Alice Moon
Georgetown University, Washington, DC, District of Columbia, United States
People are increasingly able to receive customized options. Despite this abundance of options, people may not view products as customized to their wants and needs. Across five experiments, we provide evidence for a possible solution. We find evidence for the Illusion of increased customization: Framing choices as a creative process increases a chosen option’s perceived customization. Even with a constant choice set, choosing by (creative) attributes rather than choosing from all available options produces the Illusion of increased customization. The Illusion of increased customization arises in part because people feel a greater sense of co-creation when choosing via a seemingly creative process. Consequently, the Illusion of increased customization extends to choices that express preferences (e.g., liking blue over red) but is significantly diminished with choices that describe objective needs (e.g., needing a small versus large T-shirt). Additionally, heightened perceived customization from the Illusion of increased customization results in greater willingness-to-pay for the chosen option.
doi.org/10.1145/3613904.3642655
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