When it’s OK to Click-Bait
We want to explore what makes
click-bait a no-no and, at the same
time, look at how you can effec-
tively use click-bait so more people
can see your content.
WHAT IS CLICK-BAIT?
There are several working defini-
tions of what click-bait actually is.
Typically people associate click-
bait with the bait and switch sales
tactic; you’re offered the promise
of something desirable then given
something that is different from
OPINION
BY RICKY ANDERSON IIIf you’ve spent any amount of time on the internet, you’ve had some
encounter with click-bait. Some love it, some hate it, but very few can
deny its effectiveness.
or less desirable than what was
initially offered.
As discussed in our article “The
Ethics of Clickbait,” Nilay Patel
from The Verge defines click-bait
as “a promise of value that isn’t
met,” meaning the reader’s expec-
tations are higher than what the
media truly contains.
However, the most interesting
definition of click-bait comes from
Wikipedia:
“Click-bait is a text or thumb-
nail link that is designed to enticeusers to follow that link and read,
view or listen to the linked piece
of online content.” This definition
shows us that not all Click-bait is
bad — but then why do so many
people hate it?WHY PEOPLE
HATE CLICK-BAIT
A majority of click-bait tactics that
people have grown to hate are
misleading or feel manipulative
in some shape way or form. There
is a difference between hyper-