Why Your Customers Crave Progress More Than Perfection
How understanding the psychology of momentum can transform your CX strategy (and 5 AI prompts to build momentum into every step of the journey).
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Here's something that'll mess with your head
In 2011, Harvard researcher Teresa Amabile released her groundbreaking book, The Progress Principle.
In it she explains that our brains get more dopamine from progress signals than from actual completion.
That little hit you get from seeing "3 of 10 tasks done" triggers the same neural pathways as crossing the finish line.
And since then, tech companies have been quietly weaponizing this insight, completely changing how we think about customer experience.
Spoiler alert: your customers don't need you to be perfect. They need to feel like they're moving forward.
The Uber Revelation
Think about ordering an Uber.
The second you hit "Request," your anxiety melts away.
There's the car creeping toward you on the map, the countdown timer, even your driver's name and rating.
Compare that to calling a cab company and hearing "someone will be there in 10-15 minutes."
Same service. Totally different emotional experience.
Uber didn't just solve transportation; they solved the psychological torture of uncertainty.
That little car moving across your screen isn't showing location data; it's feeding your brain a steady drip of "everything's under control" signals.
The genius isn't in the tech. It's understanding that humans handle waiting way better when we can see movement.
This same principle is everywhere once you start looking for it.
The Progression Engine
Netflix cracked this code early.
Their interface doesn't just show what to watch—it shows what you're progressing through.
"Continue Watching" creates momentum across sessions.
"New Episodes" gives you something to advance toward. Even that autoplay countdown creates inevitable forward movement.
They're not just recommending content.
They're making you feel like you're constantly expanding through their universe.
Amazon does the same thing.
One-click ordering kills friction.
Package tracking gives you multiple dopamine hits.
Even their "people who bought X also bought Y" isn't just helping you find stuff; it's making you feel like you're advancing through some curated journey they've designed just for you.
But here's the thing about progress psychology: it's incredibly powerful, which means it can be used for good or evil.
When CX Design Gets Creepy
But here's where it gets weird.
![25 Creative Instagram Feed Ideas [2025] - Creatopy](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!mHbQ!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7b8b55aa-3a9f-4413-a1fe-9917c2682a84_1600x900.png "25 Creative Instagram Feed Ideas [2025] - Creatopy")
The same psychology that creates great experiences can trap people in digital hamster wheels.
Social media feeds you endless micro-progress hits that never add up to anything real.
Every like and share feels like advancement, but you're just spinning through an infinite loop designed to harvest your attention.
Dating apps turned romance into a progress game.
More matches = more success. Swipe counts become metrics. The momentum of constant potential connection becomes more addictive than actual relationships.
Even productivity apps can become progress traps.
When checking off digital tasks feels better than actually accomplishing meaningful work, you're caught in momentum theater.
The good news?
Plenty of companies are using these same principles to genuinely help their customers.
The Companies Getting It Right
Spotify's Discover Weekly is momentum genius.
Every Monday, fresh discoveries to work through. It transforms passive listening into active exploration, making you feel like you're constantly expanding your musical universe.
Duolingo built their entire business on progress psychology.
Streak counters, daily goals, achievement badges—they've made language learning feel like leveling up as a human. People get genuinely addicted to their Spanish lessons.
Peloton doesn't sell exercise bikes; they've created an entire ecosystem of progress signals.
Class counts, personal records, streak achievements, social sharing. They made working out feel like advancing through a personally meaningful game.
So what does all this mean for your customer experience strategy?
What This Means for Your CX Strategy
Stop obsessing over perfect resolution times. Start thinking about how customers feel during the journey.
Show movement, even when nothing's happening.
A simple "We got your request, working on it" beats radio silence every time. Your customers' brains interpret silence as system failure.
Create visible progress markers.
Break complex processes into steps. Show where they are, where they're going. A progress bar at 30% feels infinitely better than "processing your request."
