Pop-ups have a reputation for being annoying, but that’s not the whole story. Not all pop-ups ads are considered annoying. In fact, pop-ups advertising is highly effective when done correctly – emphasis on correctly.
It’s entirely possible to create pop-ups ads that appeal to your website visitors and add to their experience.
In this article, you’ll learn about 11 effective ways to use pop-ups to get results, but first, let’s explore the science behind why this form of advertising is so effective.
Pop-ups ads work and there’s plenty of proof, including this study performed by Sumo that looked at 1,754,957,675 pop-ups. Based on the results, at 100 visitors per day, the average pop-ups ad will generate about 90 subscribers each month, while a highly effective ad can generate closer to 275 subscribers per month.
The study found the following:
This begs the question: if pop-ups ads are so effective, why does it seem like people complain about them so much?
Isn’t that contradictory?
It might be in part because some people tend to complain about things.
Many people who complain about pop-ups have likely subscribed to those same pop-ups they’ve complained about.
However, there’s another reason: Pop-ups are displayed to every visitor.
Your conversion rate is based on your view rate. Since pop-ups need to be viewed to be closed, they’re basically being seen by 100% of your visitors.
Your conversion rate might be high, but the percentage of people who close your ad will be higher.
The people who complain about pop-ups are likely the ones who aren’t converting, and that’s going to be a large number of people.
Now let’s talk about why pop-ups are effective. There are a few main reasons this form of advertising works so well:
Now that you know why pop-ups are effective, it’s important to grasp some best practices to ensure you aren’t annoying your visitors. Yes, there is a way to deliver effective pop-ups without annoying your visitors.
Even when visitors close a pop-up window, that doesn’t mean they’re annoyed. The best pop-ups will appear smoothly and offer visitors an easy and fast way to close it. Most people only become annoyed at pop-ups that feel intrusive and can’t be closed easily.
You’ll only get improved conversions to your landing pages when people want what you’re offering. Make your offer irresistible and make sure it delivers on the promise. Over-deliver if possible.
Pop-ups become intrusive when they’re not easy to close. Make sure you have a clearly visible “X” in the upper right corner that is fully responsive to both clicks and finger taps on mobile devices. Create a thick, solid colored border around your pop-up to make the “X” more visible.
Don’t be afraid of people closing your pop-up – you want people to close it if they aren’t interested. If they can close it easily, they’ll be more likely to return to your site. If your pop-up is a barrier to accessing your content, they’ll bounce and hesitate to return.
Once a visitor closes your pop-up, don’t display it to them again. Most pop-ups can be programmed to not show up for returning visitors who closed it out, and it’s wise to program yours this way. You’ll lose a chunk of returning traffic if people have to close out a pop-up every single time they visit your website. If you’re running a blog, this will become a huge barrier.
Make sure your pop-up offer is relevant to the content on the page people are viewing.
Your offer might seem relevant to every page, but if you have any specialty pages with content that isn’t a match, turn off your pop-up for those pages or come up with a different offer.
Your offer needs to be clear and understandable right away or people will close your pop-up if they can’t figure out what you’re offering.
Studies have shown that you don’t want to display pop-ups immediately, but you should wait about five seconds. This seems to be the perfect timing. Five seconds allows visitors to understand where they are before they’re asked to sign up for your email list.
There are two elements that should be absent from your landing pages: navigation menus and pop-ups. Visitors to your landing pages aren’t the same as regular web traffic – they’re expecting something specific and a pop-up will be a frustrating barrier to access. For instance, when they’ve already read and clicked on an ad to get to your landing page, they just want to get what they’re after.
Email signup forms generate less conversions when they have more form fields. Many people ask only for an email address, while others ask for a first name as well. The latter is ideal since it allows you to personalize your emails. Three form fields tend to get the most conversions. Ask for more than three pieces of information and your conversions will likely fall.
However, getting fewer conversions isn’t always bad. Just because someone signs up for your free offer doesn’t mean they’re your market. You want to discourage some people from signing up when they’re not your target.
Exceptions to this rule vary depending on your industry and target market. For example, if you’re targeting professionals who must hold a specific credential, you’ll want to ask leads to identify their credential on your signup form for two reasons: First, this will help you disqualify leads that aren’t your target market. Second, you segment tag leads based on their credential, which will help you market to specific sub groups.
A click trigger pop-up appears when a visitor intentionally clicks on a link or image. The advantage to this method is that your visitors want the information provided by the pop-up since they have to click to get it. It should be no surprise, then, that click triggers convert 12 times better than standard pop-ups.
This pop-up will show up when a user shows intent to leave your website. An exit-intent pop-up is usually triggered when a visitor moves their mouse away from the website and toward the top of the browser.
Most exit-intent pop-ups say something like, “Wait! Before you go, here’s an offer just for you…” and many offer a generous discount. Use this to your advantage because exit-intent pop-ups work!
