Steffen Schreier, SVP of Product and Portfolio, Proximus Global, looks at why the idea of removing all friction from the customer journey is backfiring for retailers.
Every November, retail marketing teams run the same play: bolder headlines, deeper discounts, noisier notifications.
But there is a stark reality which undercuts the Black Friday noise. Consumer sentiment surrounding the day is on the decline. And it is safe to assume that this is not because shoppers want to pay full price for their Christmas presents… it comes down to a fundamental breakdown in consumer trust.
Consumers now have to navigate an increasingly complex and risky online world. They have become understandably hesitant. This customer hesitation requires brands to rethink their priorities. Creating an environment where customers feel confident sharing their payment details should be every bit as important as the marketing efforts that bring them there.
In order to rebuild that confidence, it is time for retailers to challenge long-held digital commerce assumptions. The first of which is the relentless focus on a zero-friction user experience.
Invisibility fuels anxiety
For years now, ecommerce product teams have focused on getting rid of consumer friction. The theory went: more clicks, prompts and verification steps equals less conversion.
The idea was to create a user journey so seamless that online safety was not even a consumer consideration. Unfortunately, this drive for total invisibility has backfired. Letting protective mechanisms operate in the shadows may have saved consumers time, but it has increased their anxiety. That’s because they are being left blind to how, or if, they are being shielded from threats. During high-risk shopping periods like Black Friday, frictionless experiences only heighten that anxiety.
Traditional frictionless design transports shoppers straight to online checkouts. At that point the burden is on them as to whether they think their financial data is safe before they hit “complete purchase.”
By introducing strategic, visible verification checkpoints you negate this problem. By their very nature they signal active protection. Almost immediately, you replace hesitation with mindful action and trust.
The scale of the threat is immense. In the USA, cyber-enabled fraud cost victims over $17.7 billion during 2025. And while victims can suffer enormous monetary loss, the damage to their mental health can be even worse.
Naturally, the brand most closely associated with the fraud takes the hit. Fraud victims lose trust quickly and this drives immediate disengagement. Over two-thirds (68%) of fraud victims immediately end their engagements, or purchases, with said brand after the fraud has taken place.
At a time when customer acquisition costs rose by 60% in the last five years to 2024, losing your affected customer base over a single breach is potentially ruinous for enterprises.
This highlights why visible safeguards are more important than ever. If a consumer comes to a retail site on Black Friday, applies a discount and checks out in under a minute without so much as a single identity check or confirmation prompt, this is more likely than ever to trigger an immediate wave of panic: ‘Did I just enter my credit card on a fraudulent site?
Introducing “good friction”
Active reassurance is a key way to fix the trust gap. A way to do this is by introducing “good/deliberate friction.” This refers to explicit verification checkpoints that slow users down and encourage mindful decision-making.
This does not kill conversion rates. It actually validates a brand for consumers. And the stats back this up: 71% of users say multi-factor authentication before confirming payments or logging in improves their trust in a digital service. Additionally, over two-thirds (67%) of users report that one-time passwords (OTPs) delivered across multiple channels improve their purchasing confidence, and exactly three-quarters (75%) see real-time fraud detection alerts as a vital driver of trust.
This clearly indicates that making security visible on a holiday like Black Friday fosters trust. Shoppers will accept an extra sign-in step if they know it’s there to protect them, particularly on a day so infamous for digital scams.
Defence at scale
However, reassuring the customer at checkout addresses only the front-end experience. The internal processes are obviously just as critical.
Modern fraud prevention requires cross-industry collaboration at the network level. Cybercriminals are becoming increasingly emboldened. They deploy bots, they create synthetic identities, and they use AI as part of their phishing tactics. They also know how to exploit traffic surges. E-commerce systems usually screen orders automatically. Suspicious orders are flagged and sent to a manual review queue, where human fraud analysts review them before approval or rejection. Fraudsters can deliberately submit fraudulent orders during these peak times to exploit the noise and encourage auto-approvals or rushed reviews.
It is imperative that retailers and ecommerce platforms are ready for this Black Friday. That means tapping into network-level insights. Mobile intelligence, SIM-swap histories, and behavioural risk scores should all be utilised in real time. Done well, visible verification steps can be deployed on a case-by-case basis, instead of creating unnecessary hurdles for legitimate buyers.
Transparency should go beyond backend architecture too. If, prior to Black Friday, a brand has updated its identity verification protocols it should let the customer know. In a world of AI-generated threats, if you frame security updates as an investment in customer safety, many brands would be surprised at all receptive their users would be to this.
Trust is the ultimate currency
Yes, selling out your brand’s inventory is important on Black Friday. But it is not the be-all and end-all. Record sales do not mean a lot if you have broken delicate trust relationships with your customers by exposing their data.
With November 27 on the horizon, it’s time for retailers to redefine what they consider success to be.
Is it creating the most enticing prices? Or is it securing repeat customers well into the new year.
By making security visible and showing customers the shields that are there to protect them, brands can protect their customers and protect their customer bases.
Stay informed
Our editor carefully curates two newsletters a week filled with up-to-date news, analysis and research. Click here to subscribe to the FREE newsletter sent straight to your inbox. Why not follow us on LinkedIn to receive the latest updates on our research and analysis?
