It used to be that popups were the bane of cyber space (I mean, can you remember the days when popups were so damn pointless?!).

Uninspired and unimportant, popups of the past seemed to do nothing but aggravate our all important web visitors.

Now it’s a different story. Because we’ve finally figured out how to harness the power of a beautiful and engaging popup to lead to serious CONVERSIONS! With an incredible selection of plugins and services to create the perfect popup, we are now able to turn visitors into subscribers so that you can triple your email list.

In fact, it’s been shown that exit-intent popups (the ones that grab your reader’s attention JUST before they leave your site) can translate into 300% more leads.

I’ve even experienced it myself. Since using popups, my subscribers have been increasing so fast. I’ve generated 30K+ subscribers within a few months after implementing effective popups. Just amazing. Here’s a snapshot:

More subscribers > More visitors > More $$$

And that’s what I want to talk to you about today. I’m going to teach you how to triple your subscribers using effective popups in WordPress.

In this post, we’re using the PopupAlly Pro. It’s an awesome plugin I recently discovered. It allows you to build seriously gorgeous popup “sign up” forms with NO coding knowledge whatsoever. Their popups are super visual, super attention-grabbing and super easy to use.

4 Tips for Perfect Popups

1. Offer Your Visitors an Incentive

There’s no two ways around it: we all love something free. So it goes without saying that by offering an incentive to your readers, your chances of them subscribing are going to increase.

It’s no good just asking for their email address and giving them nothing in return. You need to prove to your readers that subscribing to your email list will add value to their lives in some way. And to do this, you need to know exactly what they would love to receive.

Start off by finding out the popular pages or posts on your site. Why? Well, this will help you determine what your average reader finds most interesting: you can then tailor your “gift” accordingly.

For example, maybe you’re a travel blogger and your most visited page is your “About Me”. You could create a short e-book telling your readers exactly how you came to be a professional travel blogger alongside your ultimate travel bucket list. Or if you’re a website aimed at female entrepreneurs and your most popular post is all about networking, your popup could offer an invite to a private Facebook group for visitors to meet and mingle online.

Google Analytics is great for delivering this type of information (click here for tutorial). There are also plenty of plugins that will show and display your top posts and pages.

Here are some more examples of fabulous incentives to spark their attention:

Checklists (my favorite!)
Cheat Sheets
Webinars
Videos (case studies, tutorials, how-to, etc.)
Infographics
Email courses
Worksheets
Discount on a product (this is very effective when you sell something)
Entry to a contest
Free beautiful stock photos

… and the list goes on!

Here’s a bad-ass example from Scoop Industries which not only calls to the needs and interests of her readers but lays out what they will gain from signing up.

2. Create an Easy to Use Yet Attention-Grabbing Popup

Language is key when it comes to demanding your reader’s attention… as are aesthetics! Your popup needs to sound good AND look good. Here’s an example:

Some sure-fire ways to entice your readers include:

Use irresistible headlines (check out my 100 catchy opt-in headlines here).
Be snappy: clear and concise content is easier to absorb than paragraphs waffling on. Here’s a good one:
Use adjectives… the more powerful, the better! Add a bit of flavor to your content.
Provide proof; I’m talking numbers! Show them through social proof and testimonials why it’s worth their time signing up. This could be your current number of subscribers or how much $$ they could make (with your help, of course!).
Speak to your market! Tailor your language dependent on your readership. Can your tone stand to be a bit friendlier? A bit sassier? Then do it. Here’s an example:
Don’t ask for too much information. Keep their attention and make it easy for the reader. Try to avoid asking for more than three pieces of information so that the process is speedy for them. Usually, I only ask for their name and email.
Match your popup to your current theme: colors, fonts and any imagery you want to use should all match the general look of your site. It’s all about brand, people.
… but make sure it’s noticeable! You don’t want your popup to blend into the background. Make it pop. Here’s a super pretty example:
Use bold buttons. Your sign-up button is THE most important bit here. Make sure it jumps off the page.

Quick Tutorial: How to Install a Pretty Popup In 5 Minutes

You also want your popup to be easy to install, right? Luckily, PopupAlly Pro makes it a breeze (told you they were awesome, didn’t I?).

