This is a fascinating article on how Kit Kat tried to introduce new flavors and overall sales declined 18%.

The article blames the failure on bad product and ill conceived flavors. But I think there may be another explanation. That explanation lies in the Paradox of Choice.

When there is only one Kit Kat bar to choose from you either want it or don’t. When faced with 5 flavors of Kit Kats the decision becomes overwhelming. “Should I go for the regular or the peanut butter or the strawberry?” When people are overwhelmed with choice, research shows, they will make no choice at all. So when faced with having to decide between many flavors of Kit Kat they probably just went for a Twix bar instead.

We often see organizations trying to grow by adding complexity or choice to their offering, thinking that what consumers want is more. Consumers want easy not more.