday interactions into case studies of psychological strategy.
Take PiggyVest, a savings platform that helped many Nigerians form better saving habits. Its success isn’t rooted purely in tech but in psychology. By automating deposits, making withdrawals slightly difficult, and offering visual progress tracking, the platform used techniques like commitment devices and the endowment effect to nudge users toward long-term goals.
“A small withdrawal fee actually helped people save more,” noted a product designer from a similar fintech app. “It introduced just enough resistance to reduce impulsive spending.” This concept—designing friction intentionally—is a hallmark of behavioural design thinking.
Retailers are catching on, too. In some Lagos malls, everything from scent diffusion to music tempo is tailored to influence buyer behavior. Slower music, for instance, has been shown to extend shopping time by up to 15%, subtly boosting sales.
The true power of this shift lies in its accessibility. Unlike high-cost tech overhauls, behavioural strategies can be implemented by anyone. A roadside vendor offering a free screen cleaning is using reciprocity bias to encourage follow-up purchases—no expensive tools required.
In one case, a pharmacy boosted medication adherence by 42% simply by using pill bottles with daily tracking visuals and sending personalized reminders—proving that simple tweaks rooted in psychology can yield powerful results.
Nigeria’s often challenging business climate—marked by infrastructure gaps and a broad spectrum of consumer behaviors—has pushed local businesses to dig deeper into how people really think and act. These constraints have become a fertile ground for behavioural innovation.
Looking ahead, institutions are beginning to formalize these insights. Programs in behavioural economics are emerging, and there’s potential for government agencies to establish behavioural science units to enhance service delivery and policy implementation.
What started as instinct is now evolving into strategy. The informal vendor in the market and the app developer in the tech hub are both participants in a quiet revolution—leveraging an understanding of human behavior to shape better experiences and outcomes.
Sometimes, success doesn’t lie in knowing what people want, but in understanding why they want it. And in that understanding, Nigerian businesses are discovering a powerful edge.
