Menu Design Overload

January 7th, 2008

Several weeks back some arizona rails consultants headed to Streamers for lunch. We go there rather regularly because the food is good and there are several things on the menu that a bit quirky and favorites of the team. As noted before, I am trying to take everyday life experiences and relate them how to run a company better.

It seems like every visit someone comments that the menu is hideous. It has pastel colors exploding all over the page and there is so much content in horrible fonts that is amazing you can even read it. The menu is just overwhelming with choices. This started to get me thinking about how maybe they have TOO many choices and with a cleaner design perhaps they would do better.

However, after a lot of pondering on this subject, I’m crazy like that. How are they still in business? Why do we go there? The truth is the atmosphere is pretty nice and the food is great. In all honesty, they get most of their traffic off repeat business and word of mouth referrals. Come to think of it everyone on the team orders on advice of what others have had. I mean how else do you decide to order the “Quatro Fromaggio” out of the endless list of sandwiches? I think that being focused and having a clean design is extremely important in the software world, but in reality delivering business value and making the customer happy is still ulitimately king.

If you have been to a Quiznos lately probably noticed that they have completely redesigned themselves. They have stripped out almost every choice. I was disappointed at the lack of choice the last time I went there. It was too focused and too clean. I felt like I was missing out. They were cheating me out of my comfort zone!!! I ordered the equivalent of a Whitecastle slyder in sandwich form (Slammies). I was dead set on being bummed out. Then I ate the thing and was like WOW!!! This is awesome. A virtually party in my mouth! I walked away not caring that they simplified things. They had chosen to excel at this new sandwich type and they succeeded. Kudos Quiznos.

Point being, kick ass at what you do. Make your customers walk away remembering you for what is important to you. If you do via slick design and simplicity GREAT. If you maybe you aren’t the slick marketing wizard, it doesn’t mean you can’t succeed.

How important do design and marketing effect what you are doing or how you do it?