Satisficing is a portmanteau word, made from satisfying & sufficing. It was first used by the Nobel laureate in economics Herbert Simon to explain a decision-making process in which an individual makes a choice that is satisfactory rather than optimal.

Why do we humans do this in the first place? Why accept something that is just satisfying, rather than go after something perfect, or optimal? Because, it would require a great deal of effort – and may not even be possible – to gather all the necessary information in order to make the best decision, and satisficing thus represents the kinds of decisions we are actually capable of making. Satisficing is all about making ‘good enough’ decisions instead of perfect ones.

Psychologists have found that people's approaches to decision-making tend to fit into one of two categories:

1. Maximizers, Tend to use a more exhaustive approach to their decision-making process: they seek and evaluate more options than satisficers do to achieve greater satisfaction. Maximizers tend to be less happy with their decision outcomes.

2. Satisficers, whose choices are determined by more modest criteria and nothing more. They generally stop looking when they have found something that fulfils their criteria. Satisficers tend to be relatively pleased with their decisions.

So as customer service leaders, who can we use this? 

The starting point would be to see if you can identify yourself as a maximiser or satisficer. You will find a self-evaluation guide at the bottom of this post. 

Now, can you do this for your Guests / Customers? Some examples:

• A guest spends a lot of time looking at the menu, asking the server what is best here, can you call the chef? what are those people having, etc, etc? Probably a Maximiser.

• A guest likes the first room you show her. She does not want to see a different view or a different style etc. Satisficer.

For the same process, develop 2 faces or shades.

Check-In

For Satisficer - 'Ms XYZ, your agent requested for a twin room, close to the elevator and on a non-smoking room. Your room is this way. 

For Maximiser - 'Ms XYZ, this is your first visit to our hotel. May I show you a couple of rooms? One is a twin room, the other has a king-size bed. We also have sea view facing rooms and ones that are closer to the elevators'.

Laundry Bag & Laundry Slips

This one is a little out there but stay with me. This could be a fun experiment to run too.

Instead of a long laundry list, that lists out all the types of garments that a guest could possibly have, try a simplified one with just the number of items. That's it. Give the guest both these options and see what happens. 

Menus

For Maximisers - More choices, more details, nuances, maybe even pics and a QR code so they can see how it is cooked and what are the ingredients etc. 

For Satisficers - Ask for top preferences and then offer a smaller, curated menu. A menu 'a la you'

Once you identify what a guest's mode is when interacting with your services, present the correct face of your process.  

Caution - people can move between these modes for different decisions. You may be a satisficer for renting a car, but a maximiser when buying one. 

Want to make this WOW? 

The distinction between satisficing and maximizing not only differs in the decision-making process but also in the post-decision evaluation

For Maximizers? Make sure these guests get more information, more choices, more time to make those choices and are allowed to change their minds if they want to.

• Let them know that they can change the room if they don't feel it was the right choice.

• Let them know you will be happy to bring them another dish if you see they are not really happy with what they ordered.

You can also do this for your teams.  

Let the maximisers in your team make the duty rota after they have asked the satisficers which shifts they would want.

Let the satisficers work on the physical or hard part of your services. example, the table layout, setting up a room for a guest etc. Let the maximisers work on the soft part of the services, empathy, warmth etc.  

Want to know what type are you?