Dark patterns are UX designs that deliberately trick users into doing something they didn't intend. The term was coined by UX designer Harry Brignull in 2010, and examples range from subtle (pre-checked email opt-ins) to egregious (making "Cancel Subscription" require a phone call to a retention team).
On landing pages, the most common dark patterns are: confirmshaming ("No thanks, I don't want to grow my business"), hidden costs that appear only at checkout, countdown timers that reset on refresh, and fake scarcity ("Only 2 left!" when there are unlimited seats). They work in the short term. They always backfire.
The real cost of deceptive design
Dark patterns inflate vanity metrics while destroying the numbers that actually matter. You get more email signups — who immediately mark you as spam. More trial starts — who churn at 95% because they never wanted the trial. More purchases — followed by chargebacks and refund requests that cost more than the original revenue. The EU's Digital Services Act and California's CPRA are now making some dark patterns explicitly illegal.
The alternative is surprisingly effective: transparent design that makes the desired action the easiest and most attractive option without deception. Clear pricing, honest urgency (real deadlines, real scarcity), and respectful opt-outs. Pages built on trust convert less aggressively on day one but generate more revenue over any meaningful timeframe.