Popups - Why do they still use them

[dragon wench]

I have just been browsing through epicurious.com. It is one of my favourite food and recipe sites, but I always use a popup blocker when I go there because you get hit with a new popup *every* time you click on a new page... extremely annoying.

Now my question is this. I'm hardly the only person who uses popup blockers for particularly bad sites. Indeed, all kinds of software, browsers etc. now include some form of popup blocker.
So, given that a lot of people are now sailing along completely oblivious to the popup ads hitting them, why on earth are they still used so commonly for internet advertising?

Thoughts? Answers?

[Kipi]

Perhaps because there is still big potential group of those who doesn't...

Even if most of the users use popup-blockers, the remain group is still rather big 'cause of the popularity of internet.

Also, at times and with "luck" person who uses blocker may still be potential target, because besides blocking ads, it also blocks every other popup-windows. And rather large number of sites are using popup-windows, like some internet-mails (my univers mail is good example of this).

So, for being able to use those numerous sites, one must disable the blocker, and then being target of popup-ads...

[dragon wench]

I thought about some of that as well. But, popup blockers are not difficult to briefly disable. On Opera you just need to go to your "tools" menu, hit "quick preferences" and bang you're done. With Firefox, it is "tools" and "options." This takes all of about 2 seconds.

Besides, most of the sites I encounter work quite efficiently with a popup blocker enabled. Though I suppose that is also a question of personal habits.

Though there is also the psychology of it. I don't know.. but I'm not exactly going to feel inclined to buy a product if its ad has annoyed me. And if it has tried to install something nasty on my machine.. well my reaction is even less favourable.

[Kipi]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dragon wench I thought about some of that as well. But, popup blockers are not difficult to briefly disable. On Opera you just need to go to your "tools" menu, hit "quick preferences" and bang you're done. With Firefox, it is "tools" and "options." This takes all of about 2 seconds. Besides, most of the sites I encounter work quite efficiently with a popup blocker enabled. Though I suppose that is also a question of personal habits.

Yes, but it's also suprisingly easy to forget to turn it back on. And also, while you are using such site, it sometimes only needs that you turn it off for a moment and you are "attacked" by popup-ad...

Quote:

Though there is also the psychology of it. I don't know.. but I'm not exactly going to feel inclined to buy a product if its ad has annoyed me. And if it has tried to install something nasty on my machine.. well my reaction is even less favourable.

Well, for some it may be the same. But also, those ads must also atract interest, why would anybody use them if those don't? Also, sometimes ads in general have habbit to make potential customer interested of the product when the customer sees the ad again and again, especially when his is happening during long period of time. There is especially the effect of "well, there is that ad again, is it really worth of this all". And this is not so far from buying the product...

[dragon wench]

You may be right,
I am any marketer's or advertiser's worst nightmare, so I'm probably not representative


Still,
I am interested in why the things are still used, and whether or not more sophisticated ad technologies will eventually supersede them.

[Kipi]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dragon wench You may be right, I am any marketer's or advertiser's worst nightmare, so I'm probably not representative Still, I am interested in why the things are still used, and whether or not more sophisticated ad technologies will eventually supersede them.

Well, I can think some reasons right away:
1) It's rather easy to make such ads. You don't have to be anykind of computer-geek to be able to make one.
2) It's cheap. If popup-ads are compared to traditional ways to advertise, you can save lots of money that way. You just need a computer and someone who are capable of doing it.
3) It actually draws users attention if there is no popup-blocker. You have to close every single popup-window separately, forcing you to atleast notice the existence of the ad.
4) Especially if the ad is placed on forums/etc. it gets very big potential target -group. And popups are advertising 24/7 (usually), while ie tv-ads are advertising only those short periods of times when the ad itself is shown.

About wehter there is going to be new ways to ad, I think popups wont survive long, since almost every programm now includes the blocker. When such programs are spreading more and more widely, popup-ads aren't anymore as much worth of making, forcing to new and innovative ways of adverticing. But I believe this transition will take long time since again, popups are easy and fast way to ad the product to large mass of people.

[FireLighter]

Simply put, pop-ups are there to advertise certain websites or products. Just like commercials companies spend lots of money (not so much with pop-ups) designing this ad or commercial to catch the viewers attention and get them to visit their site or buy their product.

Thats my view in a nut shell as I dont like to type long essay-like answers.

