Jelmer Tiemessen
ABSTRACT
Deceptive countdown timers indicate a limited-time offer that is not truly limited-time, as the deal continues after the timer reaches zero. The effects of such deceptive (dark) patterns on consumers’ buying behavior are largely unknown. We present a setup to research such effects and use it in this exploratory study to investigate deceptive countdown timers through a simulated online shopping task (N=245), followed by a questionnaire. We compared the reaction of participants who encountered i) no special offers, ii) only a discount, and iii) a discount accompanied by a deceptive countdown timer. The results show that both types of discounts increase customers’ preference for the discounted product. However, we observe various negative responses towards deceptive timers (e.g., they are perceived as manipulative, immoral, and unethical). Our findings indicate that deceptive timers can induce a fear of missing out and make consumers averse to offers and websites that use such practices.
Footnotes
1 Throughout the paper, we will use the term ‘deceptive design patterns’ as this is the most recent term. However, when referring to the experiment and questionnaire, we use ‘dark patterns’ as this term was used in the experiment.
Footnote2 The approval rate (0 – 100) is the percentage of studies for which the participant has been approved, versus the number of experiments participated in [43].
Footnote
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Index Terms
- The Time is Ticking: The Effect of Limited Time Discounts on Consumers’ Buying Behavior and Experience
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