Exit-Intent Popups

Overview

Exit-intent popups detect when a visitor is about to leave — by tracking rapid mouse movement toward the browser's address bar on desktop — and display a targeted offer. When implemented with proper targeting and frequency capping, they recover 5–10% of otherwise lost visitors. Dedicated popup apps handle all the detection logic, A/B testing, and ESP integration — no custom code needed.

When to Use This Skill

• When site bounce rate is above 60% and conversion rate is below 2%
• When capturing email addresses for the marketing list during the session
• When offering a first-purchase discount to new visitors who haven't converted
• When reminding checkout abandoners about items in their cart before they leave
• When A/B testing popup offer types (% off vs. free shipping vs. free gift)

Core Instructions

Step 1: Choose the right popup tool

Platform	Recommended Tool	Why
Shopify	Klaviyo Forms (free, syncs to Klaviyo) or Privy ($30/mo)	Klaviyo Forms integrates directly with Klaviyo flows; Privy includes A/B testing, unique coupon codes, and detailed analytics
WooCommerce	OptinMonster ($9/mo) or Popup Maker (free)	OptinMonster has exit-intent detection, A/B testing, and WooCommerce integration; Popup Maker is simpler and free
BigCommerce	Justuno or Klaviyo Forms	Both have native BigCommerce integrations and exit-intent detection
Custom / Headless	Klaviyo Forms (via JavaScript embed) or custom implementation	Klaviyo Forms works on any site with a JavaScript snippet

Step 2: Configure exit-intent detection and targeting

Most popup tools have exit-intent built in. The key is configuring it correctly to avoid annoying visitors.

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Shopify with Klaviyo Forms

1. In Klaviyo, go to Sign-up Forms → Create Form
2. Choose Popup as the form type
3. Under Targeting, set:
   • Display when: Exit intent (mouse moves to top of browser)
   • Delay: 5 seconds minimum time on page before activating
   • Frequency: Show once per 14 days (Klaviyo manages this via cookie)
4. Under Targeting → Conditions, add:
   • Show only on: Homepage, product pages, collection pages
   • Do NOT show on: /checkout, /cart, /account
   • Do NOT show to: Existing subscribers (Klaviyo checks this automatically for identified profiles)
5. Under Form Content, set your offer:
   • For email capture: "Get 10% off your first order" + email input + GDPR consent checkbox
   • For cart reminder: "You have items in your cart — complete your purchase" + link back to cart
6. Under Success Action, create a discount code:
   • Connect to Shopify → Discounts — Klaviyo can automatically create unique single-use 10% off codes
   • These codes appear in the success message and are automatically synced to the subscriber's profile

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Shopify with Privy

1. Install Privy from the Shopify App Store
2. Go to Privy → Displays → New Display → Popup
3. Under When to show, select "Exit intent"
4. Under Who to show it to, configure:
   • New visitors only (suppress for logged-in customers)
   • Minimum 30 seconds on site
   • Not in checkout
   • Frequency cap: 14 days
5. Under Offers, Privy automatically generates unique coupon codes synced to Shopify's discount system
6. Connect Privy to Klaviyo or Mailchimp under Integrations for automatic list sync

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WooCommerce with OptinMonster

1. Install OptinMonster plugin from the WordPress directory
2. Create a new campaign: Popup → Exit Intent
3. Under Display Rules, configure:
   • Exit Intent trigger: sensitivity = Medium
   • Time on page: minimum 30 seconds
   • Page targeting: include homepage, shop, product pages; exclude checkout, cart, my-account
   • Frequency: 14-day cookie suppression (OptinMonster default)
4. Under Integrations, connect to Mailchimp, Klaviyo, or your email provider
5. For unique coupon codes: use WooCommerce → Coupons to create a coupon, then display the code in the success message (OptinMonster does not auto-generate unique codes on free tiers)

