Five Links #53
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Absorbing
Five links for your inbox from this week.
1. The big anthology of business thank yous
“Find the perfect words to say thanks.”
2. Why we don’t use early bird pricing (and neither should you)
Early bird pricing capitalizes on the fear of missing out (FOMO). This tactic may be effective in driving sales, but it contributes to stress in our lives where there need be none. By creating a sense of urgency and pressuring people to make decisions quickly, we may be inadvertently causing anxiety for potential attendees.
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Some events combine early bird pricing with last-minute offers to manage attendance. This approach can be confusing and frustrating for attendees who register at “normal” times and end up paying more for no apparent reason.
3. How to ask OpenAI for your personal data to be deleted or not used to train its AIs
Emphasis my own:
Why might someone not want their personal data to become fodder for AI? There is a long list of possible reasons, not least the fact OpenAI never asked permission in the first place — despite privacy being a human right. Put another way, people may be concerned about what such a powerful and highly accessible technology could be used to reveal about named individuals. Or indeed take issue with the core flaw of large language models (LLMs) making up false information.
ChatGPT has quickly shown itself to be an accomplished liar, including about named individuals — with the risk of reputational damage or other types of harm flowing if AI is able to automate fake news about you or people close to you.
4. Types of deceptive design
Harry Brignull has updated the Deceptive Design site (previously Dark Patterns) with examples of what deceptive patterns look like.
5. Super Agent
A browser extension to automatically reject cookie banners.
Projects + other things
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I’m now offering Power Hours, a simple, low-risk way to get an outside perspective on your website.
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I recently revoked my 1% For The Planet membership. I’m continuing to donate 1% of my business’ turnover, but this will now be split between projects that take action against climate change and organisations that fight muscular dystrophy.
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I’m currently booking projects from July onwards. Get in touch if there’s a project you would like to discuss.
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My Unoffice Hours are available every other Wednesday. Next slot: 17th May.
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Until next time,
Dave