For those of you new to this issue, Best Buy was caught using a duplicate website to fool customers who tried to compare internet prices with in-store prices.
Customers who asked why the price was higher in the store were often told that "the sale must have ended" in the time it took them to drive to the store. They were then told to "check the website" to see for themselves, then were shown an identical-looking website that displayed different "in-store" prices. >>Full Story
Thoughts// A bit of a dated story, but still relevant, especially with this great post from the Consumerist.com (if you did not read the whole story, you should). I would assume that most normal people would read this story and react with a standard 'what were they thinking?' question. After all this is a major corporation, whose employees (at least some of them) thought, at some point in time, that this scheme was a good idea. It certainly proves that even the largest companies do not always think about the long-term effects of a business decision...let alone how the customers will actually react.
So how does this apply to the interactive / travel side of things...simple, tell your consumers the truth. Be open and honest with them. If they want to unsubscribe from your email list, then let them. If the don't want a brochure about fishing in your state, town, county, then don't trick them into ordering one. Focus on the consumers who do show an interest in your location, they are already interested and they want to know more. Sounds simple enough, doesn't it?
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