· 16 min read

6 Simple Secrets to Totally Rocking Your Popup Timing

Nazlıcan Berk
-Published on:
Jan 25, 2024
-Updated on:
May 30, 2024

When it comes to popups, timing is everything. Popup timing is all about finding the perfect balance between showing your message at the right time and not getting in the way of the user's experience.

It's important to show your message when the user is most likely to be interested in it, but you don't want to be so disruptive that they'll just close it without reading.

Let's put it simply and straight once and for all to clear all questions in mind about popup timing. Keep reading!

What to Pay Attention for the Perfectly Timed Popups

The timing of the popup is crucial because it can affect the success rate of a popup.

If you want your popup to help you increase your conversions, for example, you want it to appear when your potential customers are ready and interested in buying.

Below you will see the things businesses should pay attention to for the perfect timing of popups.

1. The Right Time of the Day

The time of day that you choose to have your popups appear can have a significant impact on their effectiveness.

For example, if you choose a time when people are likely to be busy or distracted, they're less likely to pay attention to your message.

Conversely, if you choose a time when people are more likely to be relaxed and focused, they're more likely to notice and engage with your popup.

So, what's the best time of day for popup timing? Unfortunately, the truth is that there isn't a one-size-fits-all answer to this question.

It depends on your business type and what action you want people to take after seeing your popup.

background divided into to; left is pastel pink and the right side is pastel light gree; there is a clock in the center

For example, if you're trying to get people to buy something right away, then showing your popup at mid-morning might be best.

Because it's when people are likely to be checking out their shopping lists or filling out carts on sites like Amazon and Walmart.

On the other hand, if you're trying to get people to fill out a survey or give you their email address.

Then showing your popup at night might be best because it's when people are most likely to be focused on what they're doing online.

2. The Right Day of the Week

On different days of the week, people have different browsing habits. Some days they're more likely to be in a hurry, while on others, they're more likely to be relaxed.

And that means that the right popup timing can be tricky.

You can also utilize tools to see how much time people spend on your website to estimate the right time to show your popups as well.

After getting the average time, you can set A/B tests for more insight.

3. The Right Frequency

Popup frequency is a big deal regarding user experience and engagement. Too often, we see sites using popups too frequently or not enough.

If you display your popup too soon and too many times, it can create a negative impression of your business.

If you show it too late and too few, users may have already abandoned your website and moved on to another site.

The best way to determine the frequency of popups might be to have a popup builder that allows you to choose the times and actions to display popups specifically.

For example, with Popupsmart, you can choose not to show popups after users take action, like submitting an email or closing the popup.

This way, you will prevent popups from being overwhelming.

Target section of Popupsmart showing popup display frequency settings like "never stop displaying the popup" and "stop showing the popup"

You can show popups once every session or every day/month.

It is even possible to stop showing the popup after a couple of visits with super-detailed targeting options of Popupsmart to get the timing of your popup right.

Popupsmart popup display frequency settings like "display on every page view", "display once every session", and "display once every"

For example, if you have a Christmas campaign, you can schedule your popups to be displayed during this season only.

This way, you will have complete control over popup display frequency.

4. The Right Popup Builder

There are indeed many popup builders out there, but only one can serve all your needs. For this, check out what these tools are capable of.

With Popupsmart, you can set detailed targeting to have the perfect timing. You can take advantage of user behavior triggers.

There are different options:

  • After Scrolling X%: This targeting option utilizes a behavioral technology to trigger the popup campaign once the user scrolls a certain percentage of a page.

It is specifically designed to help you show your campaigns to the users who actually showed enough interest in the page to scroll down.

  • After X Seconds: Not bombarding visitors with popups is a wise way to use popups. It would be best if you let the visitor spend some time on your website first before making your offer.
After X seconds user behavior targeting of Popupsmart set to 5 seconds

When visitors spend some time on your website, it would be right to think they will like your offer. And that is the perfect time to display your popups with this smart targeting.

  • Inactivity Mode: You don't want your visitors to stay there doing nothing. So why not send them a wake-up call? Inactivity mode is triggered when visitors are inactive for a specified period.

You can easily re-engage them by showing your campaign with irresistible offers. This way, you can boost engagement, reduce cart abandonment, and collect more user data.

  • Exit-Intent Trigger: Maybe the most popular user behavior targeting. The exit-intent technology understands visitor behavior according to the user's mouse movements.
exit-intent-popup-targeting

You can set the trigger's intensity to low, medium, or high to show visitors a targeted message depending on the intensity of their mouse movement speed.

  • On-Click Targeting: This targeting could work wonders if you want to improve user experience and show popups opening up with a click. This targeting lets the popups appear on the condition of clicking the set button.

So there are many ways to arrange the frequency of your popup display if you have the right tool.

