Pop-ups, Modals, and Overlays (Oh, Dear!)

Regardless of whether you love them, hate them, or love to hate them, pop-ups, modals, and overlays are unavoidable on the internet today. At Diace Designs, we prefer a well-designed static signup form to total screen takeovers. That said, there is definitely a right way—and a wrong way—to add dynamic messages to your website. If you’re considering adding a pop-up, modal, or overlay to your site, read on.

What’s the Difference?

Let’s start by clarifying what pop-ups, modals, and overlays are. A pop-up is a new window that opens automatically in front of your browser. Pop-ups that display in the same browser window are called overlays. Modals are pop-ups that lock the content displayed behind the modal window, effectively “taking over” the page. For simplicity, we’ll refer to all three as pop-ups.

Timing Is Everything

When it comes to pop-ups, timing is one of the biggest and most common flubs. Even a well-crafted pop-up can result in your website visitor immediately exiting if it’s presented at the wrong time. Entry pop-ups are a classic example of this. Asking a visitor to subscribe for more content before they’ve had the chance to read what they came for? Good luck with converting that visitor. The more likely outcome is that they will be annoyed, maybe even annoyed enough to leave your site and never come back. Instead of using entry pop-ups, wait until your visitor has scrolled through a significant amount of the article (indicating that they are enjoying the content) to offer a subscription—or better yet, wait until they’ve visited a few more pages on your site (an even stronger indication of interest).

Know Your Audience

All successful marketing begins with knowing your audience, and pop-ups are no exception. Offering an e-book about something utterly unrelated to the content your visitor is currently viewing is a sure way to get your offer ignored. Instead, design pop-ups based on the content your visitor is engaging with. If they’ve read a few blog posts, allow them to easily subscribe for updates. If they’ve spent time browsing through your “Gifts for Him” section, offer a guide to finding him the perfect gift. Knowing your audience allows you to offer real value to your visitors.

There’s a lot more to designing pop-ups that delight, rather than annoy, your website visitors than we can fit in this post. Here’s a rule of thumb to sum up the best practices: don’t be the mall kiosk salesperson who aggressively sells and interrupts an otherwise pleasant experience. Empathize with your visitors to find the most appropriate time to make the ask, and offer something valuable in exchange. If you need help figuring that out, let us know.

About Kara Franco
Kara writes copy that speaks. She has a knack for creating clear, compelling messages without wasting words. She is passionate about digital marketing and believes that copy is the cornerstone of user experience.

Copywriter + Content Strategist
Kara@diacedesigns.com