You are in: Home » Guest Comment » GUEST COMMENT How “good friction” can rebuild consumer trust this Black Friday
GUEST COMMENT How “good friction” can rebuild consumer trust this Black Friday
Steffen Schreier
Steffen Schreier, SVP of Product and Portfolio, Proximus Global, looks at why the idea of removing all friction from the customer journey is backfiring for retailers.
Every November, retail marketing teams run the same play: bolder headlines, deeper discounts, noisier notifications.
But there is a stark reality which undercuts the Black Friday noise. Consumer sentiment surrounding the day is on the decline. And it is safe to assume that this is not because shoppers want to pay full price for their Christmas presents… it comes down to a fundamental breakdown in consumer trust.
Consumers now have to navigate an increasingly complex and risky online world. They have become understandably hesitant. This customer hesitation requires brands to rethink their priorities. Creating an environment where customers feel confident sharing their payment details should be every bit as important as the marketing efforts that bring them there.
In order to rebuild that confidence, it is time for retailers to challenge long-held digital commerce assumptions. The first of which is the relentless focus on a zero-friction user experience.
Invisibility fuels anxiety
For years now, ecommerce product teams have focused on getting rid of consumer friction. The theory went: more clicks, prompts and verification steps equals less conversion.
The idea was to create a user journey so seamless that online safety was not even a consumer consideration. Unfortunately, this drive for total invisibility has backfired. Letting protective mechanisms operate in the shadows may have saved consumers time, but it has increased their anxiety. That’s because they are being left blind to how, or if, they are being shielded from threats. During high-risk shopping periods like Black Friday, frictionless experiences only heighten that anxiety.
Traditional frictionless design transports shoppers straight to online checkouts. At that point the burden is on them as to whether they think their financial data is safe before they hit “complete purchase.”
By introducing strategic, visible verification checkpoints you negate this problem. By their very nature they signal active protection. Almost immediately, you replace hesitation with mindful action and trust.
The scale of the threat is immense. In the USA, cyber-enabled fraud cost victims over $17.7 billion during 2025. And while victims can suffer enormous monetary loss, the damage to their mental health can be even worse.
Naturally, the brand most closely associated with the fraud takes the hit. Fraud victims lose trust quickly and this drives immediate disengagement. Over two-thirds (68%) of fraud victims immediately end their engagements, or purchases, with said brand after the fraud has taken place.
At a time when customer acquisition costs rose by 60% in the last five years to 2024, losing your affected customer base over a single breach is potentially ruinous for enterprises.
This highlights why visible safeguards are more important than ever. If a consumer comes to a retail site on Black Friday, applies a discount and checks out in under a minute without so much as a single identity check or confirmation prompt, this is more likely than ever to trigger an immediate wave of panic: ‘Did I just enter my credit card on a fraudulent site?
Introducing “good friction”
Active reassurance is a key way to fix the trust gap. A way to do this is by introducing “good/deliberate friction.” This refers to explicit verification checkpoints that slow users down and encourage mindful decision-making.
This does not kill conversion rates. It actually validates a brand for consumers. And the stats back this up: 71% of users say multi-factor authentication before confirming payments or logging in improves their trust in a digital service. Additionally, over two-thirds (67%) of users report that one-time passwords (OTPs) delivered across multiple channels improve their purchasing confidence, and exactly three-quarters (75%) see real-time fraud detection alerts as a vital driver of trust.
This clearly indicates that making security visible on a holiday like Black Friday fosters trust. Shoppers will accept an extra sign-in step if they know it’s there to protect them, particularly on a day so infamous for digital scams.
Defence at scale
However, reassuring the customer at checkout addresses only the front-end experience. The internal processes are obviously just as critical.
Modern fraud prevention requires cross-industry collaboration at the network level. Cybercriminals are becoming increasingly emboldened. They deploy bots, they create synthetic identities, and they use AI as part of their phishing tactics. They also know how to exploit traffic surges. E-commerce systems usually screen orders automatically. Suspicious orders are flagged and sent to a manual review queue, where human fraud analysts review them before approval or rejection. Fraudsters can deliberately submit fraudulent orders during these peak times to exploit the noise and encourage auto-approvals or rushed reviews.
It is imperative that retailers and ecommerce platforms are ready for this Black Friday. That means tapping into network-level insights. Mobile intelligence, SIM-swap histories, and behavioural risk scores should all be utilised in real time. Done well, visible verification steps can be deployed on a case-by-case basis, instead of creating unnecessary hurdles for legitimate buyers.
Transparency should go beyond backend architecture too. If, prior to Black Friday, a brand has updated its identity verification protocols it should let the customer know. In a world of AI-generated threats, if you frame security updates as an investment in customer safety, many brands would be surprised at all receptive their users would be to this.
Trust is the ultimate currency
Yes, selling out your brand’s inventory is important on Black Friday. But it is not the be-all and end-all. Record sales do not mean a lot if you have broken delicate trust relationships with your customers by exposing their data.
With November 27 on the horizon, it’s time for retailers to redefine what they consider success to be.
Is it creating the most enticing prices? Or is it securing repeat customers well into the new year.
By making security visible and showing customers the shields that are there to protect them, brands can protect their customers and protect their customer bases.
Stay informed
Our editor carefully curates two newsletters a week filled with up-to-date news, analysis and research. Click here to subscribe to the FREE newsletter sent straight to your inbox. Why not follow us on LinkedIn to receive the latest updates on our research and analysis?
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