Is too much choice bad for you?

   

Is too much choice bad for you?

Choice is good – we all prefer having some options rather than none at all.

If the only ice-cream is vanilla and you don’t like it – you’re stuck. Either make do with something unsatisfactory, or go without. But if you can have vanilla, strawberry or chocolate, chances are you will like one of them.

So, if some choice is good, does that mean that more choice is even better?

Actually, no! The evidence from psychologists such as Barry Schwartz shows that

“With too many options to choose from, people find it difficult to choose at all”

Paralysed by choice

Imagine having 100 wonderfully different flavours of ice-cream to choose from. With so much variety, chances are there are many you would love to eat.

But the problem is you spend ages agonizing over which flavour would be best! You imagine what it would be like eating each – would you enjoy blueberry swirl more than honeycomb crunch? What about choc-mint truffle versus lemon-lime gelato?

This attempt to maximise the expected benefit leads to “decision paralysis” – you simply freeze up in the face of excessive choice!

“Paralysis is a consequence of having too many choices” – Barry Schwartz

Choosing business software

It’s the same with choosing business software. On the one hand, it’s great  there are (for example) over 120 different timesheet systems available on the market – chances are that some of them will be suitable for your situation.

But how do you rationally decide between such an overwhelming number of options?

• Do you spend time trying to understand each and every software package? Weigh them up against each other? Sounds like a recipe for decision paralysis, not to mention several weeks of your valuable time spent researching and creating an elaborate weight-rate matrix. If you’ve got the cash, you could pay a consultant to do this for you … but that just shifts the problem elsewhere
• Maybe you go with a solution you have used before? Ignore the choices and just make do with the devil you know? A variation on this is to go with the market leader, the well-known brand — at least you won’t be worse off than most.  It gets you moving, but it’s not necessarily the best decision.
• Or perhaps you seek the counsel of someone you trust? Ask people in your network what they use? Talk to your accountant or bookkeeper for suggestions? Referrals or word-of-mouth may help, but there’s no guarantee that what works for them is right for you and your specific situation.

The shortlist solution

This is an intriguing problem. It’s wonderful to have so much choice in the market … but at a personal level you can struggle to make good decisions in that environment.

SoftwareShortlist has been specifically designed to solve this problem. We research the many available options so you don’t have to, and after a simple online interview to understand your needs, we present you with a manageable number – a “shortlist” – of the most relevant software.

The evidence suggests this will help you will make quicker, better decisions.

After all, as a small business owner, you just want to find the one right software product for your situation. You don’t have time to waste looking at 100+ options!  

A COMET-sized boost for 2009

Trigora has just been awarded a $70,000 grant for SoftwareShortlist.com, as part of the Commercialising Emerging Technology (COMET) program.

COMET is a competitive, merit based program that supports individuals, early-growth stage and spin off companies to improve their potential for successful commercialisation of their innovation.  It is administered by AusIndustry (part of the Australian Federal Government’s Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research) with support provided through a network of private sector COMET business advisors.

Obviously we’re very pleased about this!

The COMET  grant will accelerate our efforts with SoftwareShortlist.com, enabling us to tap into expertise in key areas of the business. We will initially focus on market research and validation studies, in collaboration with selected partners and suppliers. And the timing is perfect, with our beta launch due at the start of February.

The COMET grant also means we are well placed to extend upon our IP strategy.  Working with Duncan Bucknell we have lodged provisional patent applications in Australia and the US – but we can now proceed confidently with the full (PCT) patent applications, wider trademark protection, and other IP issues.

Trigora is also assembling an advisory board to raise our governance standards,  give us access to expert input, and challenge our thinking with fresh perspectives. Plus co-founders Craig and Xavier will participate in the ANZATECH Gateway to the US program, culminating in a 3 day summit in Silicon Valley in October.

So, a big thanks from us to AusIndustry, the Australian Government, and of course our COMET business advisor Jim Paulyshyn. It’s going to be a big year!