"Barrier Removal" is a tactic I've used to great effect many times in strategic situations where customers don't seem to be behaving the way companies want them to. In many cases, to a customer, there are hurdles galore when getting information or making a purchase. To companies, these barriers may not be at all apparent.

Barriers can be physical, rational or emotional. Physical barriers might include:

Long load times on a web page

Credit disapprovals at a car dealership

Small type size in an ad

Long distances to a dealership

Rational barriers might include:

Higher prices than competitors

Feature sets mismatched to needs

Confusing steps to buy

Emotonal barriers might include:

Fear of the unknown

The brand doesn't match my identity

Distrust of the product / brand

When a marketer adds up all the barriers, you get something similar to a Markov chain .…