I just despise it when marketers try to trick me … or they are just plain dumb and don’t test their stuff.

In the mail, I received a Facebook promotional offer. I would get some free advertising if I just used their code.

I went to the web site address they gave me. There was no place on the page for me to enter their promotional code. Now I’m kind of up there in age, so I thought maybe my eyes were playing tricks on me. So I looked and I looked again. Nope. No little box with text saying enter your promotional code here.

If it was a mistake, that was dumb of them. They should have tested their offer to ensure people could follow their instructions.

More likely, their thinking was nefarious. They probably wanted me to click through and take the time to sign up for advertising, and somewhere in that long process would be a place to put the promotional code.

But I don’t like to be tricked and trapped in a process before I’m committed.

If a flyer says go to here and put in your promotional code, that’s exactly what I want to see. Anything less is betrayal.

Easy Web Tip #121: When sending out offers with promotional codes, avoid playing trick and trap with your web site visitors. Respect them. Play fair.