Following the same protocol as who we are as an organization (We are NOT a lead provider. We’re a SHOW provider), I’m writing this post to provide clarity between a “pop-up” (which is so passé) and a “web overlay” – the new black of increasing foot traffic. Often times we hear our Web to Show product referred to as a “pop-up”. While it may appear to be a pop-up, it’s actually a web overlay. Semantics? Not really. I’ll explain.
The difference?
Pop up’s have a negative connotation as being intrusive, non-related and just plain annoying. A web overlay, on the other hand, is non-intrusive, is relevant to the visitor and is interesting.
Pop-ups create a new instance in a browser, recognized by Google as leaving the site and therefore hindering your SEO score and increasing your bounce rate. A web overlay uses content from your site – similar to a photo - that’s brought forward via an iFrame (not a new instance of a browser). We are not popping a new window, we are simply inserting DHTML. It just so happens to be floating, not inline, layout and doesn’t impact a user’s ability to navigate the page. Because an overlay is embedded in your site, it supports your SEO score as it shows interaction with your website – Google likes this.
The purpose?
The purpose of our web overlay is to educate in-market shoppers and provide a reason to visit you for a test drive. They are on your website, most likely know which car they want to buy, they just need a reason to choose you. We are the ZMOT. When the notification is displayed, it serves this purpose: “Thank you for looking at our inventory and vehicles of interest. Stop in for a test drive and we’ll redeem your $25 gift card of choice. Let us know when you’ll be visiting and we’ll have your vehicle ready when you arrive.” And when minimized, it stays minimized with a tab like reminder in the bottom left corner of the screen. So when that person is ready to decide, it’s available.
The techy side ala Google: “Google’s natural search rankings DO NOT penalize ranking of a site which displays promotional (or other) content to a site visitor via an overlay. Google only penalizes search rankings for sites which try to use hidden overlays and popups which try to boost the search ranking by presenting different content to the searchbot than to the site visitor. Google defines the popup as an instance of a new window which hinders a visitor’s ability to leave the site.” Our overlay does not.
