Most design or CX professionals don’t really understand why customers like effortless experiences. They think it’s because we’re wired to save energy, so naturally prefer things that require fewer brain cycles, etc. This is true, but only partially. Equally important is “costly signaling.”

The amount of effort we expend in providing a service subconsciously signals our level of respect and commitment to customers — the foundations of trust and loyalty.

In the same way that your partner will have more appreciation for a birthday card you took hours to make yourself than one you bought last minute from the gas station, as customers the experiences we value most are where people expend extra effort for us.

Typically, when an experience feels effortless it's because we're either literally doing something for the customer, or we’ve invested great time and energy to craft a solution that makes their lives easier. Either way, the additional effort required on our part increases their appreciation.

In other words, customers like effortless experiences because:

1. They make their lives easier.

2. They made our lives harder.

The key point: displays of discretionary effort increase perception of value — something we can make a point of doing.

See this post on LinkedIn