Just as the title says: Have you ever clicked on an ad, knowing it was an ad, on purpose? What ad was it? Why did you click it?
Curious because I realized I have not once in my life clicked on an ad shown online on purpose. Accidentally, and being tricked into clicking the wrong thing sure; never with intent though.
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I have purposely clicked on ads for some video games. It isn’t worth the click even then since you end up on some marketing railroad that doesn’t lead directly to the steam page.
Same for me, on occasion I’ve discovered decent games by clicking on the ads on mobile. Since I know it’s going to open up the play store, it doesn’t feel as sketchy.
However, the vast majority of the time I back out after taking a look at the game page.
I was thinking “no” but, yeah, Steam Store front page. Almost every time I launch, I take a moment to see what’s good today.
But apart from that, I can’t think of a time though it’s probably happened once or twice over the years. At best, some brand’s ad looks like a good idea, so I start searching the market,and if I buy, you can be guaranteed it ended up being from a competitor.
Does it count if it was for a shitty company and I just wanted to drive up their ad costs? If so, yes. Otherwise, no. lol
“we have a billion people interested in our ad campaign!”
“wait why is it coming from just one ip?”
What can I say. He really got me. 🤷🏼♂️
Spoiler
Yeah, I click them Steam sale ads all the time.
Turns out when the ads are for things I want, at good prices and without all the nag and malware, they’re beneficial for both consumer and advertiser. Advertising used to be a useful tool for both parties.
But enshitification must continue.
Yeah I’m usually way more willing to click ads that are for something on the website I’m already on than for something somewhere else
Once.
It was in gmail (I think gmail used to have text ads?), for a local job, in my field, right when I was about to quit.
I got the job.
Nope, I’ll even specifically avoid companies that I see or hear excessive ads for. When I needed to change car insurance a while back and had a list of options going, I immediately removed all the ones I could remember seeing advertising for.
Two reasons:
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I have an unhealthy hatred of advertising.
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They’re spending an absurd amount of money on digital spam as opposed to making their product/service better or cheaper. Some percentage of what you pay for in the product is to cover their advertising campaigns, and I prefer that percentage be as small as possible.
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If you’re talking about ads that look like ads, it’s happened maybe twice since the mid 90s. But who knows how many ads disguised as content that any of us has ever clicked on?
Yeah that’s why I choose my words carefully. Ads disguised as download buttons have existed basically as long as piracy has. lol
🏴☠️Aaarrrgh matey, choose this chest. Thar be plenty o’ booty to be had. 🦜
Sure, because it was my friend’s computer and I thought it would be funny if he got more pop-ups for boner pills and also I was 12.
Sorry can’t hear you over the size of my GIGANTIC PENIS
Your comment implies that your GIGANTIC PENIS makes a GIGANTIC NOISE, and that has me intrigued.
I SHOVED A FLUTE UP IT
Yes. When I search for a company name and their website is the first organic result, but they still bid on their own fucking name. I click that shit to cost them money for being stupid. That of course reinforces their marketing manager’s opinion that they’re doing a great job, but whatever. Waste all the money you want, I guess. It’s pretty ridiculous how inefficient big companies can be and still make massive amounts of money.
They often do that to own more positions on the results page, and you don’t get to see their competition without scrolling or clicking on the next page.
Isn’t it dumb that if I Google “Amazon” the top result is their ad and the next is the same link without the ad? Would make way more sense for the Amazon’s ad to be the top result if I googled “Wal-Mart”
Yes, that’s what online marketing managers would do if they had limited resources.
If they don’t bid for that spot, couldn’t a fraudulent (or at least competing) site take it?
I’ve seen that happen for open source stuff
If you become their costumer - joke’s on you, because now you are paying them to pay Google.
They were going to do that anyways. At least now I get my meaningless petty rebellion.
I make a point not to, so no. If I see something in an add that does interest me, I’ll just go to the website myself.
I saw one about lonely moms available in my area and clicked because I’m an orphan.
I apologize in advance for that joke and I’m about to donate $100 to a local charity that works with orphans. If you laughed, I encourage you to do the same so we can turn my horrid, inexcusable joke into something positive.
Ha nice follow through!
Yeah, saw a neat looking cat toy in an ad, and bought it.
It was an ad for a motorized ball about as big as a golf ball, lights up and kinda rolls/jumps around on its own as long as the cats nudge it. Eventually sleeps when they stop playing with it.
It is exactly as advertised, but the cats are only kinda interested in it. We still recharge it and put it out for them occasionally.
the cats are only kinda interested in it
Have you tried giving them the box it came in?
Naturally. They have lots of those
I clicked an ad for roblox in 2012 when i was a child. Probably the only ad i don’t regret clicking on, accidentally or not.
I think I also might have clicked an ad on kongregate around that same time period.
Now I use an adblocker, so I can’t really click on ads even if i wanted to
Adnausem clicks on all ads because that is how you mess your digital footprint.
I once saw an advertisement that is negative towards house building company, links to a news article.
