What's a Little Friction in Your Customer Experiences?

The Gist

Not all friction is bad. When effort is intentional and meaningful, it can transform routine interactions into experiences customers value and remember.
The IKEA Effect explains why effort matters. Customers place higher value on outcomes they help create, making thoughtful participation a powerful CX design lever.
Good friction engages; bad friction frustrates. Optional, educational effort tied to a clear payoff builds ownership, loyalty and emotional connection without slowing the customer journey.

Friction can be a good thing. Last holiday season, I bought a custom soccer jersey for my son. It wasn't simple. The jersey had to be shipped from Spain, took a month to arrive and required dozens of decisions, from choosing the player to selecting the badges and other custom details. I didn't always know what he'd like.

So I spent time researching each option and even asked him in covert ways so he wouldn't catch on. It was effortful and even a little stressful, but when he unwrapped it and proudly wore it, the joy was immeasurable.

This story highlights a simple truth for CX designers: not all friction is bad. Some effort, when applied thoughtfully, can transform a routine interaction into a memorable experience. That's the IKEA Effect in action: the more effort you invest, the more meaningful the outcome feels.

What Is the IKEA Effect?
Good Friction vs. Bad Friction in CX: What's the Difference?
Adding Constructive Friction for CX Designers
When Effort Enhances the Customer Journey

What Is the IKEA Effect?

The IKEA Effect happens when people value something more because they had a hand in creating it. The theory is aptly named after the furniture company famous for DIY assembly. It shows that effort, whether building a bookshelf or customizing a product, makes the result feel more meaningful and satisfying. In customer experience, this means that the right kind of effort can turn a routine transaction into a memorable moment.

From a behavioral economics perspective, effort shapes perceived value. But only if it's designed intentionally. The next step is understanding which types of friction work and which don't. But how do you tell the difference between friction that frustrates and friction that engages?

Good Friction vs. Bad Friction in CX: What's the Difference?

Not all friction in customer experience is created equal. Let's explore the difference between good friction and bad friction in CX:

What is bad friction in customer experience?

Bad friction is the kind that frustrates customers and creates unnecessary obstacles. For example, in certain car sales, marketers aim to remove as much friction as possible: pre-packaged upgrades, popular colors and combinations readily available on the lot, and point-and-click financing that submits requests to multiple lenders at once. Sign-and-drive deals make purchasing almost effortless. While this smooth experience is ideal for some segments, it lacks opportunities for customers to invest themselves in the process and therefore can feel transactional rather than memorable.

What is good friction in customer experience?

Good friction, on the other hand, is intentional and meaningful. Research and industry experience with ultra-luxury brands consistently show that customers want to "work for it." In many instances, cars are customized and shipped. Sometimes, directly from Europe. But rarely bought off the lot. Selecting features, colors and performance options requires thoughtful engagement.

This effort isn't frustrating. It is part of the experience. Customers value it because it signals the uniqueness of the product and deepens their emotional connection. In CX terms, this is constructive friction, designed effort that enhances customer satisfaction, customer loyalty, and the sense that the outcome is truly worth it.

From custom soccer jerseys to luxury vehicles, the right kind of effort can transform a good experience into a truly memorable one.

Adding Constructive Friction for CX Designers

When designed with intent, friction can turn passive transactions into active participation and create lasting value. The key is to introduce effort that adds meaning and value. The goal is to make interactions worth remembering.

Constructive friction approach	How it works	Brand example and impact
Guided customization wizards	Break complex personalization into clear, step-by-step choices, ideally limiting the experience to three to seven decisions. This helps customers feel ownership without becoming overwhelmed.	Nike By You guides users through materials, colors and fit options using visual previews and fit-scanning integration. These experiences lead to higher average order values and lower return rates because customers invest effort in designs that truly reflect their preferences.
User-generated input via quizzes	Collect lightweight input upfront to deliver recommendations that feel relevant and useful, increasing confidence before purchase.	Sephora’s Color IQ scans skin tone, undertone and depth to match foundation shades, while its AR-powered Virtual Artist allows customers to try products before buying. The result is stronger purchase confidence, higher conversion rates and sales lifts for featured products among AR users.
Gamified engagement in loyalty programs	Tie small, rewarding actions to gamified challenges so participation feels earned rather than automatic, encouraging repeat behavior and habit formation.	Starbucks Rewards uses streak-based tasks, such as ordering multiple times to unlock a free modifier. Moving away from heavy discounts toward these challenges has reduced discount-driven transactions year over year while boosting loyalty membership and average ticket size.
Narrative-driven workflows	Transform linear checkouts or workflows into structured, multi-step journeys with a clear storyline and purpose.	Booking.com’s AI Trip Planner guides users through themed stages — dream, plan and refine — supported by contextual suggestions. Data from beta testing and ongoing use shows these flows boost engagement and contribute to double-digit year-over-year growth in room nights and record quarterly gross bookings.

When Effort Enhances the Customer Journey

These strategies work best when the effort is optional, educational and tied to a clear payoff, whether emotional, practical or rewarding. Start small, test rigorously, and always provide a frictionless off-ramp. Measuring success through customer effort score can help teams understand when friction adds value versus when it detracts. The goal isn't to slow the customer journey. It's to make it worth remembering.

Ultimately, constructive friction is about intentional design. It's not about making life harder for customers. It is about creating moments that matter. When effort is purposeful, it builds ownership, deepens emotional connections and turns routine interactions into experiences people value and remember. From custom soccer jerseys to luxury cars, guided personalization to gamified engagement, CX that invites participation doesn't just deliver a product or service, it creates lasting impact.

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