Entering the Dark Side of Marketing : A qualitative study examining what impact ‘dark nudging’ techniques have on decision-making in e-commerce purchases and how these techniques influence consumer regret

In an era where the world has become highly digitalized, the e-commerce marketplace has in recent decades grown tremendously. From shopping at physical stores, consumers have turned towards the convenient form of online shopping, where a new form of marketing has arisen. To guide the choices of the consumers in the online environment, digital nudging has emerged, with its dark side growing rapidly. Companies will position nudges in their e-commerce sites to manipulate and trick their consumers into making decisions which are not in consumers' best interest. Dark nudges in marketing pressure into impulsiveness and lead to consumer regret. As this form of manipulative marketing is relatively new, we saw the need and found it interesting to examine the actual effects the dark nudges bring to consumers in their decision making while shopping online, how they can influence consumer regret for young adults, and to examine how this will affect the companies using them. Through a qualitative study, this thesis aims to provide insight into how consumers percieve dark nudging techniques in e-commerce, how these affect their decision making and how they lead to consumer regret. Also, to empower consumers into recognizing and resisting manipulative marketing tactics that are not in their best interest as well as examine the effects dark nudging has on how consumers percieve the company nudging them. To answer the research question "What impact do 'dark nudging' techniques have on decision-making in e-commerce purchases and how do these influence consumer regret of young adults in Sweden?" the study draws on literature on perceptual marketing, decision-making and nudging. Semi-structured interviews, supported by cues, with ten consumers in the chosen segment were conducted. The findings highlight different types of dark nudging techniques and how they can have both a negative and a positive effect for consumer's in their decision making. This thesis does not only offer a theoretical implication for understanding the effect dark nudging techniques has on consumer decision making but also, provides practical insights for companies seeking to establish ethical marketing principles that will show how to obtain and sustain company credibility and trust. This study contributes to an in-depth understanding and new insights into dark nudges, their impact on consumer decision making, consumer regret and how the deployment of such techniques affect a perception of a company. It also contributes to the ongoing debates in the legislative sphere on how to regulate and limit the use of dark nudges.