Customer choice in itself is not necessarily a bad thing. In fact, having a wide variety of options for customers to choose from can be a positive aspect of a market economy, as it allows customers to find products or services that better meet their individual needs and preferences.
However, there are certain situations where too much choice can be overwhelming for customers and lead to decision paralysis or dissatisfaction. This is known as the paradox of choice. When presented with too many options, customers may struggle to make a decision and may end up feeling regretful about their choice or unsure if they made the right decision.
Additionally, offering too many choices can be costly for businesses. It can increase the complexity of their supply chain and inventory management, and may require additional resources to market and promote each option.
Therefore, while customer choice is generally a good thing, businesses should carefully consider the number and type of options they offer to ensure they are not overwhelming customers and that the cost-benefit of offering a wider range of options is worth it.
When you stand back and take a look at what you are doing today in your business or organisation, are you providing too much choice? Are you losing potential customers because it gets too hard? Are you holding onto unnecessary cost by providing too many options?
The paradox of choice is just one of the key customer trends we cover off in our new book coming out in May 2023 titled ‘Leading the Customer-led Revolution’.
If you’re not yet on the wait-list, don’t suffer FOMO – get in the know here.
