Marketing Glossary

Friction (Conversion Drag)

Anything on your site that makes a visitor pause, hesitate, or give up before converting.

Used in context
3.4 — Conversion Rate Optimization

…Our audit identifies every point of friction in the checkout flow so we can remove it before launch.…

What it means

Friction is any site element, slow load time, or complex step that slows down or deters users from completing a conversion goal, whether that’s a purchase, a form fill, or a booked call.

Common sources include long forms, confusing navigation, unclear pricing, forced account creation, and pages that take too long to load — each one is a chance for a visitor to leave instead of convert.

Directly costs revenue

Every extra click, field, or second of load time gives a visitor another reason to abandon the page.

Highlights quick wins

Removing friction is often cheaper and faster than driving more traffic to a leaky page.

Compounds across the funnel

Small pockets of friction at each step add up to a large drop-off by the time someone reaches checkout.

DNA’s Take

DNA's Take: We map the full user journey and flag every point of friction with data — heatmaps, session recordings, drop-off rates — so fixes are prioritized by actual revenue impact, not guesswork.

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