We all know this unpleasant feeling. We search for information on the internet, arrive at a website that seems to contain relevant content for us, and then various ads start popping up, annoying popups that severely degrade our user experience. And if that’s not enough, some of these popups do not clearly show the close button, or it is blended into the background colors of the site. Now you are left with two options: to try and invest time and effort in attempting to understand how to close the problematic popup, or to abandon the website. In every SEO project, a wide range of parameters related to the visitors’ user experience on the site are taken into account: the ability to browse the site from mobile devices, ease of navigation between different pages on the site, page loading times, and also the ability to enjoy a continuous, disruption-free browsing experience.
In this context, popups that disrupt the user during browsing can, under certain circumstances, be considered particularly problematic and harm the SEO project taking place in the background. Beyond that, organic SEO on Google is a process that can take a long time and involves significant investment, so we want to avoid as much as possible additional issues that could threaten the website traffic we are trying so hard to increase (in this case – popups).
What to beware of? How to act so visitors won’t abandon your website? How to provide your visitors with a more pleasant experience? We have compiled for you all the answers to the questions on your mind.
What are problematic popups when doing organic SEO on Google?
There are quite a few examples of popups that damage the user experience for visitors on a site. Here are just a few of them:
A popup that covers most of the content area immediately after a user navigates to it
In such cases, the user cannot even understand whether the content they navigated to is relevant to them, because the popup is displayed to them very shortly after the page content loads. A popup of this type severely damages the user experience, causes a high bounce rate on the website, and naturally harms any SEO project the website is involved in.
A dedicated page that the user must close before reaching the content
In this case, the popup is not displayed in a separate window, but on an actual dedicated page that the user must close before they can access the content they navigated to. This method of displaying a popup can also harm any SEO activity.
A page where the information displayed above the fold is not the main information
In professional jargon, the term “above the fold” is used. This concept refers to information present on any web page above the scroll line. The rest of the information, displayed below the scroll line, requires the user to perform an action (scrolling) before the content is displayed to them. It is customary to say that for the purpose of SEO, it is important that the main information, the one that provides a high-quality answer to the query made by the visitor, be placed above the fold.
What are legitimate popups that do not harm organic SEO on Google?
After reviewing several examples of problematic popups, let’s try to understand which popups are considered legitimate in this context.
Popups that deal with regulating legal terms
In these popups, the user is usually presented with a warning regarding the use of data provided by the visitor and the website’s privacy policy. Such a notice is considered legitimate because it regulates the browsing terms on the site with the user.
Popups used for login
If the information the visitor is navigating to is private and requires a prior authentication, then a popup containing a form to capture the user’s login credentials is completely legitimate and is not considered problematic.
Banners that are very easy for the user to dismiss
The use of banners on a site is legitimate if the user has an easy and simple way to dismiss them. This means that the banner’s close button must be clearly and prominently displayed, both on desktop screens and when the visitor is using mobile devices while browsing the site.
Why are popups a critical topic for any organic SEO project on Google?
The various search engines, and specifically Google’s search engine, attach great importance to the proper use of banners and pop-up ads. The main concern of search engines is attempts to take over the site and display harmful content to users. In addition, pop-up ads may raise suspicion of cloaking – showing one piece of information to search engines and different information to users. Added to these is, of course, the matter of website user experience, an element that takes an increasingly important share in Google’s decision on how to rank websites in search engine results pages.
How can you avoid harming the SEO process while implementing popups?
In order not to cause harm to the site and to enable any SEO project the website is involved in to be effective, it is advisable to take into account the following tips regarding the implementation of popups on the site.
Incorporate banners that do not take up too much screen space
Ongoing use of banners naturally has advantages, and it can allow you to prompt visitors to take action on the site, such as leaving contact details or navigating to special offers. However, it is important to understand that banners cannot take up a central part of the site’s pages, and they are not effectively the main content the visitor expected to find on the site. This is why it is important to maintain a balance between the main content on the site and the marketing content.
Ensure users can easily close the banner window
Don’t try to be clever in this regard with close buttons that are very difficult to locate. Try to make it as easy as possible for users to close the popup if it does not contain content that is relevant to them. It is important to ensure that users can close the pop-up window easily and with the same level of effectiveness when browsing from mobile devices as they do when browsing via computer.
Use a delay before the banner is displayed to the customer
Many websites choose to display banners to visitors only after a few seconds of browsing the site, or according to the visitor’s scroll position on the page. This is a better method for triggering the banner. The intention is to allow the visitor to understand what content is on the site, and only display the banner after they have decided the page is relevant to them. In this way, the user experience on the site’s pages is harmed much less.
Create personalized content using banners
As much as possible, try to create personalized banners that take into account the visitor’s identity and their needs. In this way, you can tailor the content to the visitor that is more likely to increase their engagement on the site. You can segment the banner content according to the visitor’s personal data, such as gender, age, education, etc., or by the visitor’s level of readiness (is it a return visit? Is it a customer who has already made a purchase on the site? and more).
Do not show a popup twice or more to the same user
If a visitor on the site has already chosen to close a banner you displayed for them, do not show them the same banner a second time. Such repeated display of a banner can annoy the customer, cause them discomfort, and encourage them to abandon the site and look for alternatives. Remember, in the digital age, you are never alone. Visitors reaching your site always have alternatives just a click away.
Make sure the popup does not slow down the site's loading speed
One of the most important parameters regarding an SEO project is the site’s loading speed. Just as an SEO specialist invests resources in improving the loading times of images on the site and scripts running in the browser, so they must invest resources to ensure that popups do not significantly slow down page load times, especially when browsing from mobile devices.
Summary
Popups are an integral part of the marketing world, but you need to know how to use them wisely. It is essential to create personalized content for popups and not show the same text or image multiple times to the same visitor. Make sure they do not disrupt the user and that they can be closed at any given moment. Most importantly, do not overdo the quantity because it can harm the user experience and ultimately the website’s ranking in search engines.
Article Author
Daniel Kahanov, CEO of Personas Media and Head of the Digital Marketing Track at HackerU College.
