Customers love choices, at least we assume they do. But there is a fine line between offering lots of options and inducing what brothers Chip and Dan Heath refer to as decision paralysis. 

In their recent book, Switch: How to Change Things When Change is Hard, they describe an experiment that takes place in a gourmet shop that is probably similar to ours.  Customers are offered samples of 6 different jams one day, and 24 different jams another day.  The result?  More shoppers stop to sample the jams when there are 24 on display, but those who saw only 6 jams on display were 10 times more likely to buy a jar.

“More options,” according to the Heaths, “can freeze us and make us retreat to the default plan,” which in the case of shoppers would be to say they are just looking.  As they point out in this chapter of their book, shopping is a lot more tiring than most other light activities because of the self-control and decision-making required.

In order to simplify the shopping experience in your store, consider how many options you offer in each category. A good specialty shop “edits” the selection of products so that shoppers trust that every item on display is worth buying.  The question is how to present just the right number of options so that customers feel they have some choices — but not too many.

A common solution to this dilemma in the housewares and clothing industry is to classify merchandise by price into three categories: good, better, and best.  For example, a store might offer a few 4 X 6 frames in a basic style for $10,  two real wood options for $18 and a handmade version for $25. Shoppers often know about what they are willing to spend on an item, so instead of wading through a dozen similarly-priced items, their choice is simplified by the categories.

Tree Free Greetings, an innovative supplier of gift items using recycled and alternative materials, recently came out with an extensive line of products that are available in dozens of stock designs. You can also add a name-drop with your local region, or a saying.  The result is a stunning 14,000 different potential products.  I love the new line (do check it out), and I was very pleased with the merchandise when it arrived, but I have to say that “decision paralysis” started to set in early as the rep and I tried to figure out an order.  At both the wholesale and the retail level, sometimes less really is more — or at least better.

Happy Retailing,

Carol “Orange” Schroeder