This is similar to the exit-intent pop-up, but with a conditional twist. This pop-up will only show up if a visitor has an item in their cart when they start to leave the page. With nearly 70% of all shopping carts abandoned, you want to capture as many sales as possible by bringing people back to complete their purchases.
You won’t capture everyone, but you will capture some people. The reason you won’t capture everyone is simple: not everyone is looking to buy.
Many people add items to their cart to compare prices, get shipping quotes, and some use shopping carts as a “wish list.”
Although word around the ‘net is that pop-ups are annoying, now you know that’s not the case. It’s not that pop-ups are annoying – it’s that improperly implemented pop-ups are annoying. And by following the best practices outlined in this article, you can craft effective and unwanted pop-ups ads that will capture more signups from your target market while avoiding annoying those who aren’t interested.
Your revenue is directly tied to your ability to generate targeted leads, and pop-ups are one of the best ways to get those targeted leads.
When you have a desirable product or service, your ads will be welcomed by your visitors and they’ll be happy to sign up for your email list.
To recap: when your goal is to generate leads, pop-ups will prove to be an invaluable addition to your site. When properly implemented, pop-up ads will help you capture leads that you can nurture to conversion in order to generate the revenue you deserve. If you haven’t yet implemented this effective advertising strategy, there’s no better time to start than right now.
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Launching an online course is easy once you’ve created your content. Filling your virtual classroom with motivated, paying learners is a little more challenging. Advertising strategies aren’t intuitive no matter how user-friendly a platform might be, and trying to guess at how to market your courses online can feel like you’re shouting into the void. But with a little knowledge and some expert PPC ad strategies, you can get your courses in front of people who are hungry to learn what you teach.
With precise targeting, a professional strategy, budget control, and regular tracking, a PPC ad campaign can transform your course into a thriving program. The key is knowing how to structure your ad campaigns for both clicks and hot leads that convert.
Unlike search engine optimization (SEO), which can take months to gain even a little traction, PPC provides you with immediate visibility right where your target users are hanging out. SEO is important but it’s a long-term game that should be executed alongside PPC ads for the best results. While you’re waiting, PPC generates immediate clicks and drives traffic to your website on the spot.
The best part is that when done right, PPC ads offer a high ROI compared to many other advertising methods. According to the data, businesses earn an average of $2 for every $1 they spend on Google Ads, making PPC a powerful resource for course providers. Here’s everything you need to know about mastering PPC to generate hot leads for your online courses.
1. Understand the learner’s journey
If you want your PPC ads to generate leads ready to buy and not just curious clicks, you need to align your ad strategy with how learners make decisions. Signing up for an online course is not an impulse purchase. It’s a journey that usually starts with curiosity and then moves to research and comparison. When successful, that journey ends with enrollment.
A one-size-fits-all ad won’t work because a student who is just browsing isn’t ready for the same pitch as someone about to hand over their credit card. Understanding the different parts of the funnel, and tailoring your ad campaigns to match each stage, is what will make your course successful. A typical buyer’s journey for learners involves the following stages:
At this stage, your potential students are still exploring broad ideas related to the courses you’re offering. They may not know exactly which course or platform is right for them, but they’re actively looking for options. You’ll need to use a certain type of keyword phrase to capture their attention.
Searches like “learn coding online,” “how to get TEFL certified,” and “language courses for beginners” will work well at this stage. PPC ads in this phase shouldn’t hard-sell enrollment, but rather, focus on positioning your course as credible and informative.
Think free guides, introductory webinars, and blog posts that answer frequently asked questions about your topic. By nurturing your leads’ interests and providing value right off the bat, you’ll have an easier time becoming a trusted brand that people keep in mind as they move deeper into the journey.
During the consideration state prospects know what they want but they’re comparing their options. They’ve narrowed down their choices and are considering factors like price, flexibility, depth, instructor quality, platform, and accreditation. Ideal search terms in this phase are related to specific things that your prospects value or want to achieve like “affordable Python bootcamp,” “online MBA with scholarships,” or “best UX design course with certification.”
Your PPC ads should also highlight unique selling points for your course like “self-paced learning,” “industry-recognized certificate,” or “job placement success.” It’s at this stage where comparison charts, testimonials, and detailed course previews are highly effective. The goal is to show your prospects why your program beats the competition.
At this point, hesitation is minimal. Prospects are ready to sign up but might need one last push. This is where urgency, social proof, and simplicity make all the difference. Ads should feature strong calls to action like “Enroll Today,” limited-time incentives like “Save 20% - Ends Sunday.” This is the perfect time to showcase real student success stories. Landing pages for ads in the decision stage should remove all friction. Avoid long forms and distracting links. Just provide a clear and simple path to enrollment.
