I’ve quoted Pine and Gilmore in my blog post “Mass Customization as a Revolution in Production?” before on this: “…as new mass-produced items rolled off the lines, most consumers gladly sacrificed what they wanted exactly in order to simply obtain one.” (in the introduction of “Markets of One”)

Can we reverse that with mass customization? Can we make products available to consumers without making them sacrifice? 

Yes, it’s possible. But to understand this sacrifice is crucial in determining what should be customized - and what not. As you’re devising a new mass customization business, focus your attention on that exact sacrifice. A good way to identify them is by observing “work arounds” of customers. Whenever someone takes a mass produced goods and adjusts it themselves to their own purposes, it’s an indicator that there are more out there that would prefer the adjusted item over the standard item. Not everyone might be as crafty to invent a work around. Take your friends that buy jeans and then take them to the tailor to get the hem shortened or let out. There’s customization potential. 

The tricky part though is to identify what sacrifices most of the consumers make. In the case of pants, is it that it “looks ok, but not perfect?”, or the length, or the way it sits on the hip? Only market research and interaction with those customers can really give you an insight into that. Often, a personal experience is a great start, but be sure to back it up - it might be that you’re the only one making that sacrifice.

But beware of the sacrificing consumer who has gotten so used to his sacrifice that he doesn’t notice it anymore. As Pine and Gilmore write: “[E]xpectations are conditioned by years, indeed decades, of settling for something less (and sometimes something more) than what each customer wants exactly.” But as more an more companies offer mass customization, as innovators triumph over having obtained exactly what they needed, the increased value provided to consumers will become the norm, and everyone calls out “Why didn’t we think of that?”