A Pinch of Customization May be Just What the Consumer Ordered

The other night when I was lounging around, dog sitting alone at my parent’s house, I started to rummage through the kitchen to figure out what I was going to do for dinner.  The pantry had spices, cooking liquids and Nutrisystem meals that my mom had long given up on; the refrigerator only had condiments and beverages; the freezer only had ice cream and frozen packages (my parents clearly are not health nuts).  Having not been in the mood to make a ketchup/milk/Nutrisystem concoction, I opted to try out the frozen mashed potatoes.  Although not your typical dinner entrée, I found cooking it to be the perfect activity because it was both simple yet personal.  The reason for this is because I only had to steam the bag of chopped potatoes in the microwave, mash them up and the directions left the rest up to me.  So, instead of following a strict recipe or use a pre-made package of seasonings (like with Nutrisystem…), I could make use of the garlic, butter, Parmesan, pepper and salt that my parents already had.  While not a wildly exciting meal, I enjoyed it because the product allowed me to add my own personal touch.  Like my mashed potatoes, numerous other popular goods are jumping on the bandwagon and allowing for consumer personalization.

This ability to take a product and make it your own is by no means a new concept.  Many are familiar with “the Ikea effect,” which is the buyers’ opportunity to assemble furniture on their own.  By giving audiences both the necessary tools and the freedom to do what they want with them, buyers are given the chance to feel a sense of accomplishment and make the product somewhat personal.  This in turn creates additional value to every product.

The latest brand to introduce this buyer customization,is Kraft, which will soon release MiO, a squeeze bottle of flavoring and a dropper to alter the taste of water to each and everyone’s personal desire (sounds a lot like G2 or Chrystal Light, I know).  This new product, like many before it (Nike, Apple, Harley-Davidson, etc.) is really catering to the millennial generations, which have taken on the mantra: “It’s not only ‘the customer is always right’ but ‘I’m always right.’”  Customization and personalization are key in pleasing buyers today and this trend is really starting to gain momentum as preferences become more and more fragmented.  Much like crowdsourcing, idea-generators and preference-makers are being outsourced to the masses in a bottom-up like manner.

Soon we will be able to reflect our individual personalities in many of the goods we buy, but do you think this is possible across all products?