Turn routine interactions into advancement.
Loyalty programs work because they make spending feel like progressing toward something. What other touchpoints could you gamify?
Design completion moments.
The best experiences have natural stopping points that feel satisfying. Instagram's "you're all caught up" feature is brilliant: it respects users' time while creating a sense of accomplishment.
Now, before you go momentum-crazy, there's an important distinction to make.
The Dark Side of Progress
Not all momentum is created equal.
There's a difference between progress that moves customers toward their real goals and progress that just keeps them engaged with your platform.
Ask yourself: Is this momentum serving them or serving us?
Are we helping them advance toward something meaningful, or just keeping them hooked on our system?
The companies that figure out how to align their progress signals with customers' actual life goals will build the most valuable relationships.
Everyone else is just creating digital slot machines.
The best part? You don't need a complete CX overhaul to start implementing this.
The Small Wins That Matter
You don't need fancy tech to implement this. Start simple:
Send update emails that actually update people, even if it's just "still working on it"
Show customers where they are in your onboarding process
Celebrate small milestones: first purchase, account anniversary, usage goals
Turn waiting periods into discovery opportunities
Your customer called about a billing issue?
Don't just fix it. Show them you're working on it. Send a follow-up when it's resolved.
Make them feel seen throughout the process.
The Future of Feel-Good Experiences
Customer expectations around momentum are only going to increase.
People are getting used to real-time everything: live order tracking, instant messaging, immediate feedback loops.
They're not going to accept black-box experiences much longer.
The next wave of CX innovation won't be about faster resolution times or fancier chatbots. It'll be about emotional pacing: designing experiences that feel like they're constantly moving forward, even when they're not.
Think about subscription services that show you how much value you've extracted over time.
Financial apps that visualize your progress toward goals.
Healthcare platforms that track your wellness journey, not just appointments.
The companies that master this emotional architecture will build customer relationships that feel less like transactions and more like partnerships in personal advancement.
Your customers' brains are wired to crave forward movement.
The question is whether you'll design experiences that satisfy that craving in meaningful ways, or just leave them spinning in place.
Next time you're mapping out a customer journey, don't just think about touchpoints. Think about momentum points.
Where do people feel stuck?
Where could you add a sense of advancement?
Because in the end, your customers don't just want problems solved.
They want to feel like they're getting somewhere.
And now: 5 AI prompts to keep your customers moving forward after this message 👇👇👇
AI Prompts to Build Momentum Into Your Customer Journey
Want to start implementing momentum psychology right now? Here are templated RACE-framework prompts you can customize for specific experience situations:
About the RACE Framework
These prompts use the RACE framework for AI prompt engineering:
Role (what expert perspective should AI take)
Action (specific task to complete)
Context (why this matters and background info)
Example (what good output looks like).
This structure helps AI generate more targeted, useful results for your CX initiatives.
Email Communications
Role: Act as a customer experience strategist who specializes in progress psychology.
Action: Rewrite this [TYPE OF EMAIL: update/confirmation/follow-up] email to create a sense of forward momentum rather than just providing information. Transform vague language like "We're looking into your issue" into specific action steps with named people, clear timelines, and next steps.
Context: Our customers often feel anxious when they don't hear from us about [SPECIFIC SITUATION]. This email needs to show clear progress signals and next steps.
Example: "Hi Sarah, I've escalated your billing discrepancy to our finance team lead Mike Johnson, who will review your account tomorrow morning. You'll hear back from me by 2pm Friday with our resolution plan. If you have any questions before then, you can reach me directly at this email. Thanks for your patience as we get this sorted out. Best, Jennifer"
Onboarding Sequences
Role: Act as a UX designer focused on user psychology and behavioral engagement.
Action: Design a progress-driven onboarding flow for [YOUR PRODUCT/SERVICE] that makes each step feel like an achievement toward [CUSTOMER'S ULTIMATE GOAL]. Replace generic setup steps with milestone-based progression that includes time estimates and celebrates advancement.
