The Death of a Pop-Up The Birth of a Privacy Invasion

I'm here to inform any website that is so desperately trying to sell anyone anything that they still resort to pop-up ads that their days are up. You're tactics have never actually been successful in selling much of anything except to the users so inexperienced with computers that they think your pop-up is a message from their computer instead of an advertiser.

Thankfully all the latest web browsers have gotten rid of your power to ruin a users experience, and I recommend you heed their actions to add capabilities to block you and search for more creative means to actually engage possible customers instead of annoy them.

Since Internet Explorer and Firefox have blocked pop-ups, I've seen all manner of workarounds - most prominently the "crowd-in" if I could be the first to coin a term that may become catchy. Readers know what it is - those stupid things that seem to slide down from the top or the side and cover up what you're actually looking for only to interrupt you with something that isn't really relevent in general and definitely not relevent at the moment while you're trying to actually seek information, but instead get some stupid enticing and ultimately dissapointing "something for nothing" gig. As much as I like clicking on my mouse button frantically to try to "knock out" a George W. cartoon - I'm kinda busy. How do you make money of this anyway? Really?

So, I say save it. Save your advertising money. These shenanigans are useless. When I'm looking for specific information about Warren Buffet buying stock in Goldman Sachs, don't you think I know enough not to engage in your "crowd-in" ad from AIG?

Google knows this - it is the basis of their profit model for search - relevency. Its a term that translates into "minimal offensiveness" with regards to humans when searching for something and having something else presented along side. In fact, its so important that Google is trying to get more and better information regarding its users so as to increase relevency and make your "crowd-in" ads seem even more clumsy,annoying,intrusive,IRRELEVENT.

Yet despite this, Google has chosen to ignore the customer centric approach that allows so many companies to gain useful information about their customers and stroke their loyalty instead of offending it. By this I mean storing user information on their end and amassing information about you on their computers. This sort of thing is bound to offend privacy advocates and earn it a monicker in line with Micro$oft.

I don't often offer free advice, but here is one piece for Google: you've gone through all the trouble of adapting code to make an internet browswer, why not actually listen to some of the marketing folks for a minute. If you did, and they're good at their jobs, they'd tell you that every piece of information you gain from someone has a cost in privacy currency and must be paid back to the customer. Most importantly, the customer has to know WHAT has been taken and HOW you'll repay it in kind. This is called a contract - not the 1000 line one's you provide a checkbox for to agree, but specifics - what are you collecting and how I can opt out if I change my mind and trust you to get rid of it. If you don't do these two things, forget about it - the ISS will be all over you and you'll be the next Evil Empire.

The browser model has promise though because it allows much if not all of this information to be stored on the client computer which can then be erased at their first inclination of nervousness or deceit. Store is securely - encrypt it if need be, but allow the user to see everything and allow the code to be open for privacy people to evaluate it. Do this and track where and what people will agree to and you'll be on your way to 70% market share with IE on its way to 30% or less.

Want a killer knock out punch - allow people to rate the relevency of the ad you throw in front of them and maybe even rate them if they clicked on them - you're ads learn and you're model adjusts based on your targets input.

Here are some bits of information I'll trade for convenience of your knowledge:

I'll let you use my zip code if you can provide a list of restaurants I might choose given the time of the day. But - allow me to exclude certain choices easily and remember them next time.

I'll let you know what car I drive if you can show me where I can get tires for it within the general area or tell me about recalls and such - now you've got two pieces of info (car/zip code) and you're helping me out by using both - I can get on board with that.

I'm sure everyone has a ton of things they'll provide if they know it will help them and not annoy them. It is your job to put this together to drive traffic/advertising without pissing me off.

Good luck, I'm picky and verbose.