Receptivity Spectrum

A conceptual gradient describing a user’s openness to commercial offers at different moments in their interaction with a product. At one end sits the fatigue trough — immediately after a cognitively demanding task or purchase, when decision‑making resources are depleted and offers are reflexively dismissed. At the other end sits the satisfaction spike — the brief window after a positive outcome, when the user feels relief, accomplishment, or anticipation and is demonstrably more open to considering an upgrade or cross‑sell. Between these poles lie neutral states where receptivity is moderate and highly dependent on framing, relevance, and context. The receptivity spectrum turns timing from an intuition into a mappable variable: every user interaction can be located on the spectrum, and the upsell can be delayed or advanced to coincide with a higher‑receptivity point.

Example: A post‑payment offer lands in the fatigue trough (receptivity ~4.7%), while the same offer presented after a delivery confirmation lands in a satisfaction spike (receptivity multiples higher). The spectrum explains the difference.