Many people go through the web conferencing software buying process by comparing features and price. They’ll look at lists of features and prices compared side by side, then they’ll choose the web conferencing product with the most features at the best price. This may seem like a good way to make a decision, but having the most features isn’t as good as having the right features. ‘The Featuritis Curve’ works best to illustrate this point. Kathy Sierra used this graph to point out that product designers tend to stuff features into their products in order to satisfy as many customers as possible. For example, “Software that keeps adding feature upon feature until the simple things you used to do are no longer simple, and the whole thing feels overwhelming”. ‘The Featuritis Curve’ shows that users get happier with features as they increase and help them do their jobs. But at a certain point the complexity of dealing with those features outweighs the benefit of having them. When selecting conferencing software for their team, managers should first look at what their team truly needs in order to meet their objectives. If audio collaboration, video conferencing and screen sharing is all they need, the manager shouldn’t purchase the web conferencing software with all the bells and whistles. He or she should find a product that only provides the features they need so they don’t get overwhelmed. When selecting a conferencing solution for your team (or any product for that matter) avoid ‘featuritis’ by comparing products by features you need instead of features offered. Your team will thank you for it. For more meeting tips and insights, subscribe to our newsletter. 
Sometimes the best of intentions can make matters worse. If a manager chooses web conferencing software based solely on ‘the best’ features without taking into account his or her team and their meeting objectives the best of intentions are bound to backfire.
