Moving to the Light Side: Dealing with CCPA’s Ban on Dark Patterns

Authhored by Santosh Shukla, CEO & Co-founder, F1Studioz (an LS Digital company)

The latest government guidelines against ‘dark patterns’ and the ensuing penalties on ecommerce companies that are found using them has caused ripples in the market.

On November 30th, 2023, the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) made a bold move to curb the adoption of deceptive web design practices—called dark patterns—to mislead customers. The latest government guidelines against ‘dark patterns’, and the ensuing penalties on ecommerce companies that are found using them, has caused ripples in the market. This is because several businesses, regardless of their size, choose to employ unscrupulous tactics for commercial gains.

A recent survey carried out by Dovetail, a customer research platform, found that over 60% percent of the respondents have been misguided by tricky web design and the sneaky addition of products to the shopping cart. Common dark patterns, such as bait-and-switch and scarcity, have been utilized by major brands, including giants like Amazon, Google, Meta and Apple. In a bid to protect the consumer from manipulative practises, the government has listed and banned the use of 13 dark patterns.

How Will the Ban Impact Businesses

This is a much-needed move as only regulation is necessary to protect the customer from incurring a loss and also compel businesses to focus on ways to ensure a positive customer experience and loyalty. That said, it is important to understand that the ban of these design practices will have a direct impact on businesses that heavily rely on dark patterns for sales and revenue growth.

Legal Implications: Businesses will have to deal with fines and penalties for not complying with the regulations. It is crucial to comply with the guidelines to prevent any legal implications that might harm the reputation of your brand.

User Experience Issues: Many businesses might require redesigning certain aspects of their user interfaces. This might pose a challenge in providing a seamless and engaging user experience during the transition.

Compliance Cost: Complying with the CCPA guidelines might require potential redesign which will lead to businesses facing significant compliance costs.

Decrease in Conversion Rates: Dark patterns are used to trick people into buying a product or service. Businesses will see a short-term decline in conversion rates as a direct fallout of the ban.

Decrease in Revenue: Lowering conversion rates will negatively impact revenue and profitability for those businesses that are heavily dependent on dark patterns to ensure conversion optimization.

Increased Cart Abandonment: Dark patterns guided users through the checkout process quickly. Without them, people might take longer to reconsider their purchase and might not make the purchase at all, increasing the cart abandonment rates.

Course Correction: Navigating the Challenges

But it is all doom and gloom for businesses relying on dark patterns. Despite the challenges that they will face in the short-term, there are ways to navigate these regulations and build a more ethical product or service for its target audience.

Building a fool-proof ethical strategy is crucial at this point. Tricking customers is no longer a viable option, given the regulatory aspect now. Brands must also acknowledge the negative impact of dark patterns on both commercial gains and brand reputation.

Therefore, it is time to prioritize long-term revenue growth, increase customer loyalty, and provide lasting value with steps that will lead to a frictionless consumer journey and a positive end-user experience:

• Build trust and loyalty by showcasing authenticity and the value that your products and services will add to the lives of your customers.
• Be transparent about the pricing, shipping, return, and privacy policies to prevent cart abandonment and retain customers.
• Understand the needs and preferences of your target audience to make your marketing more effective and attract the right customers who will genuinely benefit from your products or services.
• Showcase genuine reviews and testimonials from actual customers to build loyalty and attract more customers.
• Provide top-notch customer service that makes the customers evangelize your brand.
• Invest in exceptional UX design to provide a seamless, positive, and delightful user experience to the customers.
• Periodically review UI/UX to identify and eliminate any potential dark patterns. This also includes being well informed about relevant regulations and ensure compliance with ethical standards.

As is apparent, creating a user experience free of dark patterns involves a clear commitment to transparency, ethical design, and a user-centric approach. These best practises will help businesses in avoiding legal complications and, more importantly, help in increasing brand loyalty, awareness as well as long-term revenue growth.

DISCLAIMER: The views expressed are solely of the author and Adgully.com does not necessarily subscribe to it.