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Are Embedded Email Signups Better Than Popups?
Posted By: admin* on 9/8/2004 2:53 AM (CST) 250 Points
Do you get more signups on your web marketing pages if you have a:

-embedded signup form versus a popup or sliding signup form
-if that signup form is on the top, middle right, or other place on the web page.

Thanks.

Posted by: adrianogara* Accepted Answer
9/8/2004 6:51 AM (CST)
I only use embedded as many people have pop up blockers. The best place is on the right hand side of the screen - parallel with the start of the main screen text (although it depends on the set-up of your website). Ideally it should be on every page or at least on every page that has relevant information to provoke someone to want to sign up for more of that information.
 
Posted by: mateosquared* Accepted Answer
9/8/2004 9:00 AM (CST)
I agree with adrianogara, popups can be a problem since most people find them intrusive. Especially when they are first visiting a site. I would suggest having a feature on the pages you think people would be interested in a particular eNewsletter and then have your visitors click on the feature to go to a page with the sign-up form. This will give more of an opportunity to sell your "product" and get them to sign up. The more they know about what you will be sending them, the more likely they will be looking for it and opening it. I find it a problem to have an embedded form without any real explanation of what the visitor should expect when they receive a eNewsletter or other form of correspondence. True they will have one more click, but the value they get from that click should help your open and retention rates. Since SPAM is such an issue, you want to stand out from the crowd. Besides value props and other information on the page, also add give an idea what the subject line will say as well as the who will be sending it. You will also want to ask them to go ahead and add you, "the sender, to their address book.

Hope this helps.

Matthew
 
Posted by: DesignVHL Accepted Answer
9/8/2004 11:52 AM (CST)
For my company's website, I designed a right side bar with important information and news. Also, on that bar, on EVERY PAGE is a form field for an email address, as well as a button to submit. Above this form is text that says: Join our mailling List! Now, this is for our mailing list.

I have gotten numerous subscriptions this way. Also, it doesn't annoy w/ the pop-ups, and most use blockers as mentioned above also!

I would also suggest a link to get more info about your newsletter. Tell them what they will be getting. On ours, they know that if they sign up, they will get a monthly newsletter and periodical news updates, promotions/contest announcements... that type of thing.

If you are trying to get someone to register an account with your company/website, try advertising this account on the home page, and on a side bar, or a spot that is the same on every page. Same goes for the newsletter. TELL THEM what they will be getting if they join! Would help to understand your business. Depending on your target audience it may have to be tweaked to them.



Hope this helps!

Valerie
 
Posted by: kk+* Member Response
9/8/2004 6:06 PM (CST)
Yes, embedded is better than popups.

kk+
 
Posted by: Carl Crawford Accepted Answer
9/10/2004 1:12 AM (CST)
i HATE POP UPS, but i have to admit i have signed up to a couple of newsletters that had pop ups pop up when you leave the site.

an example would be www.searchengineformarketers.com .

hope this helps

have a niceday

Carl Crawford :)
 
Posted by: mgoodman Accepted Answer
9/12/2004 4:37 PM (CST)
Pop-ups are a sure way to alienate a significant number of website visitors. Why do that to yourself? Even if it did get more subscribers (which it probably wouldn't), you lose all the people who might come back because they are annoyed by your pop-up.

Of course, earlier input that says pop-up blockers are gaining in popularity will probably make this an academic question. Not only will many never see the pop-up, but some percentage of those who do will be turned off to your company.

You don't want that, do you?
 
Posted by: ASVP/ChrisB Accepted Answer
9/15/2004 9:44 AM (CST)
Popups have always semed to me to be the tool of the pornographer.

That aside, with Windows XP SP2 being released, almost everyone will have an inbuilt pop-up blocker (and one that works!) so I feel the era of the popup as a mechanism to gain attention and provide a call to action is coming to a swift and sticky end.

Go embedded. Avoid being blocked. And provide multiple sign-up opportunities by making the sign-up accessible from anywhere on your website!

WinXP SP2 = the pop-up constipator!

Hope this helps

ChrisB
 
Posted by: mmprint Accepted Answer
9/22/2004 11:33 AM (CST)
Pop-ups and add-in radio buttons on a request for information page are intrusive. "sneaking" the opt-in component when a potential client has already decided to send you their information, is not a good practice. Simply because you run the risk have having a potential client question if your company is reputable.

People hate Spam, it's a real pain in the ass and anytime you essentially solicite them to sign up for more email, you walk a thin line between giving the impression of being reputable or being vultures.

It is not a good idea to offer email opt-in, before they have contacted you. Even if you did gain a few e-mail's, this way, you should question the quality of such addresses as compared to people who sign-up because they know of and use your services.

I recommend having a general section on your site, away from a contact form, giving them an open & clear choice to sign-up. Even better, be unique and come up with a way to show clients how important signing up can be!

Last month I ran a promotion, where I sent out 15K postcards to print buyers on our mailing list throughout our market. This postcard was basically a ticket, we assigned and numbered each postcard to the specific contact and used a number generator to choose a winning number. These people were instructed to simply go to our site, enter your number and see if you've won a new Apple I-pod. The special webpage can only be reached by the address printed on the postcard and only that postcard recipient can win. Now every time a postcard number was entered, it was recorded in our database, if the winning number was entered, the winner was automatically notified on the webpage, as were we. Giving away a great gift, allowed for close to 8000 number entries. Here's the good part. Out of those 8000 or so, if the number they entered was not the winning number they were brought to a "not the winner"page. On this page was a "second chance drawing" form incase the winning postcard was not entered, we would hold a second drawing from those who entered the second chance contest. On that form...we included "click to here receive future promotions from us, just like this one".

Only 5 days after the postcard was sent, we accumulated over 6000, email addresses from people who were truly interested in hearing from us. In my business you cannot convince someone to switch using their printer, they need to look for you. The effectiveness of having all these visitors is obvious, we now have out foot in the door and our website in their inbox's.

The point here is. You need to give them a real reason to want email from you. Create and show them the value of signing up.
Let me know if this helps,

Cliff
 
Posted by: jose04 Accepted Answer
9/24/2004 11:31 PM (CST)
Hi

In case we get a laxative for the pop up constipator (Chris WinXP SP2 example), popups will still have value, if it is rare. Point of purchase is always an additive emotional blend to your campaign.

The imbedded sign ups on key pages of KHE itself is a good and subtle appeal for premium service signups.

Finally, whether it is popups or embeds the onus is on you. Signups depend on the customised content of value to the user.

Hope these thoughts help!!
 
Posted by: Sharon Moderator Response
9/28/2004 8:40 PM (CST)
Hello all. I am closing this question. This is standard procedure when the question author gets busy and falls out of the conversation for a while – or doesn’t understand the procedure for closing.

Thanks for participating!
 


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