Have you ever researched or looked up something online desperate for advice or instructions regarding something that was a very time sensitive emergency situation, or serious matter such as “how to lower a child’s fever” or something else equally as urgent and perhaps even life threatening?
If you have done this kind of “googling” for real, straight-forward, honest information and direct answers, you have probably encountered the abundance of deceptive websites and articles that inundate you with pop up ads and spam ridden, irrelevant content under the guise of being benevolent and helpful.
There should be a law against this. WebMD is one of the worst with their very misleading headlines and “we’ll give you the information if you jump through these hoops first” practices. After you have closed the pop up ads and waded through the ads and deception, it could be too late.
Also, pop up ads do not work! When was the last time you were obnoxiously interrupted by one while trying to get to the content you needed and stopped to fill out their form? I’d say never… Not since 1998 at least – when you grabbed a clue about how to avoid such annoying and aggressive marketing tactics.
Banner ads seem to be very deceptive as well. Many are placed onto websites disguised as though they are part of the website you are visiting, topic of research, or navigation menu in order to trick you into clicking on them. The colour scheme and typefaces (yes, ‘fonts’ should be called typefaces, but that’s something for another discussion) are also similar to the website colour scheme and typography in order to make you think that the ads are buttons associated with the website you are viewing. Ultimately, this kind of deceit is a disgusting practice.