Posts Tagged ‘Choice’

of too many choices

It’s no news that America obsesses about getting lighter on the scales (even though successful results seem forever elusive). What’s new is the end of our love affair with limitless choice and the increasingly widespread view that too much confusing choice is just one more thing for us to worry about. Now that every decision we make is a deliberation fraught with potential risk, we are feeling exhausted by carrying the weight of endless choosing. The simplicity of edited choice, of options presented from an informed point of view, seems so much easier and welcome now. With every marketplace and life choice weighing us down with imaginings of outcomes and consequences, no wonder we’re almost aching to feel lighter again.

Our 2011 SCAN findings highlight the waning enthusiasm for an overabundance of choice. The affluent lead the way – only 13% of adults with household incomes of $150,000+ say that “a great deal of choice” is “extremely important” when deciding where they spend their money. Pre-recession, almost three times as many – 35% – wanted many choices. Overall, adults are down 4 points from 39% in 2007.

More than ever, Americans are looking for the safety and simplicity of the “sure thing”… the one clear choice that delivers on all their higher-than-ever criteria – and buys them a little peace of mind.

Business Implications: The challenge now is to balance the energy of the new and improved with keeping it all simple and easy for consumers. Strong, clear, edited options within your brand offerings are more likely to look like a “sure thing.” Consumers want you to do more of the work for them, to edit your brand’s range of choices so they don’t have to.

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