I apologize if this has been asked before, but...
Does anyone else frantically tap the flashing red button on the Poke Ball once they've caught a Pokémon? I did this for quite some time initially, and every time that I did, I never had one escape. Ever. The few times that I didn't, sure enough, they would escape and flee. I had no idea on the strategy of the game...I just saw a flashing red light and thought, "Hey, flashing red button - I bet I'm supposed to push that."
Admittedly, I was at a pretty low level at the time, so the Pokémon I was catching weren't that tough; it may have just been a coincidence that the few that escaped happened to be ones in which I didn't tap the flashing button. As I started to get more interested in the gameplay and read up on techniques (as well as leveling up and getting Razz Berry and Great Ball), I figured it didn't matter and I was just being a noob. Of course as I leveled up, the Pokémon got harder to catch and I started missing more...sometimes even using Razz/Great.
Finally, after using at least 6 balls on a Tauros, I said screw it and went back to tapping the red button. Sure enough, I caught him with the next throw.
I'm at level 19 now, and it still seems like I notice a difference. It doesn't work all the time, and I still use Razz/Great on the tough/rare targets, but I would swear I notice a difference even on the commons.
Anyone else do something similar? Any idea on how I could quantify/prove this that doesn't involve painstakingly recording types, levels, and catch rates using different methods (I hate the idea of wasting throws and losing Pokémon to prove a point)?