Privacy zuckering, confirmshaming, roach motel…?

Have you ever heard these expressions?

Well, I have to admit I have not.

Not until I started digging into the upcoming EU privacy legislation changes in one of my LinkedIn posts earlier.

Yes, it is about privacy again. I just feel like as a Salesforce and marketing professional dealing with a lot of data at my work, I cannot learn and talk enough about it.

These unusual terms turned out to be a few of the many types of the so called “dark patterns” on the web. Sounds spooky…let’s explore!

So what is a “dark pattern” exactly?

They are deceptive designs on the web that basically trick you into performing certain actions you actually did not intend to do, like providing your data, agreeing to terms, providing cookie consent, or even purchasing things you do not want to, like add-ons, or subscriptions, etc..

Simply out of frustration, unwillingly, or because the UX is so confusing, you just too quickly find yourself “on the other side” of a misleading CTA.

Main dark pattern (or deceptive design) types are:

– Privacy zuckering – a practice that tricks the user into sharing more information about themselves than they intend to. (Yes, named after Zuckerberg.)

– Confirmshaming – when the wording of a website/email/post etc. uses shame to manipulate you into opting for consent or compliance.

– Roach motel – easy way in, but difficult way out. A good example would be some tricky subscription based services.

– Bait and switch – there is a different (from the expected) outcome of your online actions, for example you click through from an ad to a free or reduced priced product that turns out to be actually unavailable and then you are offered a replacement product instead.

– Misdirection – purposefully focuses your attention on one thing in order to distract you from another.

(For a more comprehensive list, refer to https://www.deceptive.design/types.)

What can we do about them?

Sometimes these are such small nuances, that are not easy to spot at all.

Unless we are aware of it. Both as users and as marketers (or businesses).

As users, we have to stay alert.

– Just by reading this post, you will be probably more aware of what to look out for.

– Avoid engaging with companies who you find suspicious from this perspective.

– Read the terms – I know, this is a painful one, and I also don’t do it all the time. But you can find yourself agreeing to something that you absolutely did not want to agree to. You just did not read it – in good faith. Unfortunately sometimes it is not enough.

– Alert the people around you about a potential dark pattern, and educate them about how to be more cautious.

– You can also flag dark patterns. There is a Dark Patterns Tipline page, where anyone can submit their “bad experience”.

– Harry Brignull, UX specialist, also operates a Hall of Shame on his deceptive.design site.

– If legal actions are necessary, turn to your attorney.

As marketers, on the other hand, it is our responsibility to avoid using practices that even resemble dark patterns throughout our online platforms and digital activities.

Our goal should always be to create a transparent, trustworthy system that builds on providing value to our customers without using any shady tactics. Misleading techniques are for short-sighted businesses.

We want to develop a relationship with our audience and clientele that not only fulfills their needs, but also helps our business to grow, and our hopefully positive reputation to remain intact.

To achieve that:

– Be clear with how and for what purposes you collect the data and the consent from your customers.

– Ensure your audience and customers know about how important their privacy and consent is to you, all the time.

– UX is important to drive revenue. But not more important than building and maintaining trust in the long run. As revenue is best when it is recurring.:-)

About those blurry lines

Let me add here, that as a marketer I can also see that sometimes it is difficult to draw a clear line between effective persuasion practices and taking advantage.

However it is our job to persuade. Not to manipulate. And there is a big difference between the two.

We should definitely be creative and do everything we can to win (back) customers, but not at the cost of crossing the privacy line and sacrificing our reputation. It is simply not worth it.

Regulations and legislations are not always providing 100% clear guidelines, but these are becoming more and more precise, and protective of the individual’s rights. Which – let’s not forget – is a more than welcomed practice when we are sitting on the other side of the fence, as consumers.

So when it comes to legal aspects, I would say it is better to be safe than sorry.

Here are some practical tips to help you remain compliant.

– Only by keeping this legal aspect at the back of your mind, while designing your marketing strategy and business processes, you can save a lot of headache for yourself or your company later.

– Having regular (let’s say quarterly) catch-ups with your legal department can keep you up-to-date about the changes that need to be incorporated in your marketing tactics.

– Educate yourself and your team about this less “sexy” aspect of marketing. Attend privacy and data management events, read blogs, listen to podcasts, organize internal workshops, etc.

– When in doubt, think twice and look for guidance. There are tons of resources on the web that will help you make the right decision according to the privacy regulations in the regions/countries, where you are doing business. See the list of references at the end of this post, you can use them as starting points.

By staying on top of the privacy landscape, you will become a better-informed consultant, CRM and marketing automation expert, business owner, decision maker with a holistic mindset and a highly value-driven attitude. Your clients and the business will appreciate this more than you think.

……………….
References

– https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_pattern

– https://www.adexchanger.com/the-sell-sider/step-into-the-light-why-publishers-need-to-stop-using-dark-patterns-now/

– https://darkpatternstipline.org/sightings

– https://www.deceptive.design/hall-of-shame/all?157720d6_page=2

– list of privacy blogs: https://blog.feedspot.com/gdpr_blogs/

– U.S. State Privacy Legislation Tracker by IAPP: https://iapp.org/media/pdf/resource_center/State_Comp_Privacy_Law_Chart.pdf