Keep in mind that most of your ideal market will encounter your brand multiple times along their journey across different devices and platforms, like Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube. Mapping your PPC ad campaigns to these three stages ensures you’re showing up with the right message at the right time. When done correctly, focusing on all three stages with separate messages will turn casual searchers into qualified leads ready to buy your course.
The backbone of every PPC campaign is your keyword selection. You can write the most convincing ad copy in the world, but if you’re bidding on the wrong phrases you’ll either waste your budget or attract people who have no intention of enrolling.
Your goal isn’t just to drive traffic to your site. You need to drive qualified traffic – people who are serious about learning what you teach and are ready to invest in themselves. This requires targeting a mix of high-intent keywords, longtail phrases, and negative keywords.
Broad keywords like “data science” and “coding” cast a net that’s too wide. You’ll get clicks but most will be from people who are just curious or looking for free resources. To reach people who are committed, you need to target high-intent keywords that show purchase intent. Phrases like “enroll in our data science course” and “online JavaScript certification with ongoing support” will attract users who are actively seeking instruction.
You’ll pay more for high-intent keywords but they deliver more value and higher conversion rates, and that will increase your ROI when you choose the right ones.
Longtail keywords are used to target a smaller pool of people and that’s a good thing. Since these keywords are more focused, the traffic they generate is more valuable. Instead of competing for saturated, general terms like “learn graphic design online,” you target specific phrases like “best graphic design program for working professionals with evening classes.” The people searching with this level of specificity already know what they want, which means they’re more likely to convert.
If you skip targeting longtail keywords you’re leaving money on the table. Data shows that 70% of all online searches involve longtail phrases – it’s just how people naturally search when they know what they want.
Your negative keyword list is how you’ll preserve your budget and prevent wasting money on irrelevant clicks. Without a list of words you don’t want your ads to show up for, you’ll end up paying for clicks that never convert.
Build a negative keyword list of words that indicate someone is looking for something free or irrelevant to your course. For example, words like “free,” “PDF,” “torrent,” and “Reddit” are usually used in searches when someone is looking for shortcuts and freebies. Adding these and similar words to your negative keyword list will filter out tire-kickers and boost ROI by preserving your ad budget for relevant prospects.
Once you have the right keywords that generate impressions, your ad copy has to do the work to get clicks. Your ads need to grab people right away to prevent them from scrolling and possibly clicking on another course provider’s ad. For e-learning, your ads need to inspire people. Instead of talking about your course you want to highlight what your course will do for the learner. This is accomplished with benefit-driven messaging, emotional triggers, and strong calls-to-action (CTAs).
· Benefit-driven messaging. Most course providers list features like “40 hours of video content” and “downloadable PDFs,” but these details aren’t going to capture attention at first glance. In fact, telling learners they’re going to need to sit through 40 hours of content right off the bat might be a deterrent.
Instead, your ads should highlight tangible outcomes like “land high-paying clients with our program,” or “start a new career as a web developer in just 12 weeks.” Benefits speak directly to a person’s goals and aspirations, which is far more compelling than a list of specs.
· Emotional triggers. Emotional triggers are the heart of every marketing strategy, including PPC ads. People make emotional buying decisions and buy courses because they’re chasing a dream, avoiding a fear, or seeking transformation.
Great ad copy taps into these emotions and creates a sense of urgency. For instance, “Don’t miss the enrollment deadline” plays into the fear of missing out, while “Join 10,000 successful graduates” leverages social proof. The right emotional triggers will give people a good reason to act now rather than bookmarking your page and forgetting about it.
· Clear CTAs. Irresistible ad copy includes a direct, compelling call-to-action that tells the prospect what to do next. Generic instructions don’t cut it. “Learn more,” “Click here,” and similar phrases don’t communicate urgency or value. Choose CTAs that direct prospects to sign up for your course. For example, “Start your free trial” and “Reserve your seat today” work well.
In a crowded marketplace where hundreds of course creators are competing for the same attention, clarity and emotion will generate better results. Lead with benefits and tap into people’s emotions and your ad copy will generate serious leads.
Generating clicks from your ads is only the first half of the equation. Once a prospect clicks your landing page needs to convert them to a paying customer or your ad spend goes to waste. Your landing page is like the final pitch where prospective students choose whether to enroll in your course or move on. If your landing pages create any confusion, friction, or distrust, your prospects will lean toward other course creators. On the other hand, an optimized landing page can become a conversion generating machine.
Your landing pages should be simple and clean without too much information. The page content should be specifically designed to direct people to sign up for your course. You want to eliminate navigation menus and sidebars to prevent people from clicking away from the page and getting distracted. Each landing page should have one end goal, either to get sign-ups/purchases or apply for acceptance if required. Too many options will create cognitive overload and reduce the chance of any action.
