Choice overload is your biggest foe! Don’t fall prey: it’s common yet easy to avoid. Here’s how.
There’s just something about making decisions that gets me all worked up.
Especially those daily, mundane choices like choosing food at a restaurant, clothing in a webshop, or what to cook for dinner. As soon as the time comes to make a decision, I feel a small ball of anxiety in the pit of my stomach, and my blood pressure starts to rise.
Can you relate?
Choice overload is paralyzing for many and often causes them not to decide at all. Even worse, it can causes them to be more dissatisfied with their choice compared to if there were fewer options.
Unfortunately, the harsh reality of this issue is that there aren’t many signs of it letting up. Realistically, it will probably only get worse in the coming years.
We live in a digital society. Virtually every store is online and if they aren’t… well, I don’t need to remind you what happened to Blockbuster and Barnes & Noble.
With the changing times, we believe it's worth arguing that the moment is long overdue for us brokers to make it easier for their customers to make decisions.
--
Choice overload is a widespread phenomenon
Let’s turn back the clock to 2000 when Columbia and Stanford’s researchers came together to research the puzzling paradox of choice.
Before this landmark study, there was a common presumption that the more choice, the better. Economists and marketers alike believed that by offering more options, customers would be more satisfied with their purchases.
They made this assumption based on the rationale that everyone is different so they must all want their products their way. By broadening the product offering, more people would find their heart’s desire with, for instance, that oddly specific Creamy Garlic Caesar Salad bag of chips.
Contrary to this assumption, they found that people are not rational (surprise, surprise). Namely, researchers Iyengar and Lebber found that although consumers seemed intrigued and empowered by more choices at first, this enthusiasm quickly faded.
So much so that those exposed to 24 jam choices (instead of just 6) were less likely to buy than those who saw less variety. Talk about a sticky situation.