Online sales popups…
Website sales popups, we’ve all seen one. Its that little popup notification letting you know that Ange from Smallville bought that cool pair of shoes you’d been eyeing up and wow, if you dont get them too? FOMO!
What is it?
You have probably seen it on a store that you have visited online. It’s that popup box that tells you that someone has just made a purchase. Did you know that the majority of those sales notifications are fake? You can add an app plugin or widget to your online shop. You type in names, products and locations that you would like your visitors to see who, what and where they purchased. As you browse there will be little popups telling your visitors that you’re selling stuff like crazy, at all hours, 24/7. It’s main purpose is to increase social proof that other people are shopping in your online store and that you should too. It makes your store look busy, your product is in demand, building up the FOMO feeling.
You may have found it annoying, but stats show that it works very well. Online stores that use it see a general increase in conversions. I ignore them myself as Im a half price girl and if it aint, I wont, ha! Im not a cheapskate, just a smart shopper. Straight to the ‘Clearance’ section.
So…whats the fuss?
What this means is that people can use these pop up functions to create fake sales and pretend that people bought a product when they actually haven’t. That’s a big deal…or fraud. Yep, according to the ACCC its a ‘False or Misleading Statement’
To break it down, that means you can’t mislead consumers or affect their decision making by giving them false information. Saying that a customer bought from you is a problem if it is not true.
Lets compare that to ‘Puffery’ which is a wildly exaggerated statement nobody would take literally. Example being “We sell the BEST donuts in the WORLD!” Puffery is considered to be ok. Promotions that vaguely frame products or services as being 'the best' or 'perfect' are considered to be sales puffery. Its completely legal. You often see examples in slogans and taglines where the seller will use it to capture a consumer’s attention. Not so with the FOMO popups of fake sales. Boo.
Shopping til I drop…
The pros…
You can get a possible increase in conversions and sales.
They create social proof and FOMO on your product sales.
Its a powerful way to create social proof.
It shows ‘verified’ site activity and could help visitors make a sales decision.
A potential buyer may trust your brand from the pop sales activity.
The cons…
Theyre annoying as hell. I close one as soon as I see it.
They force a user to take action. Most likely not to buy, but to close out the popup!
Its illegal (awks)
Fake social proof can damage your brand’s reputation when its called out (awks again)
It could lead you to consider more black hat techniques (the use of unethical ways to promote online business)
So, there you have it. I hope you learned something new from reading this. There are valid and honest apps to create social proof. One such app is Trustpulse. Hopefully this can lead you to making a more informed decision as a buyer or seller.
