Video Shops reveal “Too Many Choices”!!!
Have you been to the Gap to buy jeans lately? I took my 21 year old daughter there yesterday and the choices were overwhelming-slim fit, easy fit, relaxed fit, baggy or extra baggy. Then we were asked if we wanted them acid- washed, stonewashed or distressed? (I was starting to get distressed!) Next was button-fly, faded or regular. Aren’t there just plain jeans out there anymore?
It’s not just jeans: 85 types of crackers, 285 types of cookies. 80 pain relievers, thousands of mutual funds, hundreds of cell phones, dozens of plans. This causes us to make a complex decision and invest time and energy plus anxiety and self doubt over the ordeal. We are offered a staggering amount of choices. Too many options can produce paralysis, not liberation.
Abundant choice leads to frustration and indecision. According to an article in AARP (gulp, I now get this-YIKES) studies show that:
– As a store increases the varieties of jams or chocolates on its shelves, shoppers are more likely to leave without buying either product.
– As the number of mutual funds in a 401K plan offered to employees goes up, the likelihood that they will choose a fund-any fund- goes down.
The more choices we have, the more we seem to regret the decisions we make. Sheer abundance seems to raise our expectations. So, we wonder, did we get our needs met? Could we have done better?
When a prospect comes in, did we bombard them with choices? Lakeview? Master down or up? On the greenbelt? One new home community we recently shopped discussed 10 homes that were available in the shopper’s time frame. OY.
Here’s the paradox-America is all about freedom of choice. We can do our customers a favor and help them by narrowing down their choices. When they first arrive and you ask discovery questions, suggest the perfect home that would be suitable based on their family size and lifestyle. When showing actual “express homes”, never show more than 2.. You’re not saying, “I only have 2 homes left”, you’re saying, “I have 2 perfect available homes that fit your needs-let’s take a look”.
It’s American to have choices. Let’s offer choices without overwhelming our prospects and have them move in right now!
