Tactic 33 of 99
The Pre-Ticked Box
Whatever happens if you do nothing is what most people get.
What it is
Most people stick with the default option. Eric Johnson and Daniel Goldstein showed this dramatically with organ donation: countries where people were donors unless they opted out had far higher donor rates than countries where people had to opt in. The default feels like a recommendation, and changing it takes effort.
Spot it
Ticked boxes you didn’t tick. “Auto-renew: ON.” “Add a small donation?” already selected. Opt-outs buried at the bottom of the page.
Counter it
Slow down at every checkout. Untick everything, then tick only what you want. Put a reminder in your phone for every free trial end date the moment you sign up.