Friction

Conversion & UX

Also: Conversion Friction · UX Friction

What it isAnything that makes conversion harder

Find it withSession recordings, heatmaps, funnel analysis

Reduce it byFewer steps, clearer copy, faster pages

Quick definition

Any element of the user experience that creates effort, confusion or hesitation and reduces the likelihood of conversion.

Where it shows up in the data

Cognitive friction

Confusion or uncertainty caused by unclear copy, ambiguous calls to action or too many choices. The visitor is not sure what to do or what will happen when they click.

Technical friction

Slow load times, broken forms, incompatible mobile layouts, difficult payment flows. These are errors in execution, not strategy — and often the highest-ROI fixes.

Emotional friction

Trust barriers: no reviews, no clear return policy, unfamiliar brand, unexplained pricing. The visitor wants to convert but something is making them nervous.

Intentional friction

Not all friction is bad. A confirmation step before deleting data, an age verification gate or a required deposit for a high-value service are examples of friction that serves a legitimate purpose.

What it actually means

Friction is anything that makes the conversion harder than it needs to be. It can be as obvious as a broken button or as subtle as copy that uses technical language the visitor does not understand. Every additional step, every missing piece of information, every moment of confusion is friction that costs you conversions. Reducing friction does not mean removing all barriers — it means removing the unnecessary ones and making the necessary ones as painless as possible.

Friction is the gap between wanting to buy and actually buying. Your job is to make that gap as small as possible.

How it shows up

Friction shows up in your analytics as: high exit rates on key funnel pages, low form completion rates, high cart abandonment, poor mobile conversion relative to desktop, and session recording footage of visitors clicking in the wrong place or rage-clicking. Each is a symptom of a specific friction point.

The Australian context

Australian ecommerce cart abandonment averages around 70-75%, consistent with global benchmarks. The most common friction points found in AU market research are unexpected shipping costs, mandatory account creation and limited payment options (BNPL and PayID are expected by many Australian consumers now).

Where people get this wrong

Adding features to reduce friction rather than removing stepsMore features create more complexity. The most effective friction reduction is usually subtraction: fewer form fields, fewer checkout steps, fewer menu items. Resist the urge to add more.

Guessing where friction is rather than measuring itWhat feels smooth to a founder who knows the product inside-out can feel bewildering to a first-time visitor. Use session recordings and heatmaps to see what visitors actually do, not what you expect them to do.

Fixing friction for desktop but not mobileMobile users experience friction differently — tapping small buttons, switching apps to find a confirmation email, struggling with keyboard types that do not match the input. Mobile-specific friction audits are essential.

Common questions

How do I identify friction on my website?

Use a combination of quantitative (funnel drop-off analysis in GA4, exit rate by page) and qualitative (session recordings in Hotjar or Microsoft Clarity, heatmaps) methods. The numbers tell you where the problem is. The recordings tell you why.

Is friction always bad?

No. Some friction is intentional and valuable: a confirmation step before an irreversible action, a required deposit that filters serious enquiries, an age gate that protects the business. The test is whether the friction serves the user's interests or only creates unnecessary barriers.

What is the easiest friction to fix?

Technical friction: page speed, broken elements, mobile layout issues and form validation errors. These are usually quick fixes with measurable impact. Start here before tackling strategic or copywriting changes.

Keep exploring

About New Rebellion

New Rebellion is a marketing intelligence consultancy. We build tools, score Australian businesses on how their marketing actually performs, and publish Debrief every day. This dictionary is part of how we work in the open.

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