10 popup best practices to turn visitors into customers

Reading Time: 10 minutes

Following popup best practices can turn website visitors into customers. However, when your popup strategy isn’t done right, it can drive your visitors away just as fast. Following these best practices ensures that your popups are effective rather than intrusive.

Websites can misuse popups by making them appear too soon, disrupting the browsing experience. Instead of capturing leads, these popups frustrate visitors and increase bounce rates.

Think about it — how often have you immediately closed a popup without reading it? When visitors feel interrupted before engaging with your content, they’re more likely to leave than convert, meaning you lose potential customers.

The key is strategically using popups — timing them right, increasing their relevance, and ensuring they enhance the user experience instead of disrupting it.

In this guide, you’ll discover 10 popup best practices to help you boost conversions without annoying your audience. 

Popup best practices

There are various types of popups, each serving a different purpose and impacting user experience in unique ways. When executed well, they drive engagement and boost sales, but when done poorly, they frustrate visitors. 

To maximize results, you must follow tried-and-tested popup tips that balance user experience and conversion goals. Here’s the popup best practices we’ll cover:

• Offer the right incentive for the right audience
• Use smart timing: don’t show popups too soon
• Leverage two-step popups for higher conversions
• Personalize popups based on visitor data
• Use gamification to make popups more engaging
• Match popup design to your brand aesthetic
• Make your CTAs more persuasive
• Create a sense of urgency without being pushy
• A/B test triggers, copy, and design for optimization
• Follow up with an automated email/SMS sequence

Let’s break these down one by one:

1. Offer the right incentive for the right audience

Not all visitors are motivated by the same offers. By following popup best practices, a first-time visitor may respond well to a discount for their first purchase, while a loyal customer might appreciate early access to new products.

Offering the right incentive is crucial because it creates a personalized experience, makes users feel valued, and improves the likelihood of conversion.

When an offer aligns with a visitor’s needs, it reduces hesitation and encourages immediate action rather than abandonment. It also enhances perceived value, making customers feel they’re receiving something worthwhile and increasing their willingness to engage. 

Additionally, exclusive incentives help build brand loyalty, encouraging repeat purchases and turning one-time buyers into long-term customers.

Here’s how to match incentives to different audiences:

• First-time visitors: Welcome discounts (e.g., “Get 10% off your first order!”) help overcome initial buying reluctance
• Returning customers: Exclusive deals (“Unlock VIP pricing on your next order!”) make loyal shoppers feel valued
• Cart abandoners: Free shipping or time-sensitive discounts (“Complete your purchase in the next 15 minutes for free shipping!”) create urgency and encourage conversion
• Newsletter subscribers: Early access to sales or limited-edition products makes them feel like insiders, effectively increasing engagement

For example, Naturesum offers tiered discounts based on order value, encouraging customers to sign up and get 10% off their first order. By aligning incentives with visitor intent, popup best practices become more effective in generating conversions:

2. Use smart timing: Don’t show popups too soon

One of the most overlooked popup best practices is timing. Showing popups too soon can drive visitors away. 

It interrupts users before they have a chance to engage with your content, disrupting the user experience and increasing bounce rates. 

Popups that appear too soon can also frustrate visitors. Instead, waiting until users have shown interest — like when they scroll or spend time on the page — can be more effective.

Use behavior-based triggers for better engagement: 

• Time-delay popups: Appear after 10-30 seconds, allowing visitors to browse first
• Scroll-triggered popups: Show after a user scrolls 30-50% of the page, indicating interest
• Exit-intent popups: Detect when a visitor is about to leave and present an offer

A study from OptiMonk shows that the average conversion rate for popups with a countdown timer is 14.41%, compared to 9.86% for those without. 

Omnisend’s data-backed approach suggests testing different popup timing strategies to optimize conversion rates. It highlights that well-timed popups capture leads without frustrating visitors. 