Context: New users need to feel they're advancing toward [SPECIFIC VALUE PROPOSITION], not just completing setup tasks. Each step should connect to their desired outcome of [DESIRED OUTCOME].
Example: "🎯 Milestone 1: Tell us your goals (2 minutes) → ✅ Complete! 🔗 Milestone 2: Connect your data (1 minute) → ✅ Great progress! 📊 Milestone 3: See your first insights → 🎉 You're ready to start growing! Here's what you can do next..."
Support Interactions
Role: Act as a customer success specialist who understands that how you communicate progress is as important as solving the problem.
Action: Transform this support response about [ISSUE TYPE] to show clear momentum and timeline, removing any language that suggests stalling or uncertainty. Include specific ticket numbers, assigned team members, investigation status, and exact update times.
Context: Customers contacting us about [SPECIFIC ISSUE TYPE] need to feel heard and see evidence that their issue is moving through our system, even when resolution takes [EXPECTED TIMEFRAME].
Example: "Hi David, I've logged your shipping concern as ticket #4892 and assigned it to our logistics specialist Mike Chen. He's already started investigating the delay with our carrier partner and will have a status update for you by tomorrow at noon. I'll follow up with you personally once we have more details. You can track progress anytime by referencing ticket #4892."
Product Features
Role: Act as a product designer who specializes in micro-interactions and user motivation.
Action: Identify opportunities to add progress markers and micro-celebrations throughout this [SPECIFIC WORKFLOW/FEATURE] workflow. Break down single-step processes into visible advancement stages with time estimates and celebration moments.
Context: Users abandon [YOUR SPECIFIC PROCESS] when they don't sense forward movement. Every interaction should feel like advancement toward [USER'S GOAL].
Example: "✅ Step 1: Quick eligibility check (30 seconds) - Great! You pre-qualify for our premium rate. ⬆️ Step 2: Document upload (3 minutes) - Perfect! All documents received and verified. 🎯 Step 3: Final review (1 minute) - Almost there! 🎉 Application submitted successfully! Here's what happens next: Our team will review within 24 hours, and you'll get an email update by tomorrow at 5pm."
Journey Mapping
Role: Act as a customer journey analyst specializing in emotional experience design.
Action: Audit this customer journey for [SPECIFIC JOURNEY: purchase/onboarding/support/renewal] to identify "momentum gaps" where customers might feel stuck, forgotten, or unclear about progress. Look for silence periods longer than 24-48 hours and suggest specific progress signals to add.
Context: Customers often churn during [SPECIFIC STAGE] not because of bad service, but because they lose confidence that anything is happening during [PROBLEMATIC TIMEFRAME].
Example: "Current journey has a 7-day silence gap: 'Package shipped → [no communication] → Refund processed.' Recommended momentum signals: Day 1: 'Package received at our facility' → Day 3: 'Quality check in progress' → Day 5: 'Refund approved, processing now' → Day 7: 'Refund completed.' This transforms uncertainty into anticipation."
Loyalty Programs
Role: Act as a behavioral economist who designs engagement systems based on progress psychology rather than transactional rewards.
Action: Redesign our [CURRENT PROGRAM TYPE] loyalty program to focus on meaningful advancement stages rather than [CURRENT STRUCTURE: points/transactions/spending]. Create distinct relationship levels with clear progression paths and emotional rewards.
Context: Our customers are motivated by [CUSTOMER MOTIVATION: status/recognition/exclusive access] and want to feel they're progressing through relationship levels with [YOUR BRAND/COMPANY].
Example: "Welcome Explorer (Join) → Trusted Member (3 purchases + personal stylist) → VIP Insider ($500 spent + early access) → Brand Ambassador (1 year + exclusive events). Each level unlocks new relationships and experiences, not just discounts. Progress feels like deepening partnership, not just spending more money."
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