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BigCommerce with Justuno

1. Install Justuno from the BigCommerce App Marketplace
2. Go to Justuno → Promotions → New Popup
3. Configure exit intent triggers, targeting rules, and A/B test variants through the visual builder
4. Justuno integrates with Klaviyo and Mailchimp for list sync

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Custom / Headless

For custom builds, Klaviyo Forms works on any website:

1. Add the Klaviyo JavaScript snippet to your site
2. Go to Klaviyo → Sign-up Forms → Create Form and configure as above
3. Klaviyo handles exit detection, frequency capping, and list sync

If you need full control over the popup behavior (custom exit detection logic):

function initExitIntent({ threshold = 20, delay = 5000, onExitIntent }) {
  let activated = false;

  setTimeout(() => {
    document.addEventListener('mouseleave', (e) => {
      if (e.clientY <= 0 && !activated) {
        activated = true;
        onExitIntent();
      }
    });
  }, delay);

  // Mobile: use visibilitychange instead of mouseleave
  document.addEventListener('visibilitychange', () => {
    if (document.visibilityState === 'hidden' && !activated) {
      activated = true;
      onExitIntent();
    }
  });
}

// Check frequency cap using localStorage
function shouldShowPopup(popupId, capDays = 14) {
  const lastSeen = localStorage.getItem(`popup_seen_${popupId}`);
  if (!lastSeen) return true;
  return (Date.now() - parseInt(lastSeen)) > capDays * 86400000;
}

Step 3: Configure the offer and A/B test

The most impactful thing to test is the offer type. Run one A/B test at a time:

Offer Type	Best For	Typical Email Capture Rate
10% off first order	General merchandise	3–8% of popup views
Free shipping	High-AOV stores (shipping is expensive)	4–9% of popup views
Free gift with purchase	Beauty, supplements	5–10% of popup views
Content offer ("Download our guide")	B2C brands with content	2–5%

In Klaviyo/Privy: create two variants of your form with different offers, split traffic 50/50, and measure conversion rate over 2 weeks before picking a winner.

Step 4: Generate unique discount codes (not generic codes)

Generic codes like WELCOME10 get shared on coupon sites and inflate your attribution:

• Shopify + Klaviyo: Klaviyo automatically generates unique single-use Shopify discount codes — enable this in the form's success action settings
• Shopify + Privy: Privy connects to Shopify's discount system and generates unique codes automatically
• WooCommerce: Use the WooCommerce Unique Coupon Generator plugin, or create a general code with per-customer usage limit

Best Practices

• Always include a control/holdout group (20–30%) — without a holdout, you cannot tell if the popup is adding value or just capturing conversions that would have happened anyway (most popup apps support this)
• Delay activation by at least 5 seconds — popups that fire immediately train visitors to close them without reading
• Frequency cap at 14 days minimum — all major popup apps handle this via cookie automatically; verify it is enabled
• Never pre-check the email consent checkbox — GDPR requires explicit opt-in; pre-checked boxes are not valid consent in the EU
• Generate unique one-time codes — generic codes (WELCOME10) get shared on coupon sites
• Exclude already-subscribed visitors — Klaviyo checks this automatically; for other tools, suppress via cookie

Common Pitfalls

Problem	Solution
Popup fires immediately on page load	Set minimum 5-second delay AND minimum scroll depth (20%) in targeting settings
Popup shown to same user on every visit	Verify frequency capping is enabled in your popup app (Klaviyo: 14 days; Privy: configurable; OptinMonster: configurable)
Exit intent fires on mobile	Switch to scroll-based or time-based triggers for mobile; most tools do this automatically when exit-intent is selected
No way to measure whether the popup helps conversion	Enable A/B testing with a control group in your popup app; most support this natively
High popup-driven unsubscribe rate	The offer is not compelling enough; test free shipping vs. % off; also check that emails are sending too frequently after signup

Related Skills

• @cart-abandonment-recovery
• @email-marketing-automation
• @conversion-rate-optimization
• @push-notifications
• @first-party-data-collection