Milk, Bread, and Bad Decisions

What winter panic shopping teaches us about marketing.

If you live in the South as I do and there’s even a whisper of winter weather in the forecast, you already know what’s coming: grocery stores become Thunderdomes as milk, bread, and eggs vanish faster than my patented “Irish Goodbye” at Eye Candy during PPAI Expo. People who normally smile suddenly lose all regard for personal space and basic human decency. While the forecast is a bit daunting, with a mix of ice, sleet, and snow, folks invade the local grocer of their choosing as if they're preparing for a six-week blackout and the collapse of modern society.

What fascinates me is that none of this behavior is logical. Most people won’t lose power, and roads will be fine in a few days, and yet, panic still wins every single time because uncertainty messes with people’s brains. To illustrate, a 2021 study found that sales of milk, bread, and eggs spiked by over 300% in regions expected to receive snow, even as utility companies assured limited disruptions. This shows how deeply uncertainty taps into our emotions.

When we don’t know exactly what’s coming, logic immediately takes a back seat to emotion. We don’t buy what we need; we buy what makes us feel safe. In other words, milk, bread, and eggs aren’t the point - control is.

As odd as it sounds, your clients behave the exact same way. When budgets tighten, or the economy feels a bit wobbly, your customers don’t suddenly become more rational; they become more emotional. They hesitate, second-guess, cling to what feels safe, and absolutely do not want to take risks with brands that feel unprepared, unclear, or desperate. This is where many companies really get it wrong. When things feel uncertain, they panic, slash prices, push out inconsistent and frantic messaging, and even change their overall brand voice. They chase every shiny tactic hoping something - anything - sticks.

This is the marketing equivalent of giving your neighbor a forearm shiver over that last gallon of milk.

Prepared brands don’t do that, regardless of the chaos around them. They:

• Exude calm when everyone else is loud.

• Focus on clarity instead of cleverness.

• Don’t suddenly reinvent themselves when the shelves start emptying.

The reason is simple: they’ve already done the work. They’ve built trust before the storm, communicated consistently, and positioned themselves as steady, reliable, and the calm in the chaos. So, when buyers start feeling uneasy, those brands don’t have to scream for attention because they already are the safe choice.

The lesson here isn’t “people are dumb.” It’s that people are human. When we recognize that fear changes behavior and that uncertainty amplifies emotion, we realize that marketing efforts that ignore these realities are destined to completely miss the mark. Brands that remain oblivious to these emotional undercurrents risk losing relevance and market share. They may quickly find themselves in a competitive vacuum, where their lack of emotional intelligence creates a gap for savvy competitors to swoop in and seize their customers' trust. The opportunity cost of inaction can be high, as it allows more emotionally attuned brands to monopolize the market. Sharpening this focus on the cost of not adapting isn't just about survival; it's about thriving in a rapidly changing landscape.

The time to earn trust isn't when the forecast turns ugly, and the time to prepare your brand isn't when panic sets in. When the storm hits, your clients won't be looking for clever; they'll be seeking and embracing calm. The brands that truly understand that reality won't be the ones fighting for milk and eggs at Kroger.

They'll be the ones people already chose before the shelves went empty. Remember: be chosen before the chaos.