Here's a pattern I see constantly …
A brand's CAC starts rising. Conversion softens. The team gets nervous.
So they try to "help."
They add bundle options.
They add a subscription tier.
They add a "starter" offer and a "premium" offer.
They add a discount code for first-time buyers.
More options. More flexibility. More ways to say yes.
And conversion gets worse.
Why?
Because choices don't reduce friction. They create it.
This is the offer trap.
When acquisition feels hard, founders assume the problem is that people don't see enough value. So they try to create more entry points.
But here's what actually happens …
Someone clicks your ad because they're interested in solving a specific problem. They land on your page ready to take the next step.
Then you ask them to make a decision …
"Do I want the 30-day or the 60-day?"
"Do I want to subscribe or buy once?"
"Do I want the bundle or just the core product?"
"Should I use this discount code or wait for a better one?"
Each question is a moment of hesitation. And hesitation kills momentum.
Here's the truth most founders resist …
Your offer isn't about giving people options. It's about making the first step feel obvious and safe.
One clear starting point.
One clear timeline.
One clear "what happens next."
I worked with a brand that had five different ways to buy on their landing page. Their conversion rate was stuck at 2.1%.
We stripped it down to one offer: a 28-day "reset" kit with a clear usage path and a specific outcome promise.
Conversion jumped. CAC dropped. And … this is the part that surprised them … average order value held strong.
Why?
Because the people who bought were more committed. They knew exactly what they were buying and why. So they didn't second-guess it. They didn't refund it. They used it.
Complexity feels helpful. Clarity converts.
When your offer has too many options, you're not reducing friction. You're outsourcing the decision to a customer who doesn't have enough context to make it.
Your job is to make the path obvious. Not flexible. Obvious.
The moral: Offer simplicity is emotional safety. Choices create anxiety.
Tomorrow I'll show you what happens when you get all of this right upstream … and why "boring" acquisition is actually the goal.
See you tomorrow,
Jeremiah
P.S. Quick audit: Go to your product page right now. Count how many decisions someone has to make before they can check out. If it's more than two, you're creating friction.
100% Typo Guarantee … This message was hand-crafted by a human being … me. While I use AI heavily for my research and the work I do, I respect you too much to automate my email content creation.
There was no review queue, no editorial process, no post-facto revisions. I just wrote it and sent it … therefore, I can pretty much guarantee some sort of typo or grammatical error that would make all my past english teachers cringe.
Anonymous Data Disclaimer … Most of my clients prefer that I not share the inner workings of their businesses or the exact details of the marketing strategies we develop. In order to be able to share my own proprietary intellectual property without violating the sensitive nature of my relationship with them, I often anonymize what I share with you. This may include changing the specifics of their industry, what actually happened, or what we developed together. When I make these changes, I work to preserve the success principle I want to convey to you while obscuring sensitive data. This is necessary.