According to this study it might depend on what is in it!
40 wallets of each type were “lost” in high-traffic areas. The contents were exactly the same (everyday items like discount cards, membership cards, raffle tickets, but they did not contain money). The difference was what was placed in the clear photo section… it either had a picture of a family, baby, puppy, elderly couple, nothing, or a card indicating the owner had just given to charity.
So what do you think happened?
88% of the wallets with the photo of the baby were returned (35 of the 40)
53% of the wallets with the photo of the puppy were returned (21 of the 40)
48% of the wallets with the photo of the family were returned (19 of the 40)
28% of the wallets with the photo of the elderly couple were returned (11 of the 40)
20% of the wallets with the charity card were returned (8 of the 40)
15% of the wallets with nothing in the window were returned. (6 of the 40)
Maybe hubby should keep a pic of our son when he was a baby in his wallet at all times. Does anybody have a pic of a puppy we can borrow – I wonder if having both pics would pull at the heart strings even more!
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
I find that pretty sad. I would always return a wallet.
I'm with Abigail, I find it pretty sad stats. Good article.
I would always return a wallet. I know first hand how big of a pain it is to replace all those shopping cards, ss card, drivers license etc. I would even give the person returning the wallet all the money in it just to get those items back!
I was definitely surprised by the study – not only that less than half of the wallets were returned 🙁 But, it also really surprised me that people were less likely to return a wallet to an elderly couple vs a puppy!