[Kipi]

Quote:

Originally Posted by FireLighter Simply put, pop-ups are there to advertise certain websites or products. Just like commercials companies spend lots of money (not so much with pop-ups) designing this ad or commercial to catch the viewers attention and get them to visit their site or buy their product. Thats my view in a nut shell as I dont like to type long essay-like answers.

Yes, that's the whole point in nutshell...

But what do you think, what other alternatives there could be?

[Robnark]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kipi Yes, that's the whole point in nutshell... But what do you think, what other alternatives there could be?

if you can work that one out, you could make a fortune.

I have noticed that the shinier banner ads are tending to include all manner of interactive expanding noisy silliness in order to get your attention. however, these require far more technical and artistic know-how than a generic pop-up. as you pointed out, pop-ups are an easy way to grab the attention, especially if you're not making well-designed/entertaining/attractive interactive adverts.

[Hill-Shatar]

The only banners I pay any attention to are game banners, myself. All the other kinds I do not notice, unless it is a pop up, then I make a note of it.

Search for the name in a store...

To make sure I never buy their products again. I don't think advertisers have much luck with me. Still better to call me than DW, I already heard the story on how she and her SO handled the last telemarkter.

Honey, is the cat spaded...?

[fable]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dragon wench Now my question is this. I'm hardly the only person who uses popup blockers for particularly bad sites. Indeed, all kinds of software, browsers etc. now include some form of popup blocker. So, given that a lot of people are now sailing along completely oblivious to the popup ads hitting them, why on earth are they still used so commonly for internet advertising?

Because nobody's come up with a better way of making the Web a paying proposition. Some sites restrict viewing based on a "free membership" (which involves giving away some combination of your phone number, geographical and email addresses), but that's not a proven success. In fact, there are even sites to help you get around these "doorkeepers", such as www.bugmenot.com. So to garner revenues, sites permit popups of all sorts, just as some governments permit billboard advertising. It ruins the view, but other money-making options are limited.

I use AdSmasher, myself.

[dragon wench]

Thanks for posting Bugmenot, Fable, I just bookmarked it

What you are saying does make sense. Though, given how easy it is to block popups, and given how making money on the web is already a bit tenuous... you kind of wonder at the future of web profitablility.

btw.. Not to get too far off course, but I just noticed Fable, that you have in excess of 20, 000 posts!
Somehow, that makes me feel much better!

[Kipi]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Robnark if you can work that one out, you could make a fortune. I have noticed that the shinier banner ads are tending to include all manner of interactive expanding noisy silliness in order to get your attention. however, these require far more technical and artistic know-how than a generic pop-up. as you pointed out, pop-ups are an easy way to grab the attention, especially if you're not making well-designed/entertaining/attractive interactive adverts.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hill-Shatar The only banners I pay any attention to are game banners, myself. All the other kinds I do not notice, unless it is a pop up, then I make a note of it. Search for the name in a store... To make sure I never buy their products again. I don't think advertisers have much luck with me. Still better to call me than DW, I already heard the story on how she and her SO handled the last telemarkter. Honey, is the cat spaded...?

Yes, there is very high chance that person gets annoyed to ad when it's popupping all the time. Happened to me with some ads here in GB...
Made me not to want to buy those games, especially when they didn't seem that cool anyway.

That's why I started to use Opera yesterday...

[dj_venom]

I think another reason is that it's easier on the webmaster.

The point of a commercial website is to make money, and even if it isn't commercial, it's still nice to make money from your hardwork. The easiest way to do that is with advertising. Now, if you want to put ads on, you have to change the whole setup of your site and allow room for these ads... or alternatively you could simply put a pop-up on. You still get the money, they get the advertising, and you save yourself work.

[Robnark]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dj_venom I think another reason is that it's easier on the webmaster. The point of a commercial website is to make money, and even if it isn't commercial, it's still nice to make money from your hardwork.

bandwidth and hosting aren't free, y'know. if your requirements are greater than the free web hosting that various ISPs and others offer, then you need to pay for it. the more traffic and content you have, the more it costs. a 'commercial' website is usually a site that is explicitly based on selling something, and many of these do not rely on advertising for income, be it banners or pop-ups.

the problem is that even if your website does not set out to make money from people, it requires some kind of mechanism to get back at least some of the costs. web advertising is rarely adequate for this on its own, but it's better than not having ads - and if pop-ups pay more, they get used. also, I have yet to see a site that has pop-ups that isn't already including other forms of advertising in some way - but certainly, they allow much larger and generally more irritating ads than almost anyone would consider including in their website.