Pop-ups are annoying and irritating, but only if they look like malicious alerts and don’t provide value. If used correctly, these are some of the most versatile tools in your eCommerce store.
From reducing abandoned carts to increasing your average order value and providing promotional updates, there are many things you can use pop-ups for. However, using a pop-up form for collecting emails is the most beneficial technique for your store.
To generate an ROI of $36 on every dollar, you spend on popup apps, you’ll need to know what pop-up forms are and how you can use them to build your list. Read through this guide to get further insight.
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What Is A Pop-Up Form?
You cannot be accurate if you don’t know what pop-up forms are. They are everywhere on the internet. You’d be surprised if you’re not greeted or seen off by a pop-up ad when you visit a website on the internet.
But, technically, what exactly are they, and how do they help websites generate substantial ROI? Mainly, Pop-ups are graphical elements that are triggered by various activities and settings on a website.
When triggered, these graphical overlays pop out of any corner on the website or cover the entire screen. You guessed it, that’s where they get their name. However, since their advent, pop-ups have created a bad reputation.
Mostly misused by websites across the internet, pop-ups became nightmares for most internet users in the early 2000s. From malicious-looking virus alerts to scary warning signals with dummy close buttons that seemed to pop out some more notifications, they were seen as synonymous with spam.
That’s when Google came to the rescue in 2016. It tracked down websites with unethical pop-ups that created a lousy user interface. This means websites had to put them down, or they could risk losing their rankings on popular search engines.
Luckily, that was not the end for pop-up forms. Instead, they received a transformation that would change them into some of the most versatile and profitable tools on the internet.
Pop-up forms are used for various purposes on eCommerce websites and blogs. These include,
- Recovering abandoned carts
- Promoting new products and services
- Suggesting relevant products and services
- Conducting sitewide surveys and opinion polls
- Increasing subscribers
- Building and segmenting email lists
- Increasing cart value.
The best part is, in addition to providing mounds of value, pop-ups don’t hinder the SEO of a website either. Similarly, they are user-friendly as they don’t interrupt the basic website operations and are easy to get out of the way.
All you have to do is offer the right incentive on your pop-up form and place it at the correct timing. Then, your pop-up is no longer annoying but provides value that will make your email list explode.
If you want to witness an impact on your bottom line using pop-up forms, you should be familiar with the types available. Check out the section below for details.
Do Pop-Up Forms Work?
We know what you’re thinking. So how can an annoying thing such as pop-up forms actually succeed in gaining the interest of the masses and generating revenue for businesses?
Believe it or not, a recent test conducted by Sumo shows that an average pop-up form produced more than 3% conversions, while a well-curated pop-up could generate up to 9% conversions.
In simple words, if a hundred visitors land on your site daily, you can quickly get anywhere from 100-to 300 subscribers every month.
So, what brings these impeccable results even though most people disregard the use of pop-up forms? These are a few reasons why pop-up forms work, and you should consider adding them to your website.
You Cannot Miss Them.
While visitors can miss a page or two when scrolling through your website, that’s not the case with pop-ups. Instead, they have to be close to get them out of the way, which means 100% of your visitors will view them, even for a few seconds.
Deliver Messages At The Right Time
Even if you have promotions and discounts on your site, some visitors might not notice them. You can display this information through pop-up forms as your visitor views the pop-up and is engaged. This increases their chances of viewing the icon.
They Offer Value
If you implement your pop-up strategy correctly, then your pop-up forms will provide value to your customers. For example, nobody will deny a 50% discount, free shipping, or free products.
Show Relevant Information
6 Examples of Highly-Effective Pop-Up Forms
Now that you know pop-up forms can work wonders for your website, you’re probably ready to rope in new visitors and sustain old ones. You can use many pop-up forms to increase your email list and have your prospects type in their email address. Here are a few effective pop-up forms to give you further insight.
Exit Intent Pop-Ups
Exit-intent pop-ups are triggered when users move their cursors towards the exit button to leave. You see, a visitor to your website is probably already interested in your products. But, they encountered a roadblock that kept them from making a purchase.
At this point, an exit-intent pop-up created by popup apps like Tada can buy your brand a second chance by making them stay a few seconds longer. Now, it is up to you to make those seconds meaningful and provide enough value to make the customer stay.
For example, this exit-intent popup by CountryLiving, a home and lifestyle magazine, ensures no visitor leaves without providing their information. Offering free dinner recipes, this brand offers exactly what its target audience is looking for.
Bars & Banners
You should use bars and banners if you’re looking for a less intrusive example to entice your visitors. This technique involves displaying a single banner above the landing page to advertise campaigns and offers.
It is ideal for displaying the value you provide for your customers that usually goes unnoticed. For example, Tecovas uses this banner for advertising its free shipping, return, and exchange policy, making the brand stand out among others.
Welcome Mat Pop-Up
An entry pop-up form is unusual but not ineffective in any way. It provides an element of surprise for the visitor and engages them with a discount offer or free product as soon as they arrive on the website.
Let’s face it, who would deny free shipping on a website they have started to explore in exchange for an email. Chances are, they will use their free shipping benefit to make a purchase before they leave your website.
This entry pop-up on Old Navy displaying a 20% discount shows everything a perfect entry pop-up form should have.
Time-Delay Pop-Up
Time delay pop-up forms appear when the customer has spent a certain amount of time on your website. This probably shows their interest in your brand, entitling them to an offer they cannot resist in exchange for their email.
Consider this example from the website of Tim Ferriss, the author of the 4-hour Workweek. The pop-up provides free access to the book by only filling out a three-step form.
Visitors interested in changing their lives won’t miss out on this offer and will type in their address without a second thought.
Scroll-Triggered Pop-Up
If a visitor scrolls further into your landing page on your website, they are showing considerable interest in your brand. As a result, scroll-Triggered pop-up forms appear at that very instance to provide an impeccable offer.
This scroll pop-up form by Help Scout is an excellent example of how the strategy should be implemented. While the copy is short, it displays everything customers need, from social proof to a powerful incentive to trust the brand.
The number of subscribers would entice interested customers to join the club and enter their email.
Click-Event Pop-Up
This is an exciting type of pop-up form that appears on your website when the visitor clicks a button. The pop-up form shows them an incentive to provide their email or stay for longer on the website.
Take the example of Backlinko. By clicking ‘Unlock Now’ on their website, visitors can see a pop-up form that provides exclusive offers in exchange for an email. In addition, by adding the progress bar, Backlinko reinforces that the customer only has one step before getting free content.
Final Words
Honestly, getting a customer to provide their email is a challenging task in this age where information is usually exploited and misused. Nobody wants to be bombarded with unwanted emails or invite malware into their inbox.
However, if pop-up forms are effectively designed and placed at strategic points across your website, you can build your subscribers while increasing conversions.
Make sure you use the proper pop-up forms according to your target audience. Once you build your email list, you can conduct profitable remarketing and reduce abandoned carts.