It’s crucial to include trust elements on your landing pages. When people are thinking about investing their time and money in an online course, they’re naturally going to be skeptical. This is where trust signals can help. Testimonials, instructor bios, refund guarantees, and case studies will help build your course credibility. The goal here is to reassure people that your program is legitimate and worth their investment.
Clicks are important but they’re somewhat of a vanity metric when measured on their own. The only time clicks matter is when you’re looking at your conversion rate. If you generate 100 clicks and get 40 people to enroll that’s much better than generating 1,000 clicks and only getting one person to enroll in your course.
The metrics that matter most are your conversion rate, your cost per lead (CPL), and lifetime customer value (LTV). For instance, you’ll want to track completed signups, demo requests, and enrollments rather than overall clicks.
Cost per lead is a simple measurement that can tell you how efficient your campaign is. For instance, if you’re paying $50 per lead but your average enrollment fee is $500, your margins are good. If your CPL is too close to your revenue then your course might be priced too low or you need to adjust your targeted keywords.
For e-learning, many students invest in more than one course or renew their subscription, which increases their lifetime value to your business. Tracking LTV will help you determine how much you can afford to spend acquiring each new student. For example, if your LTV average is $1,500, it makes sense to spend $200 to acquire each lead. This long-term view helps you maintain profitability and allows you to outbid your competitors who aren’t willing to spend much.
PPC ads require fine-tuning and you can’t just “set it and forget it.” What works today might underperform tomorrow or not perform at all on other platforms. Even small changes can make a huge difference in conversions and that’s why it’s important to test variations. For example, Dell is just one example of a company that saw a 300% increase in conversions from A/B testing.
By running experiments to test different elements you can identify what resonates most with your target audience and optimize your ads based on those results. The most important elements to test are your headlines, CTAs, and images.
· Testing headlines. Your ad headline is usually the first thing a prospect sees. Testing different headlines can help identify which promises resonate most. For example, “Land your dream job” might appeal to people looking for a new career, while “Get certified in 12 weeks” might hook people in a hurry. If you get more conversions from the former, your main audience is likely people looking for a new career, and you can tailor your ads to that group.
· Testing CTAs. A strong CTA can generate more clicks, but what works will depend on your audience. For example, “Get started today” might work for some courses while “Reserve your spot” works better for others. Avoid vague CTAs like “Learn more” that don’t instruct people to take action.
· Testing visuals. Images can put people off or draw them closer. Visuals are processed faster than text and are perceived in a split-second. A single image can make or break an ad. For instance, sometimes a photo of an instructor works well, but other times it’s better to use abstract graphics.
Split testing isn’t optional when you’re running PPC ads. It’s the only way to know which elements make your ads more effective.
At the end of the day, PPC is a great way to build a pipeline of motivated students who want to enroll in your courses. By aligning your campaign with the learner’s journey and optimizing your ads and landing pages for conversions, you can turn your PPC campaign into a reliable growth engine. As the e-learning market becomes more competitive, ads that hit hard are a must.
If you’re ready to stop wasting ad spend and start filling your online classrooms with qualified leads, it’s time to bring in PPC experts. At PPC.co, we specialize in turning clicks into enrollments through high-converting campaigns that deliver qualified leads for online course creators . Contact our team today and let’s build campaigns that fill your classroom.
Pay-per-click (PPC) remains one of the fastest paths to pipeline, but the economics vary widely by industry and are shifting as AI reshapes the SERP. CPCs are up versus prior years, conversion rates have improved in many categories, and lead quality is increasingly a function of how well advertisers feed first-party data into bidding models.
The table below summarizes 2025 search-PPC benchmarks by sector—CPC, conversion rate (CVR), and cost per lead (CPL)—so you can compare what “good” looks like in your niche and calibrate ROI assumptions.
Use these numbers as directional guardrails, then layer in your own close rates and LTV to get to the only metric that matters: profitable growth.
In short, AI is changing the way PPC campaign management is occurring, and it's happening FAST.
ROI ≈ (Close-Rate × Avg Customer LTV ÷ CPL) − 1
Example (legal): if close-rate 12% and LTV $6,000 on CPL $132 → ROI ≈ (0.12×6000 / 132) −1 ≈ 4.45x (345% net). Improve any one input (faster intake bumps close-rate; better routing lowers CPL) and ROI jumps. Benchmarks for CPL/CVR above provide solid starting points. LocaliQ
PPC will keep paying when two things are true:
(1) you can convert and qualify leads quickly, and
(2) your bidding models are trained on the outcomes that actually make you money.
As AI compresses differences in targeting, the edge shifts to first-party data, creative velocity, and value-based bidding.
Treat the benchmarks above as starting points, then rebuild your ROI math from the ground up: ROI ≈ (Close Rate × LTV ÷ CPL).
Contact us today for your customized PPC audit to see how we can improve your search engine marketing ad spend.