Strategically timed popups can help maximize engagement while maintaining a smooth user experience:

3. Leverage two-step popups for higher conversions

Traditional one-step popups immediately ask for an email, which can feel intrusive and pushy. This can lead to low engagement and higher abandonment rates. Meanwhile, two-step popups ease users into the process, leveraging commitment psychology.

People are more likely to complete an action if they’ve already taken a small step toward it. This is called the micro-commitment principle — and it’s why two-step popups work so well.

Instead of immediately asking for an email, start with a simple Yes/No question like:
“Do you want 10% off your first order?” Once users click Yes, they feel committed and are more likely to enter their email address in the next step.

Two-step popups not only reduce friction but also improve engagement. 

CarToCamp provides one of the best email popup examples where visitors first choose if they want access to exclusive deals. Only after clicking “Yes, save up to $100” do they see the email form:

Compared to traditional one-step popups, which demand an immediate response, two-step popups increase the likelihood of visitors completing the desired action by easing them into it.

4. Personalize popups based on visitor data

Personalization allows you to tailor experiences to increase their relevance for your website visitors. Like other popup best practices, personalization improves engagement and boosts sales. 

When visitors see tailored messages that align with their needs or behaviors, they’re more likely to take action.

• New vs. returning visitors: First-time visitors may need an incentive to make their first purchase, such as a welcome discount. Returning customers are more likely to respond to loyalty rewards or exclusive offers.
• Cart abandoners: Some users leave a site without completing their purchase. A well-timed popup with a limited-time discount, free shipping reminder, or low-stock alert can nudge them to check out before they go.
• VIP customers: High-value customers expect special treatment. Offering them early access to new collections, exclusive deals, or personalized recommendations makes them feel valued, increasing their loyalty to your brand.

Dynamic popups use visitor data, such as name, location, or browsing behavior, to make interactions more engaging. 

For example, instead of a generic message, a personalized popup like “Hey Sarah, your favorite shoes are back in stock!” encourages immediate action.

Applying these popup tips helps you create popups that feel helpful, not disruptive — and that’s what drives more signups and sales.

5. Use gamification to make popups more engaging

Let’s face it. Traditional popups can feel boring. But add an interactive element? Now you’ve got your visitors’ attention!

Gamified popups, such as spin-to-win wheels, scratch-off discounts, or mystery offers, tap into a user’s curiosity and create a fun experience. 

When users feel like they’re “winning” something, they’re more likely to engage. This popup tip makes lead capture fun without being pushy.

Normendy uses a spin-to-win popup, allowing visitors to unlock discounts by spinning a virtual wheel. This approach feels exclusive and exciting, driving more signups and sales: 

Why gamification works:

• Triggers anticipation: Interactive elements like spin-the-wheel discounts or mystery rewards help to make users eager to participate and discover their reward. This curiosity increases engagement and keeps them invested in the process.
• Creates a sense of reward: Even small discounts or perks feel like a win, triggering a sense of achievement. This taps into the psychology of rewards, where people are more likely to take action after receiving something beneficial, even if it’s a minor incentive.
• Boosts engagement: A playful and interactive experience makes users more likely to take action. Whether it’s unlocking a discount through a game or earning a perk through participation, engagement increases as the process feels fun rather than purely transactional.

6. Match popup design to your brand aesthetic

Ever seen a popup that looks completely out of place? It disrupts the user experience. Imagine browsing a sleek, minimalist website, and suddenly, a cluttered, brightly colored popup jumps out. It feels intrusive and unprofessional, violating popup best practices.

A well-designed popup should feel like a natural extension of your website — not an interruption. This involves using consistent fonts, colors, and imagery that match your brand’s look and feel.

