A dark pattern is when developers intentionally design a website or app to manipulate users into providing information or making a purchase they don’t otherwise intend to. They are not exclusive to any particular industry, but some are more likely to implement them. In general, there's roughly a dozen different kinds of dark patterns most commonly used. Do any of these scenarios sound familiar?

• Signing up for your gym membership was easy to do online. However, when you needed to cancel, that process was incredibly difficult. The options are to meet with a manager during a very specific time-frame that always overlaps with your work schedule, or send a letter that is conveniently "lost" in the mail and never arrives (even though you send it multiple times).

• Every month, the animal rescue you support emails you photos of the adoptees your donations help provide for. When life circumstances change and you need to either reduce or stop your contributions, the website’s confirmation page communicates a message along the lines of "Are you stopping your donation because you want puppies and kittens to go hungry?" You experience guilt and shame about changing your donation.

• You purchase a digital good from an online retailer. But when you reach the page to download it, it's got a dozen ads embedded in the page—all instructing "click here" to receive your purchase. You have to figure out which download button is the correct in a sea of fakes, and maybe click on the incorrect buttons a couple times first.

Why are we discussing this? Because at PK Information, we care about both our clients and their businesses—so we don’t implement dark patterns. They do work to a certain extent, or else no one would use them. However, they're based in deception and consequently aren't a reputable business practice.

Just because we can develop tools in a certain manner doesn't mean we should do so. In essentially every situation a dark pattern is used, there's an ethical approach that will reach the same goal. Dark patterns will confuse and frustrate end-users; outside of abusive subscription models, they don't create repeat customers.

When we work with new and prospective clients, our goal is to develop a long-term relationship that will be mutually beneficial for both companies. It is in our best interest for our clients to be healthy with a consistent customer base. Dark patterns are effective for having a large number of one-time purchasers (and sometimes quickly), but they do not create a long-term relationship between the customer and the company. And while there are business models and products that are based on a one-time purchase model, even then we don't recommend dark patterns.

Furthermore, consumers are catching on to dark patterns and finding a variety of ways to stop them. Ad blockers can hide fake download buttons. The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) prohibits some dark pattern techniques within the European Union and European Economic Area. Additionally, their effectiveness with younger, more technology-savvy generations has yet to be demonstrated.

It's worth noting that not every poor experience between a customer and business is considered a dark pattern—or even intentional in nature. The bait-and-switch method advertises a specific product at a specific price, but doesn't have any in stock at which point the store tries to sell you a similar product at a higher price or a lower quality version at the same price. A Black Friday sale that has a limited quantity available for a specific item—and advertises that—wouldn't be a dark pattern if you miss out.

Consumers appreciate an honest relationship, especially when money is involved. Positive interactions help build a relationship over time. When making a purchase, it’s an easy decision to go back to a business they’ve previously enjoyed working with. So while dark patterns can be effective to an extent, we highly recommend avoiding them for the sake of your business.

PK Information is a FileMaker-certified development agency serving the Tampa Bay and Knoxville regions. We believe that great software can change everything. Could your business use help evaluating and improving its relationships with its customer base? Contact us today!

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