...If this isn't the best meme you have ever seen, I don't know what is!
Back to having too many choices... I was listening to Pandora Radio this morning and I heard a funny add that related directly to having too many options as consumers! Jensen Jewelers was advertising engagement rings. They were marketing their hundreds of different rings, for every budget, all with 14 different financing options. 14 financing options!!! In "The Paradox of Choice," Schwartz poses the idea that having too many choices can lead to uncertainty, regret, and a struggle to make a decision. I think this is exactly what will happen when a man walks into Jensen Jewelers.
Most people will not ever miss the choices they don't even know they have, but it is easy to regret the choice that you made. As consumers, we think more choices will lead to a more definite decision because we see everything there is and are able to choose from all of them. Contradictorily, it only makes the decision making process worse.
The following video talks about the scientific part of having to make choices and highlights a phenomenon known as decision fatigue. This states that no matter how small or large the decision, choices causes anxiety - even in win win situations where there is no 'wrong' choice! He also discusses decision paralysis, which is when consumers get overwhelmed by too many choices and they end up not making a choice all together. This is a great five minute clip to talk about the downfalls of too many choices!
And there we have it... Too many choices is stressing us out and causing us to be bad decision makers. So next time you are faced with a choice, narrow your options and don't think about it again once your decision is made.
No comments:
Post a Comment