Bunnyfoot Research into Pop-Ups shows Users Hate Them

"The Efficacy of Pop-ups and the Resulting Effect on Brands" is written by Anne Chan, Jon Dodd and Robert Stevens of Bunnyfoot Universality. It presents Bunnyfoot's research into the role of pop-ups in advertising, attitudes and opinions towards pop-ups and the subsequent user perception of both website and advertiser.

The result of testing 36 individuals conducting tasks on two comparable websites indicates an intense dislike for pop-up ads, resulting in a negative attitude towards the website itself and the brand owner.

The Internet advertising industry makes a distinction between rich media pop-ups and the original in-frame variety but most users do not consciously differentiate between the two. However, they are more likely to close a frame based pop-up and simply ignore the rich media type.

The research was carried out using Bunnyfoot's non-invasive eye tracking system which allowed judgement whether an advert was registered (consciously or subconsciously) by the users.

A typical comment was 'There is nothing more annoying than adverts popping up... it's enough to make me leave a site'.

The major findings include:
• The company name or logo was only physically seen in 2% of all ads
• 50% of ads were closed before the ad finished loading
• 35% of pop-up ads were ignored completely
• The average time from a pop-up ad frame appearing and the clicking of the close button was 2.5 seconds, the average time for a company name or logo to appear in a pop-up is 8.2 seconds
• There were no positive comments about pop-ups from any of the 36 users tested
• Users feel that their intelligence is being insulted because of the suggestion that they cannot find what they are looking for themselves
• Users feel imposed upon because sometimes they have no choice but to act in order to get rid of the advertisement
• Users are particularly irritated by pop-ups which are not related to the site, as there is no useful reason for them to be there
• Users are particularly frustrated by adverts which appear in the centre of the screen or obstruct information.

A further study of the effect of banner ads is promised soon.

Associated Link: The Efficacy of Pop-ups and the Resulting Effect on Brands

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