Have you ever been to a restaurant and been handed what looks like the world’s longest menu? With hundreds of options presented to you, you drift between conversation and trying to make sense of the extensive menu. When the waiter arrives to take your order, you have to ask for more time because you’ve not really digested any of the content, only attempted to review the options but not really made any progress. Ultimately, you force yourself to make a decision because you are in a restaurant, but it can be a painful exercise and you may be left feeling anxious as to whether you’ve chosen the right dish, but pressure from the waiter visiting to take your order for the third time forces your decision.
In restaurants where a much simpler menu is prepared, the decision is normally much quicker, unless two of your favourite dishes are displayed, but it’s still a quicker decision and adds to a more enjoyable experience.
Those interested in the psychology of choice will already be aware that by presenting people with too many options can delay and, in some circumstances, put off the buying decision altogether. There is the fine balance between providing customers with choice vs overwhelming them with a plethora of options. Conversely, the same applies when too few options are presented, and customers can be left in doubt over their purchase, feeling that they don’t have adequate choice or information before making an informed purchase.
What some customers may prefer is a recommendation or some form of guidance to help with their buying decision. This could be in the form of asking questions to ascertain their wants and needs, an option to apply filters or advising on the most popular options purchased.
When it comes to financially regulated products such as insurance or mortgages, how can you offer customers choice without either mis-selling or overwhelming customers? With more and more retailers being reluctant to provide advice due to the potential liability for getting it wrong, instead retailers make the customer take responsibility for their own choice. This is often re-enforced by getting them to confirm that they’ve read all the T&Cs and/or pushing them towards the policy wording expecting the customer to fully digest 10,000 words before making their purchase.
Wouldn’t it be refreshing if retailers in the financial markets took on the responsibility of making recommendations and suggesting suitable products that meet the needs of the customer. In some markets this is being done better than others.
At Small Print Compare our solution makes the information accessible to whoever requires it. It’s in your company’s best interest to make the buying decision process as easy as possible for customers whilst ensuring that the purchase meets the wants and needs of the customer. There’s no secret answer, and often the visitor to sale conversion maximisation point is only known through experimentation, either by making small changes and monitoring the results, or running two versions of the same site through A/B testing.
What’s clear though, is by getting it right:
- Sale conversions increase
- Customer service improves
- Customer satisfaction improves
- Cancellations and complaints decrease
Contact us today to find out more on how we can help.
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