Mark Terry

Friday, June 11, 2010

The Paradox of Choice

June 11, 2010
JT Ellison has an interesting blog post over on Murderati. I couldn't help but think about the coming deluge of e-book titles. Of course, it applies to books in general, so maybe it's not that big a deal.

“There’s a marketing concept called the Paradox of Choice.”

Then he went on, using small words so I could follow. Sometimes, his marketing stuff, especially the complications of statistical sampling, are well beyond my tender abilities. But this, this I understood immediately.

At it’s most basic, here’s the definition of the paradox if choice: if consumers have too many choices, they’ll either get confused and pass on making a decision, or will revert to brands that they recognize. Say you’re going to the bookstore, and you’re assailed (as I often am) with a plethora of choices. Too many choices. You see a James Patterson novel, and seize on it. You recognize the name—you’ve read his books before, you were satisfied, so you buy that. No searching, no discovery. Just a mindless choice. An easy choice. Because who has the time to put into making a decision anymore?

2 Comments:

Blogger Debra L Martin said...

I wonder about that as well. As much as we all say we want "more choices" I think deep down many of us just don't have the time to think about or even look at all those choices.

Oh, what a life it would be if we could spend hours looking through books of new authors we haven't read before. Unless a book is highlighted on a table or end cap, who has time to look through row after row of books available to us.

With ebooks, it's even worse, page after page on the computer screen of possible titles to choose from.

Just too much choice......

12:42 PM  
Blogger ssas said...

First no time to read, now no time to even make a decision. Sucks.

12:49 PM  

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