Dear Google, Apple, Mozilla, and MS: Please End Auto-Playing Media in Browsers

Re:Dear Google, Apple, Mozilla, and MS: Please End Auto-Play... by t64wdrk on Sunday November 13, 2016 @08:52AM (#12943304)

At my last job at a web agency, I was told to make a newsletter popup that opened on first page load. I said to my project manager (he was a web developer before) that it was bad design and everyone finds it annoying. He said that the client wanted it, and I should just do it.

I asked him, what if the client wanted a pink unicorn gif in the corner, should we just do that as well? Without telling the client that it doesn't fit the site? He said yes...

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Dear Google, Apple, Mozilla, and MS: Please End Auto-Play... by ssharp on Sunday November 13, 2016 @09:01AM (#12943338)

I wouldn't speak so definitivly regarding something you don't know for sure. Everyone doesn't find them annoying enough to make them ineffective.

The website probably won't cry over your bounce if it means they'll collect an email optin from someone else.

Auto play video is bad for reasons beyond a pop in modal and reasons beyond annoying video ads.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Dear Google, Apple, Mozilla, and MS: Please End Auto-Play... by matt_morgan on Sunday November 13, 2016 @09:47AM (#12943512)

Don't tell them yes or tell them no. Test, monitor, and promote the path that leads to the best success rates, acknowledging that user growth may drive success in the longer term. Take the long view, basically.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Dear Google, Apple, Mozilla, and MS: Please End Auto-Play... by mcbits on Sunday November 13, 2016 @10:48AM (#12943860)

Individual sites can't measure how much their combined spam costs them due to the ever more aggressive use of ad blockers. In the short term, a newsletter popup probably does increase revenue, but acquiring new users in the future will be more expensive as a result because the cheap and simple ads will fail to reach most of the market. Unfortunately, nobody has incentive to stop, as they'll just give up the short-term revenue and still suffer the future consquences from all of the other bad actors.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Dear Google, Apple, Mozilla, and MS: Please End Auto-Play... by mgkimsal on Sunday November 13, 2016 @11:13AM (#12943989)

need also to look beyond a month or quarter.

my wife has quit going to several sites altogether, and in other cases can not buy on a website, because of pop-up stuff.

So... if they're measuring for "email signups" then - w00t! - sweet! - numbers are so high! What about actual sales? Or repeat sales? Lifetime value of a customer?

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Dear Google, Apple, Mozilla, and MS: Please End Auto-Play... by matt_morgan on Sunday November 13, 2016 @09:01PM (#12947004)

I don't think I was very clear but yes, that's what I meant. You can't just look at the short-term gains of the promotion; if it suppresses repeat visits then that's a cost. And yes, it's hard to do, and is an art as much as a science.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Dear Google, Apple, Mozilla, and MS: Please End Auto-Play... by userbinator on Sunday November 13, 2016 @10:18AM (#12943699)

He said that the client wanted it, and I should just do it.

Ask him to ask the client if that's the behaviour the client would find annoying if every other site also did that.

[ Parent | on HN ]