What I do know is that I don’t link to web pages that have popups. When I write and article like this one, I often create links in my text so that my readers can get another take on the subject, or perhaps see what it is I’m referencing. For example; I often mention the music I’m listening to as I’m writing (right now it’s Bob Dylan’s Oh Mercy album) a post, and so I include a link to a web page with more information on the album. Sometimes I will use and affiliate link, and sometimes I don’t. The link above is not, and therfore I may create some income for another hard working webmaster out there. I’ve also helped him out with a good inbound link.

Often I go back and read my old posts (I read my own blog to check for grammer, spelling, punctuation errors, and broken links) and sometimes I notice that the page I linked to has an annoying popup. Sometimes the page has multiple popups. I usally check for that when I create a link in one of my articles, but the webmaster can add a popup after my article was published. As soon as I realize they have incorporated a popup on their page, I disable their link and replace it with another web page that does not use popups, popunders, poparounds…..you get the point.

I know that I’m not the only blogger that does this, so web sites that use popups are losing valuable inbound links. This may not be a concern for some webmasters and marketers, because they don’t worry about traffic via the use of search engines. They may have affiliate programs, email marketing, joint ventures, etc. etc. What they gain in customers and sales from using popups far out-weighs the traffic they would lose due to link popularity.

However — as popup blockers become more and more proficient, there gains from using pop scripts will diminish. If I was a marketing a product with a web site or blog, I would find a way to grab the visitor’s attention without the use of a popup, popunder, or pop-whatever. I’d want to ensure that other web site (or blog) owners don’t have a reason for not linking to my pages.

It all depends on your business; what methods of traffic building are you using? What do your visitors want when they find your site? What action do you want your visitors to take? Once you know the answers to these questions you can decide if pop scripts are worth testing. As usual with all Internet businesses, it ALL comes down to testing. 

Technorati Tags: Inbound Links, Popups Popup Scripts, Popunder Scripts

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