‘Ethical CRO: The end of dark patterns’ – EConsultancy
Paul Randall says, “Ecommerce sites spend a lot of time trying to increase conversion rates, but sometimes attempts are made to do this that aren’t in the visitor’s best interest.
Some techniques, such as the ‘sneak into basket’ which once appeared on the Sports Direct website are now illegal.
In an attempt to increase the numbers, psychological tricks which affect user behaviour in a negative way are being used to mislead an unsuspecting audience.
Although not technically illegal they are certainly unethical. Businesses need to be aware of the long-term risks posed by knowingly misleading customers for short-term gain, both in terms of UX and brand reputation.
Dark patterns
Harry Brignull coined the phrase in 2010 and ever since has received hundreds of examples with the hashtag #darkpattern. His website: https://darkpatterns.org/ holds a collection of just some of them”.
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