October 23rd, 2025
She just wanted to cancel her cable service.
It should've taken three minutes. Instead, it took 48. Navigating phone trees, listening to hold music, getting transferred, and finally, being lectured by a "retention specialist" about why she'd regret leaving. When she hung up, she didn't just dislike the service.
She disliked the company.
That, right there, is friction.
Sound familiar?
How often has something that should've been simple turned into a headache? A refund that took six emails. A subscription you couldn't cancel online. A scheduling system that forced you to wait, repeat yourself, or pay extra for convenience.
Even the waiting room at the doctor's office; the clipboard, the delays, the redundant questions can be traced back to friction. It's a lack of efficiency in how the business is designed to operate.
It shows up everywhere. In checkout lines, clunky websites, buried phone numbers, and confusing processes. It's not just annoying.
It's expensive for both you and the business.
In business, friction is anything that adds cost, time, or stress to a process.
It's what makes a product or service feel a little less enjoyable and a little less efficient.
Companies like Amazon and Uber have built empires by eliminating these obstacles.
Amazon's one-click ordering and Uber's instant ride-hailing are masterclasses in making things easy. They've taught us that if you remove the hurdles, you win loyalty.
But here's the twist: sometimes adding friction creates value.
Luxury brands often introduce deliberate steps that make the buying process feel more exclusive. A boutique that only allows entry by appointment. A high-end advisor who schedules a consultation before they'll sell you a product. This isn't inefficiency. It's intentional elevation. Friction, when done right, can make an experience feel more personal, more rare, and more desirable.
Now let's talk real estate.
Buying or selling a home is often a friction-filled journey. Want to see a new property on the market? You're coordinating with agents and sellers on their schedule. Want to make an offer? You're diving into multi-page contracts just to test the waters on price. Selling? You're dealing with listings, showings, and a sea of online noise.
It's a process ripe for rethinking.
Yes, eliminating friction is critical. Making it easier for sellers to schedule showings, get offers, and access valuation tools... that's the Amazon strategy. But here's where it gets fascinating. Smart agents know when to add a little friction too.
Take this example:
You announce a "first showing" date, maybe a Saturday public unveiling. It's positioned as the debut of the home. But then, days before, you start receiving calls.
Serious buyers have seen the marketing and are desperate to see it early. You say no, at first. Then... maybe. A few "early access" appointments are granted, with the understanding that the home will be available to everyone else soon.
What happens?
Some of those early buyers, anxious not to lose the home to the Saturday surge, make aggressive offers. Premium pricing. Limited contingencies. And guess what? You've just turned friction into fuel. The delay created urgency. The "not yet" created a "must have."
This is more than theory. It's one of the carefully crafted strategies behind the home selling program I developed...72SOLD. In a 2025 independent study of over 11,000 sellers who used the program, the median sale price was 5.8% higher than other homes sold through the traditional MLS process.
Not because of luck. Because of process. Smart friction. Strategic timing. Consumer psychology at work.
But this isn't just about real estate.
It's a lesson for all businesses. Know when to make things seamless... and when to add a bit of friction. When you do it right, friction doesn't repel. It magnetizes.
Sometimes, the most valuable doors are the ones you can't open too easily.
