Someone said this was the most obnoxious "ad" they have ever seen.
Last night, I had posted on the "give and take comment thread" here at WA. I guess someone went to comment on my site and instead took it upon themselves to say that (I assume they meant my "welcome mat" popup) it contained the "most obnoxious ad they have ever had to endure"....
I had reservations about making the Welcome Mat live, because I thought it may have been too silly with the "maybe next year, pal" bit and it has been clicked a handful of times since last night so it must be working. I was just wondering if the rest of WA found this to be "obnoxious".
I can understand how it can be annoying if it pops up every time, but I have this to only pop up if they haven't seen my site in 2 weeks. I have heard many people here say they have the best luck out of popups. Is this too much?
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I think the look of it is nice. The wording is a matter of personal preferences. I like most of it, but I always get a bit annoyed when people are "selling" the idea of having a website as a passive income as I think that is promising too much - I think most of us here on WA can agree that we can not allow ourselves to be passive if we want to succeed:-) So in that way I find it a bit too much and promising too much. But again just my opinion.
All the best
Mikael
Thanks Mikael! I can understand that, since each person's value of "vacation money" could mean something different (drastically, because I know some people who spend thousands and thousands of dollars on vacation). But I really do think you could make enough extra cash within a year from websites to fund a little vacation money. That's honestly what I did, and why I was using that as an example.
Thanks for your comment, friend! I've added you to my network so maybe you could voice your opinion on other posts I make! I like the way you give feedback :)
It's worth bearing in mind that popups that obscure content are being penalised by Google on mobile and they've announced that this will apply on other platforms shortly. I recommend popup on exit only these days to avoid damaging your rankings.
Hey, Rich! What do you mean by obscure content? And I do have it disabled on mobile, it's set to only appear to PC users every 14 days.
If I'm reading a page or post on your site and a popup blocks my view, then it's obscuring content! You should be covered at the moment if you've turned it off for mobile, however there's been anecdotal evidence that Google may already be penalising it on other platforms without stating the fact upfront. It's a calculated risk on your part, ranking vs. conversion. However, if you discover you're struggling to rank, consider disabling it or setting it on exit only.
I gotcha. This one is called a "Welcome Mat" off Sumo, so if I used just the "pop up" one instead of one that spans the whole page, it won't be penalized? I guess I need to do some research on this. And consider just using exit popups.
Also, bear in mind that if you're not grandfathered into a free plan with Sumo, they start charging $29 a month as soon as you get decent traffic, ie. something like 1000 visits per month.
www.sumo.com/pricing
I don't use popups but I imagine you can set "on exit" with Sumo. I also know a lot of members use Popup Maker https://wordpress.org/plugins/popup-maker/
Hi Heather, I haven't got any experience of pop ups yet, but I'd say that this is a positive example of one. I love that it's humorous!
If people can't be constructive with advice, then ignore them is what I say. Also like to say, all the hard work going into your site is definitely worth it. Looking good... keep going, Sue :)
Thank you!! That's definitely what I was going for. So glad you enjoyed my site!! Thank you so much, Sue!
I don't have such welcome mat. Therefore I can't give you any figures. But what I can tell you: I hate such popups. I normally leave immediately. That is why I didn't install one on any of my sites.
And they aren't for everyone!! About 75% of people I'm sure probably just see it pop up and click off without reading. It's been clicked a few times, so it IS being checked out and working for me so I'm keeping it for the time being. I may find something else that works better!
No problem, Heather. I personally prefer the onces with appear when the person is leaving.
After this one I was going to try one of those!! I'll be sure to run it by you before I make it live!
I think it is clever and cute. While 98% of the community here are supportive and provide even negative feedback in a constructive way, there are a few who are ...well, not that way. Let it go in one ear and out the other.
Thanks, Melanie!! I thought it was clever as well, but like you said, some don't deliver feedback in the most ... pleasant manner lol. I just was making sure I wasn't being too overbearing!!
Hey Heather,
At the end of the day there are some people that will find any ad obnoxious. There are some people that will also get upset that you have a site that makes money off them. Some people you just need to ignore.
Let your numbers help you make the proper decision. If you're getting conversions of some sort, then it means its working. Damned the people that may not like it. As long as you're trying to provide value to your visitors it's fine to test different things that help you and your visitors.
I was very fearful of using things like popups but then I noticed so many well marketers using it, so I said screw it. It must work and it did. Did it turn some of my users off, I'm sure it did. But there are other fish in the sea. As long as you're not doing things that are hurting your users, i think its fair game. Just find a nice balance between your needs and those of your users.
Thanks, Eddy! You always chime in with the best response! And pop-ups DO work.
This was a WA member that said this was the only reason I really worried about it. Thought I would at least ask other members if they thought the same since it was such a bold statement.
And you're right, numbers don't lie! This is getting click-throughs so I don't see why I shouldn't use it.
You're welcome Heather. Read what I wrote here about listening to other members and family: Why You Need To Ignore WA Member Advice Right Now! Should You Listen To Your Family & Friend's Advice? It will give you some perspective.
My thoughts exactly Eddy. Just because someone feels a pop-up is obnoxious does not mean the whole internet feel that way. In the end, let the number talks.
Actually, I like it. It is attention grabbing. No pretense. And it makes no excuse about not saving a dime.
Much like the Nike commercial. Just do it.
Popups are sort of a necessary evil. Everyone complains about them, but many an affiliate marketer uses them. SOme set them to pop up in about 10 seconds. Others only as you exit the site. No matter how they are used, most will swear they are annoying while also swearing that they work.
Thanks, Hal!! That's about how I feel about them as well, which is why I had reservations posting the welcome popup. Thanks for your input!
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I had a hard time reading the script for me It didn't seem to flow nicely. But then I am only one.
The picture here is a bit skewed because its a resized screenshot, but thank you for your input!