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Proof of Purchase, Experience, Honesty, ...

A fan clutches an admission ticket from a football match in Brazil above. A lottery was held at half time, a cue for spectators to take out their ticket stubs and try to catch the numbers read out over the stadium intercom and win a prize.

The detrius of receipts from the exit of a supermarket in Lhasa below. On leaving the supermarket the contents of bags were checked against what appeared on the receipt, which was then ripped and thrown on the floor.

Receipts that also function as a form of lottery tickets were reasonably common in China - a move by the government to encourage a culture of giving and receiving receipts with the ulterior motive of moving business to run on rather than off the books.

For any transactions, what tangible objects are produced as part of the transaction process and why? What are people's motivations for keeping hold of receipts and tickets, in what form and for how long?

During wallet mapping exercises its common for our participants to pull a few receipts from their wallet or purse - and to use the interview as an excuse to sort and throw. Reasons for keeping hold of receipts include: proof of purchase - being able to exchange at the store at a later date; the fear of being accused of shop lifting; franchised stores trying to reduce the risk of sales not going through the cash register - see examples from Seattle and Delhi; re-assurance that the right objects were bought and the right price was paid - especially for multiple-object purchases; horders who feel the need to keep a receipt for everything - and like to track the transaction minutae of their lives; the self employed who tend to systematically collect and catalogue receipts as real or potential expenses; receipts as emotional momentos of where you've been and done; and last but not least as conversation triggers to talk about what you've been and done. Bourg St Maurice train stubs? Moi? Mai oui.

Bearing in mind the reasons for keeping receipts what role is there for tangible ticket stubs in an otherwise digital transaction? What happens in the football lottery when match tickets are digital and everyone carries a personal communication device?

Writing from Tokyo | September 8, 2006 | Permalink