Popups
The most effective way to grab someone's attention.
Popups are OptiMonk's core campaign type — overlay messages that appear on top of your website content at a trigger point you define, commanding the visitor's attention with a focused message, offer, or call to action. A popup displays as a windowed overlay in the center of the page (by default, though position is configurable), with the surrounding page content dimmed behind a customizable overlay. Unlike embedded content that is part of the page or sticky bars that occupy a persistent strip, a popup demands a response: the visitor either engages with the offer or actively dismisses it, making it the most direct and high-impact format for time-sensitive messages. Popups in OptiMonk support the full range of campaign goals — email and SMS capture, discount delivery, cart abandonment recovery, product recommendations, surveys, gamification, and multi-step flows — and are built using the same drag-and-drop editor as all other campaign types. All triggers (exit intent, time delay, scroll, click, inactivity), all targeting conditions, all integrations, and all personalization features are fully available for popup campaigns.
Key benefits
- Maximum visibility at the moment of your choosing. A popup is impossible to miss — it appears in the center of the screen, dimming everything behind it, at the exact trigger moment you have defined. Whether that is 10 seconds after arrival, at 50% scroll depth, on exit intent, or when the visitor clicks a specific element, the popup captures the visitor's full visual attention at that moment. No other OptiMonk campaign format delivers the same level of guaranteed impression at a controlled trigger point.
- The most versatile format for any conversion goal. Because a popup creates a focused, contained canvas — separate from the page content behind it — it works for virtually any campaign objective: a two-field email capture form, a discount code reveal, a yes/no exit recovery message, a multi-step product quiz, a gamification wheel, a social proof notification, or a complex upsell recommendation. The format imposes no constraints on content type, and multi-step popups allow sequential interactions within the same overlay session.
- Full personalization and targeting depth. Every OptiMonk targeting condition — country, cart value, cart contents, Klaviyo segment, cookie value, custom variable, visited pages, traffic source, and more — applies to popup campaigns. Every trigger type is available. Every Experiences variant can be configured. Popups are the most widely supported campaign type in the platform, meaning no personalization, segmentation, or A/B testing feature is unavailable to them.
How it works
In OptiMonk, click New Campaign and select the campaign goal that matches your objective — grow email list, reduce cart abandonment, increase sales, and so on. Browse the templates filtered for that goal. Select a template and optionally apply your brand theme via the Mini-Wizard before entering the editor.
Customize the popup's content — headline, body copy, images, form fields, buttons, discount codes, countdown timers, and any other elements — using the drag-and-drop editor or the AI editor. Add additional pages for multi-step flows. Switch between desktop and mobile views to verify the layout. Configure the popup's position, entry animation, overlay color, and close button behavior from the Display and element settings.
Set your trigger (when the popup fires), your targeting conditions (who sees it), your frequency rules (how often), your ESP or CRM integration (where leads are sent), and any A/B test variants. Review the Settings summary, click Next, and publish. The popup will fire for qualifying visitors according to your configuration.
Frequently asked questions
What is a Popup in OptiMonk?+
A Popup is OptiMonk's primary campaign type — an overlay message that appears on top of your website content at a trigger point you define. It displays as a windowed overlay with the surrounding page dimmed behind it, giving your message the visitor's undivided attention. Popups support all OptiMonk campaign goals, all trigger types, all targeting conditions, all integrations, and all personalization features, making them the most versatile and widely used format in the platform.
What is the difference between a Popup and a Fullscreen campaign?+
Both are overlay formats that appear on top of page content, use the same editor, and support the same triggers and targeting. The difference is coverage: a popup appears as a windowed overlay in the center of the screen, leaving the surrounding page partially visible behind a dimmed overlay. A fullscreen campaign expands to fill the entire browser viewport, leaving no page content visible. Popups are less intrusive and suitable for a wider range of use cases; fullscreens are more impactful and best suited for high-priority messages like major promotional events.
Can I control where on the screen the popup appears?+
Yes. The default popup position is centered on the page, but OptiMonk's editor allows you to change the popup's position — to top, bottom, left, right, or corner positions. Position is configured in the Display settings panel in the editor. Different positions suit different use cases: a centered popup is most attention-commanding, while a corner or side popup is less disruptive and may be appropriate for lower-urgency messages.
Do popups affect my Google search rankings?+
Not when configured correctly. Google's intrusive interstitials guidelines target popups that fire immediately on page arrival from search results and cover the main content. OptiMonk popups avoid this by design — they fire based on behavioral triggers (time delay, scroll, exit intent) rather than immediately on page load, and they are rendered as part of the existing page rather than as a standalone interstitial. OptiMonk was built from the ground up to comply with Google's user experience standards. Fullscreen popups on mobile carry the highest risk of falling outside acceptable thresholds and are not recommended on mobile for this reason.
Can I run A/B tests on a popup campaign?+
Yes. Popup campaigns fully support OptiMonk's within-campaign Variant A/B testing — where you test different design variants, copy, or offer structures against each other within the same campaign — and OptiMonk's Multi-Campaign A/B Testing — where you test entirely different campaigns or strategies against each other, including against a no-campaign control group. Both testing frameworks are fully available for popup campaign types.
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