As a savvy computer user, I know you’ve seen those messages on your computer. You’re surfing the Web, minding your own business, when suddenly you get a dialog box that asks you if you want to install something called “Gator Setup.” The humorless Internet Explorer warns you sternly that you should only select Yes if you trust The Gator Corporation to provide you with “safe” content.
Of course, at first you don’t know what this Gator thing is, but if you’re like most people, you probably just click Yes, just to make sure that you don’t miss any content or features on the Web site you’re looking at.
But not me. Sure, I clicked Yes, but not just to make sure I get what I want. I clicked Yes because I really do trust The Gator Corporation.
A quick visit to The Gator Corporation’s Web site is enough to tell you what this company really stands for. A “leader in online behavioral
marketing,” the company provides users with FREE software that fills in Web forms, remembers passwords, and synchronizes your computer clock. I defy you to find me a Web browser, or third-party software, that provides such functionality. The company says this software is a $30 value, but I’ll venture to say it’s worth a whole lot more. How they can afford to do this is beyond me, but clearly this company’s goal is to provide a public service, and for that alone they’ve earned my trust.
Some people have labeled the Gator software as “Spyware,” because it collects information on your Web surfing history and provides this data to The Gator Corporation’s customers - other companies with a strong commitment to public service, no doubt. The companies use this data to launch friendly pop-up ads on your computer at strategic times and places. For example, they're careful not to produce these ads when you're right in the middle of working, or to cover up an important part of the Web page you're visiting.
But these “Spyware Police,” just don’t get it. As Gator’s Web site explains, they don’t just hit you with any old pop-up ads. The ads only come from GAIN®, the Gator Advertising and Information Network. When you see the GAIN® logo on a pop-up ad, you’ll know that it comes from The Gator Corporation, and not some fly-by-night operation. It’s like having a network of friends calling you up to tell you about products that might be useful to you. And who doesn’t like to have friends?
That settles it. Not only am I going to click the Yes button, but I'm going to select the little check box that says, "Always trust content from The Gator Corporation." Because although my trust is not easily earned, once you have it, you'll have it forever. With The Gator Corporation, I know that trust is well placed.
