Marketing in the Age of Choice
The other day, I turned the aisle at Berkeley Bowl and came face to face with the largest chocolate selection I have ever seen in my life. Row after row, and column after column, of colorful, artfully wrapped rectangles and squares. I scanned all the different flavors, delighting in the inventiveness of both their flavor offering and packaging.
For a moment, I felt like a kid on Christmas Eve being promised I could open just one (and only one) present. It was then that I realized, “I can’t remember the last time I got this excited at a grocery store.”
Our ability to be selective in our shopping experience has increased dramatically since the heyday of household TV advertising. We are so hooked on having all the options, but conflicted when it really comes down to the wire.
There are almost too many products to choose from now. It has become much more difficult to decide what we want, versus what we actually need.
(Photo courtesy of Pixabay)
Marketing has always played a key role in leading our interests from Point A to Point B.
Interestingly enough, as product options have continued to overwhelm consumers, we have seen only meager attempts to create distinctive advertising from each business to set their brand apart. Businesses are still struggling to figure out how marketing fits into their budget.
When it comes to psychology, the internet has really just made things more difficult for us. Sites like Amazon, operating in the vastness of the digital landscape, have created more indecision, not less. One article in the New York Times, recently explored what is now being called the anxiety of choice.
Online shopping has put the nail in the coffin on this one. In a recent article in The Atlantic, it was noted that industry’s output has grown 75 percent in just over 10 years to $35 trillion. In a Manufacturing Output Industry analysis, millions of people also depend on this continued growth.
The author, Amanda Mull, says:
“Helping consumers figure out what to buy amid an endless sea of choice online has become a cottage industry unto itself. Many brands and retailers now wield marketing buzzwords such as curation, differentiation, and discovery as they attempt to sell an assortment of stuff targeted to their ideal customer.”
(Photo courtesy of Burst)
It’s a rat race out there, with brands aggressively trying to compete for customer attention. At the other end of the line, customers are just waiting to be hit with the information that’s going to stick and speak to their needs.
It begs the question: “where do we draw the line?” If anyone can own and operate a business online and everyone is vying to be a disruptor, a challenger, or to have a distinct offering, what makes a company actually worth purchasing a product from?
Businesses owe it to themselves to take a step back and look at what their audience values and how they are meeting those needs. It’s worth the extra time and effort. Ultimately, if your business can get its marketing right, it will save customers a lot of choice anxiety in the end.
Hey, sounds like a win-win.