I bought a Toyota Camry Solara for my wife to drive.  It’s basically a good car.  But I got the shock of my life in that car the other day.  We were returning to the mountain where it had snowed about 4″.   We left the highway and started up the road to our home (which hadn’t been plowed.)  Four inches of snow stopped that car dead in its tracks.

The problem?  “Traction Control.”  Thank goodness my wheels weren’t slipping in that four inches of snow.  The problem was, the reason they weren’t slipping was because they weren’t turning.  Apparently with traction control you can’t chew your way through 4″ of snow.  You just have to be stuck.

I got out the owners manual (prior to pushing) and found you can disable the traction control.  Great.  I did.  But it doesn’t really disable it.  Just minimizes it.  You still don’t spin your way home.  But after backing up, getting a run (several times) I made it home.

The moral to this story is obvious.  Toyota spent a lot of money to include that feature in the car.  I paid for the privilege of not being able to go where I want.  Sure, traction control helps when you’re on an icy highway (and already moving.)  It has some safety value.  But for those of us who live in snow country, saving the up-front expense and controlling our own traction makes more sense.

I know Toyota wants to protect us from ourselves.  It’s obvious we can’t be trusted.  But the bottom line is this: not all improvements are good.  Not every “enhancement” should be implemented.  Sometimes what works well in one application hinders you in another.

Be sure as you evolve your products and services that what you offer really does make a difference.    There is often a small minority of the people clamoring for things the majority doesn’t even care about.  Before you go to the expense of developing new features / benefits, make sure it’s something the masses want.  You’ll always do well if you appeal to the masses, not the classes.