Mobile SEO: How to Use Pop-ups

In response to the lockdown in Perth, many businesses have included an interstitial (aka pop-up) for their COVID response message. However, like the pandemic, Google’s algorithm is always changing with penalties against intrusive interstitials on mobile devices. This little-known policy means that if the COVID response message does not comply with the guidelines site, rankings could be at risk. To help business understand this policy, our Perth SEO Agency have created a Marketing Tip that provides an overview of everything you need to know about interstitials. 

Intrusive Interstitials 

In terms of interstitials, Google is focusing on interstitials that are initially present when a user opens a website. The search engine penalises ‘intrusive interstitial’, which can be described as a pop-up that prevents a user from interacting with content. Alternatively, an appropriate interstitial takes up a reasonable amount of screen space and is easily dismissible. To help businesses with this policy, Google has provided illustrations that outline what is and isn’t considered acceptable: Alternatively, businesses could add a time delay. For example, Bloom Digital has included a 20 second delay on our COVID pop-ups. The method is effective as Google only focuses on the transition from search results to website. However, Google has noted some circumstances where intrusive interstitial are acceptable: 

• When businesses need to comply with legal requirements including age verification, cookie usage or disclaimers. 
• When users are required to log into sites that are not publicly accessible (i.e. sites that contain a paywall). 

But, be aware! Even if you create a pop-up that follows Googles’ guidelines, you still need to be conscious that your rankings could be impacted if the pop-ups reduce site speed or user experience. So, ensure that you test your pop-ups once they have been implemented onto site. Stay aware! We hope this insight will allow your pop-ups to ‘pop’, without making your rankings drop! For more marketing tips and tricks, check out our other Marketing Tips or follow us on social media. Our Perth SEO agency is here to help!