Take Levels2Skin’s popup, for example. It features the same soft color palette, elegant typography, and minimalistic design as the rest of the site. The result? A seamless experience that keeps visitors engaged rather than annoyed:

Adhering to popup best practices involves paying careful attention to design. Here are some key best design practices to consider:

• Stick to your brand colors for a well-rounded look
• Use easy-to-read fonts that enhance clarity
• Keep text minimal — get to the point fast
• Ensure mobile-friendliness so popups look great on any device

7. Make your CTAs more persuasive

CTAs are a major aspect of popup best practices. A non-engaging call to action (CTA) can make or break your popup’s success. Generic CTAs like “Submit” or “Sign up” can fail to motivate action. Instead, use persuasive, action-driven language that shows the value of your CTA.

In this call to action example, Lerelle Fashion uses the CTA “Be the first to discover exclusive collections and early-bird offers.” This taps into exclusivity and urgency, encouraging immediate action:

Examples of high-converting CTAs include:

• “Unlock my 10% off” — Feels exclusive and rewarding
• “Get my VIP access” — Appeals to exclusivity and status
• “Reveal exclusive deal” — Creates curiosity and engagement

8. Create a sense of urgency without being pushy

Another tried-and-tested popup best practice is creating a sense of urgency. 

Urgency is a powerful motivator. However, if overdone, it can feel aggressive and drive visitors away. The key is encouraging action without pressuring users. 

Popup best practices like countdown timers, limited stock notifications, and exclusive early access (as seen in the Nxt Level Labz popup below) create urgency without overwhelming your audience. 

The text “SOMETHING NEW IS COMING” teases a launch while inviting users to subscribe for VIP access. This builds excitement rather than forcing a sale:

To effectively create urgency: 

• Keep messaging positive and exclusive (e.g., “Be the first to know” instead of “Act now or miss out!”)
• Offer real scarcity — don’t create false stock shortages
• Provide value-driven incentives, such as early-bird discounts or insider perks

9. A/B test triggers, copy, and design for optimization

Even minor adjustments can significantly improve your results. By A/B testing elements like timing, messaging, and design, you can discover what resonates best with your audience. Regular A/B testing allows you to continuously refine your campaigns, leading to higher open rates, click-through rates, and ultimately, more conversions.

Start simple. Test one variable at a time to see its impact. For instance:

• CTA wording: Does “Get my discount” outperform “Claim offer now”?
• Discount percentage: Which drives more conversions — 10% or 15% off?
• Popup placement: Is a center-screen popup more effective than a slide-in?

Omnisend makes this process straightforward, effortlessly allowing brands to set up A/B tests for popup forms. Its popup features provide customizable options to experiment with different copy, visuals, and display settings to maximize conversions:

By systematically testing and refining your popups, you can boost engagement and conversions, ensuring your messages hit the mark.

10. Follow up with an automated email/SMS sequence

Capturing an email or phone number is just the first step. To drive real engagement and sales, creating an effective follow-up sequence is among the proven popup best practices. 

A well-timed welcome email or SMS can:

• Offer a discount or exclusive deal to encourage a first purchase
• Remind subscribers of abandoned carts or unfinished actions
• Introduce new customers to your brand story and best-selling products

By offering value upfront and nurturing subscribers through automated emails, customers feel valued. This makes them more receptive to your offerings, encouraging them to purchase.

Island Olive Oil entices new subscribers with a tempting offer right from the start. Its vibrant newsletter signup form, paired with a 10% discount, makes joining its community irresistible:

Island Olive Oil perfected this strategy using Omnisend, where automation drives 39% of its email marketing revenue. Its welcome series alone delivers a 3,274% higher revenue-per-email (RPE) than standard promotional emails, with an 11% average conversion rate.

Wrap up

When executed correctly, popup best practices can drive engagement, grow your email list, and increase conversions without frustrating your visitors. The key is to make popups feel natural and valuable rather than intrusive.

By personalizing offers, incorporating engaging elements like gamification, optimizing CTAs, and continuously A/B testing your approach, you can create high-performing popups that enhance the user experience while delivering results.

Strategic popup design and timing ensure visitors see relevant offers at the right moment. Implementing these popup best practices helps maximize lead generation and customer engagement effectively.

Popup best practices: FAQ