Hosting & Asterisk Abuse (fine print)

In normal writing, the asterisk is used like a footnote, making a reference to some detail on another part of the page. Maybe this is additional information that the reader may want to take in later, or maybe it is there to describe a a lengthy specification that would have taken away from the reading experience if it was left in tact with the rest of the writing. Now in advertising it is often used for a more sinister purpose; playing dodge-ball with the truth. They make you hunt for all parts of the truth hoping that you will just give in and trust them like a child trust their parent.

Examples of Bad Use of Asterisks

Lets take hosting companies for example. As a Web developer, I was fed up with having to search and search and search until I was thoroughly sick of looking in order to find the real price and terms of conditions of Web hosting companies when trying to estimate the cost for my clients. This eventually motivated me into finding my own sources from the server up and creating a hosting company that has no fine print and no surprises in its hosting contract. Speaking of surprises, lets take a close look at the following Web hosting company's ad.. You will have to look very close to find any evidence of the real price here. Now at first glance it looks like an outstanding deal for Web hosting right? WRONG. Quit dreaming and read what the asterisks will legally bind your dreams to..

So if the promotional price only applies to the first billing cycle and the billing cycle is 4 weeks, that means I get a whole month of hosting for 50 cents, then the regular price after that. So I can save 3-5 bucks, but what is regular price? I cant find it anywhere on the entire site unless, unless... I fill in all my information and actually buy the first month! Will they tell me how much it is going to cost after I buy the first month? I don't know, I have never been unfortunate enough to have signed up with them..

Perhaps a less severe example involves yet another large hosting company. So we are getting hosting for $2.50 per month right?

After I find the asterisk, I start looking all over the place for the rest of the truth (starting at the farthest corners at the bottom of the page as this is a likely spot far away from where the advertising started above.

So the promotional price is for the first term only and renews at regular rate. Doesn’t sound all that bad. Looks like I am going to have to click on that link to find that regular rate price that I am looking for.

There it is! twenty-three seconds after I first starting looking for a price and I find it on a different page from where the offer started. But wait, It's $7.49, that's not what the ad said on the other page or am I dreaming? I click back , I look again and nope, it is still a crossed-out $5.99 next to that super special price of $2.50. Kind of made me think I was going to pay $5.99 forever more but instead it is actually $7.49.. So I would have to pay $7.49 X 12 or $89.88 per year. 2 minutes of my time wasted as there are other companies that charge less on the long term with no special offer.

You might get a great deal on hosting for that first year but then get stepped up above what many charge, for the rest of eternity. Or maybe you will hunt for another great promotional deal next year! Great idea if they didn’t charge for migrating your site to a new host. That alone will cost more than anything you can ever save on a promotional offer and lets not forget all that wasted time searching for host and trying to figure out what they are actually going to charge you.