Exit intent popup
An exit intent popup is a window that appears when a visitor is about to leave your online store. It intercepts the mouse movement towards the browser's close button and displays an offer or invitation as a final attempt to retain the visitor.
What is exit intent?
Exit intent is a technology that detects when a user is about to leave your webshop. It tracks mouse movement and speed, and when the mouse moves towards the browser's address bar, tab or close button, it triggers a popup.
It's a last resort - a final attempt to engage a visitor who would otherwise leave your store without converting.
How does it work?
On desktop, the script detects when the mouse leaves the content area (viewport) of the browser window - typically upwards towards the address bar or close junction. This is interpreted as a signal that the user is about to navigate away.
On mobile, mouse tracking does not work as there is no mouse. Here, alternative triggers such as fast scrolling upwards (towards the address bar) or back-button detection are used. However, the effectiveness is lower on mobile.
What do you show in an exit intent popup?
- Discount code: "Wait! Take 10% off with code EXIT10" - the most used and often most effective approach.
- Free shipping: "Order now and get free shipping" - can be enough to tip the balance.
- Newsletter incentive: "Sign up and get 15% off your first order" - converts visitors into leads even if they don't buy now.
- Limited time offer: "Your offer expires in 15 minutes" with countdown - creates urgency.
- Social proof: "47 other people are looking at this product right now" - plays on FOMO.
Exit intent in Shoporama
Shoporama's newsletter popup system supports exit intent as a trigger. You can configure:
- Popup type: Modal (centered overlay), slide-in from bottom, left or right
- Trigger: Exit intent, time delay or scroll depth
- Styling: Fully customizable with colors, border-radius, overlay and width
- Mobile view: Choose whether the popup should also appear on mobile devices
- Cookie control: Set how many days before the popup is shown again
- Statistics: View impressions and conversions to measure the impact
The impact of exit intent popups
Properly implemented, exit intent popups can:
- Convert 2-4% of visitors who would otherwise leave the site
- Build your email list with qualified leads
- Reduce bounce rate and increase time on site
Best practices
- Only show it once: Save in a cookie that the user has seen the popup and don't show it again for at least 7-30 days.
- Provide real value: A discount code or free shipping works. "Just sign up for our newsletter" with no incentive works poorly.
- Make it easy to close: A clear close checkmark and the option to close by clicking outside. A popup that is hard to close frustrates users.
- Test the size of the offer: A/B test whether 5%, 10% or 15% off gives the best balance between conversions and profit.
- Don't show during checkout: An exit intent popup in the middle of the checkout process can interrupt and confuse. Only show it on product pages and category pages.
We know online marketing in Shoporama
We've been working with online marketing ourselves for decades. As the only shop system in the country, we have spoken multiple times at conferences such as Marketingcamp, SEOday, Shopcamp, Digital Marketing, E-commerce Manager, Ecommerce Day, Web Analytics Wednesday and many more.