5. The Right Offer

Choosing the right offer for your website's popup timing is essential. The right offer at the right time can help you drive conversions and create a better customer experience.

If you choose the right offer, you can convert more visitors into users and customers. If the user doesn't find what they want immediately, they may close the popup and go elsewhere.

two little hand shaking lego figures on a light background

The best way to get started is with a simple popup that asks them to subscribe to your newsletter or download an ebook. You can also ask them to sign up for a free trial of your product or service.

You can also use this method for lead generation by asking people for their email addresses when they sign up for your service or download an ebook from your website.

Think about where people are in their buying process:

  • Are they just browsing?
  • Or do they have a specific question in mind?
  • Do they need more information?
  • Or have they already decided on their purchase?

Your popup should match the visitor's stage in the buying process.

Match the offer with what people want and need at each stage. For instance, if someone is just browsing around and has no interest in buying anything from you yet, don't offer them a discount code or coupon code.

Instead, offer them something useful instead that will help them during their research process (like a free trial).

6. The Right Audience

Popups are one of the most effective tools for improving conversions on your website. But you could be wasting your time if you're not targeting the right audience.

If you want to improve your conversion rate, you need to know when your visitors are ready to buy. You can do this by tracking their behavior and testing different popup timing strategies.

The best time to show a popup is when users are ready to buy. It's important to have a clear understanding of when your visitors will be prepared to convert so that you can show them the right message at the right time.

Hands of a person on laptop, sitting at the table next to a window

What kind of traffic is coming to your website?

You'll likely use a different timing strategy for each group of visitors.

For example, suppose most of your visitors come from social media platforms like Twitter or Facebook.

In that case, they may not be ready to purchase immediately but might be willing to receive an email newsletter after signing up for one of your blog posts.

On the other hand, if most of your traffic comes from search engines like Google or Bing, they're probably looking for specific information about your product or service and may be more inclined to make a purchase immediately.

Why does Popup Timing Matter?

The timing of popups is very important for user engagement. If a popup is displayed too early, it will distract the user.

If it's shown too late, it may be irrelevant to what they're doing or too far down the funnel to be effective.

a hand holding a clock on a background split into two; the upper part is pink a nd the lower part is blue

The best time to display a popup is after your users have completed an action that's related to what you want them to do next.

For example, if a visitor added an item to their cart but didn't complete their purchase.

Then it might be a perfect time to show a popup offering free shipping or letting the visitor know the item might be out of stock if they don't hurry.

This is just a little example, but it is clear that having perfect popup timing helps you achieve your goals faster.

Bonus Popup Tips

The scrabble letters of "bonus" side by side on a background consisting of different kinds of paper money
  • If you want to make your popups more effective in general, make sure your popup is relevant to the page content.

If you're running a promotion for a new product, make sure your popup appears on the page where that product is featured.

  • Consider the user's intent. If you're hoping to capture leads, don't show a popup as soon as someone arrives on your site.

Instead, wait until they've had a chance to look around and get an idea of what you have to offer.

  • Pay attention to user engagement. If you see that people are spending a lot of time on a particular page, that's a good time to show a popup.

Similarly, if you see that people are leaving, If you're promoting a sale, make sure your popup appears on the relevant pages for the items included in the sale.

  • Trigger your popup at an appropriate time. For example, if you're promoting a new product, you might want to trigger the popup when the user first arrives on the page.

If you're promoting a sale, you might want to trigger the popup after the user has been on the site for a few minutes or when they're about to leave the site.

Before You Leave…

Timing, as they say, is everything. There is no definitive answer to the question of when the best time to use a popup is. However, you can get much done by paying attention to the points above.

The takeaway from this blog post is that you should consider many factors when deciding the timing of your popup campaign.

Depending on your goal, you may have to tweak your settings or change the type of popup you're using. The best way to get your users to embrace your message is to present it to them when they are most receptive.

The result: an effective popup campaign that gets users where you need them to be.

What is your strategy for excellent popup timing?

Meet me in the comments below!

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is the Best Time to Show a Popup?

An average of 5-6 seconds might be a good time for a visitor to spend on your site before seeing your popup.

2. Does the Message of the Popup Matter for the Timing?

Yes! The message on the popup is important because even if the timing is right, your popup efforts could go to waste without a killer CTA and message.

Ensure that the message is easy to understand, preferably short, with a prominent call to action.

3. Can I Use Teasers as a Part of the Popup Timing Strategy?

Yes! Teasers are great because they don't take up too much space and can work as effectively as regular popups.

Visitors need to click the teaser to see the actual popup or as a result of another trigger, like spending 20 seconds on the site or exit intent.

This way, you will be integrating teasers into your popup timing strategy.

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