Many people teach that Popups – those annoying windows that open unexpectedly and ask for your email address – don’t work any more. Great tribe builders know how to make them work. If they work, they can be very effective at helping you build your list of email subscribers – people that are pretty tuned in to your tribe.
I just came across one from Joel Comm that I thought was particularly effective. Joel is an accomplished author and successful online marketer. I’ve been a fan for years. I think these are the keys to this popup’s success:
1. It is interesting visually. It combines a real picture with an cartoon character. He uses different colors. It is very large – the widest popup I’ve seen.
2. It is funny. The little twitter bird sitting on Joel’s shoulder is winking. Very cute.
3. He offers something of value – also known as an “ethical bribe” – something offered in exchange for something else. In this case, Joel wants your email address and he is willing to provide two free chapters of his best selling book, Twitter Power.
4. It is relevant. Because I have visited his blog, he assumes that I might be interested in new content he publishes. This is a very relevant assumption.
As much as I like it, I notice there are a couple of things that just don’t seem to make sense:
1. He says “Be sure to leave your comments.” It is not clear where he wants you to post comments. I guess on his blog posts.
2. His attempt at humor with the comment across the bottom about “We obviously can’t guarantee…” falls short because it doesn’t reference anything in the popup. I’m guessing that this referred to something previously that has since been removed.
So, if you use a popup – make it funny, interesting, relevant, valuable, and be sure to make sure that everything on it makes sense.
Do you have a great popup? Leave the link in the comments below. I’d love to see it.
You can visit Joel’s blog at www.JoelComm.com. He has a lot of interesting posts.
Gina Carr
Gina Carr works with business leaders who want to get more great reviews and fewer bad ones. A serial entrepreneur and business growth expert, she has an MBA from the Harvard Business School and an engineering degree from Georgia Tech. Gina is the co-author of the McGraw-Hill book, Klout Matters - How to Engage Customers, Increase Digital Influence, and Raise Your Klout Score for Success. Schedule a free strategy session today to learn easy ways for you to get more great reviews ... and, more great customers! www.ginacarr.com/strategy-session.
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