Everyone’s had that sinking feeling at least once, where in this time-wasting rabbit hole. Now, so many businesses are so guilty of wasting money, but wasting time is just as bad (if not worse). Oftentimes, businesses promise something helpful, engaging, or quick—but instead, it leads to fluff, unnecessary clicks, or a checkout process so slow it feels like it’s stuck in the last century.
Yes, customers remember this, and no amount of clever marketing can save a brand that constantly wastes their time. If anything, it drives them away faster, something no one wants. But what are some of these culprits?
Nothing spells frustration like clickbait. When a headline promises “The Secret to Boosting Productivity” and delivers nothing but vague ideas with no real substance, customers lose faith. People hate this on YouTube, people hated it with sites like Buzzfeed, and today, people still hate it. It’s not just a minor annoyance; it’s a betrayal of trust. The promise of value should lead to actual value, not a rehash of ideas designed only to keep people scrolling.
While sure, clickbait and shallow content might bring in clicks initially, but the damage to credibility is lasting. Seriously, it’s long lasting! You really need to remember that customers are savvier than ever, they want actionable tips, honest answers, and content that respects their time. They want to engage with brands that are actually worth their time.
This goes with the above, but it needs a deeper dive. People aren’t here to read paragraphs of filler. When customers are looking for an answer, they want to get to it quickly and clearly. Fluff-filled content that dances around the topic with little substance is a surefire way to waste customer' time and lose their interest.
You have to remember that content marketing is supposed to inform, entertain, or solve a problem, not just tick a box for SEO. If customers find themselves skimming endlessly for one piece of useful information, they’re likely to leave and look elsewhere. This isn’t just about blog posts either, but even video content needs to get straight to the point.
A common yet often overlooked time-waster is the payment process. Now, this isn’t 100% your fault, and yes, to a degree, it can be seen as unfair, too. But as a business, regardless of technical difficulties, you’re still responsible. So, here’s a scenario: a customer has found the perfect product, added it to their cart, and is ready to buy.
But then, a slow, clunky checkout experience puts everything to a halt. For example, it might be long loading times, endless redirects, or even worse, maybe even something like a payment system that times out.
You’ve probably been on both sides of this, right? But here’s the thing: businesses with outdated or inefficient payment systems risk driving away customers at the crucial last step. So, ideally, using reliable payment processing companies can make or break this experience. Seriosuly, you can’t pick just any processor; you need something that’s truly going to work.
