Observe the Bailey Gardiner office at 9:00 AM sharp on any given day, and you might see some of the employees scream in defeat, cheer with victory, or scurry to their neighbor’s computer screen to see the latest deeply discounted goods being offered on Gilt.com.

If you are not familiar, Gilt is an invite-only online shopping site that offers luxury brands at up to 70% off.  Gilt has changed the game for online shopping sites. Every day at 9 AM PST sharp, a new sale starts. Once the sale starts, shoppers have 36 hours to shop, however usually everything sells out within mere minutes.  Gilt has become a phenomenon, gaining one million members within 18 months of launching.  What makes Gilt so successful is that it feeds some of our most simple human desires:

• We love a good deal.  We may be in a recession, but most of us still want nice stuff.  We just don’t want to pay full price for it.  There is something deeply satisfying about getting a Chloe dress for 50% off, satisfying enough for me to often overlook the fact that I still spent hundreds of dollars I wasn’t planning on spending.

• We want to win.  Shopping on Gilt is like gambling.  Usually you have seconds to decide whether you like something enough to buy it, add it to your shopping cart, and check out before everything on the site is sold out. When I do succeed, and get that confirmation that my purchase has been processed, I get that winner’s euphoria like I won the jackpot.
•  We don’t want to miss an opportunity.  There is a sense of urgency with Gilt.  If you don’t buy right now, you will miss your opportunity.  This fear of missing out has caused me to make far too many impulse purchases than I would like to admit.
• We want to feel special and included.  Since Gilt is invite only, members feel like they are part of an exclusive club.  Gilt also often puts brands I could normally not afford within grasp.

For many, shopping is already a euphoria-inducing activity, and Gilt has figured out how to heighten that experience by satisfying our basic desires as consumers.  Sadly, I admit I am hooked.  Are you a Gilt member yet? What do you love (or hate) about the site?