Here’s a quick tutorial (if you want a video tutorial, click here instead):

Download the PopupAlly Pro plugin: login to Ambitionally > My Current Programs > PopupAlly Pro > Download > Click “Download Link”. In that same page, you’ll see your registered email and your serial key.
Install the plugin. Login to your WordPress dashboard > Plugins > Add New > Upload Plugin > Choose the Popup Ally zipped file that you downloaded in the first step (make sure it’s still zipped) > Install Now
Configure your popup style. In your WordPress dashboard, click the PopupAlly Pro > Play around with the display settings & style settings where you will be given the option of different kind of popup templates, which pages to include or exclude your popup, thank you page, etc. Click here for step-by-step tutorials.
Integrate your popup with your email service provider (ie/ Mailchimp or Aweber). Go to Style settings > add your “sign up” form code from your email service provider to “Sign Up HTML” part (No idea? No worries! Click here for to find your service provider and find a tutorials on how to generate your sign up code)

Hey presto, your first popup is complete! Still need a helping hand? This page provides a thorough step by step guide to get you sorted in no time.

3. Put Your Popup Opt-in In Multiple Places

We all want an easy life, right? So why not make the sign-up process as pain-free and convenient as possible for your readers?!

Put your popup opt-in in as several different places. Force it into your reader’s attention by giving it ultimate exposure and to keep reminding them why they would be totally foolish to not sign up to your email list!

There are heaps of different styles of popup that will place it in varying places around your site (all available through PopupAlly Pro!). These include:

Scroll activation: This form will send out the popup as your reader comes to the end of a post, a page or an article. This is particularly useful if your incentive in the popup refers directly to content on your website… simply place the popup to activate maybe after scrolling 30% of your page.
Exit-intent: I mentioned this one before, but this one will activate the popup at the precise moment guests go to leave your website. It will help keep you at the forefront of their mind even once they have closed the tab.
Click-based popup (usually for content upgrades): Again, if you want your incentive to relate to something already on your site, it can be configured to appear once your reader has clicked on that piece of content or a relevant link. Here’s an example, when you click that “TAP INTO THE RESOURCE” button, a popup form will show up.
Time-delay: does what it says on the tin. Set the popup to go out after a certain amount of time… basically, once your visitor has become comfortable on your site (rather than hitting them with the information the second they open up your site).
Embed the popup anywhere on your site: the homepage (above the fold), top banner, bottom banner at the end of a blog post, in a sign-up page of its own… slot it in as much as you can and REALLY grab their attention. Check out all the places Jenna Dalton places her opt-in.

The more… the better. For a comprehensive guide on the many different options available and how to utilize them MASSIVELY for your site, check this out.

4. Split Test

A/B split testing is the best way to work out which type of opt-in works best… aka, which one leads to the most conversions. It will compare one version of the opt-in (the control test) with another (the variation) and pull together all the data to see which one readers respond to more.

Sounds fancy, huh?

The sweet news is that PopupAlly Pro allows you to do this. So you can try out different headlines… different styles of popup… different graphics… different whatever the heck you want.

You can set it up in minutes and their easy to use service makes it a walk in the park even for the technophobes out there.

My advice? Keep trying and testing until you find the perfect fit for your site and your visitors. Put in the time and effort until your click rate goes seriously through the roof.

A Bit More About PoupupAlly

All their popups are mobile-friendly and super easy to embed (no coding needed). They’re also totally customizable… so you can change the color, logo, fonts, font fields and buttons to fit in with your brand. Plus, they’re bursting with power features including:

Reader decision points: Rather than just asking for their name and email, give them options depending on their interests. Their choice will lead them to a more personalized opt-in… Shweeet!
Smart-subscriber recognition (one of my favorite features!): When a reader clicks on a link inside one of your emails, they won’t ever be bombarded with further requests to sign-up. PopupAlly recognizes your subscribers… whatever device they are visiting from.
Video popups: really stand out from your competitors by turning your opt-in form into a fancy video. It’s time to impress, people.
Customizable templates: You don’t have to start from scratch. Choose a ready-made template and easily customize it to your preferred look.

Ultimately? They’re the premier but affordable choice when it comes to popups for your site.

Pricing: $0 – $297: PopupAlly Free plugin / PopupAlly Pro $97

Click Here to Visit PopupAlly

how to triple your subscribers with pretty popups in wordpress