Monday, July 26, 2021

Online Sales Strategies: Passive Aggressive and Personification

As I've been more active on fashion websites these past weeks, I've increasingly noticed how different sites attempt to convince one to sign up for emails or texts: through the promise of 10–15% off a purchase. 

I've signed up for these on occasion, usually if I'm buying my children clothing or a gift but more often than not, I want to bypass and simply go to the site. 

The problem is that some of these sites are passive aggressive, offering a "Yes, I'll take 15% off" option or a "No, I don't want to save money on my purchase" option, the latter of which is designed to make the potential customer feel foolish and coerce them into signing up for emails they don't want.

The other tactic I've noticed is the overly intimate pop-up--usually when I'm scrolling through social media. One business admonishes "Don't forget about me!" which I find particularly invasive. This company uses personification, so a handbag either makes a plea (as above) or appears in stalkerish fashion: "Me again!" It's the 2021 corollary to Clippy.

While I enjoy the freedom of online browsing, I don't like when it's accompanied by a soupçon of guilt or talking products. How do gentle readers approach/experience such online sales strategies?


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