How to Create a Shopify Email Popup

Email popups are the most common way Shopify stores grow a list, and also the most commonly done badly — a full-screen overlay demanding an address two seconds after landing, shown to everyone including people who already subscribed.

This guide covers building one that's timed, targeted and worth the interruption.

Before you build: what actually moves the number

Three decisions matter more than the design:

• When it fires. Immediate popups convert worst. Exit-intent and scroll-triggered consistently do better because the shopper has shown some interest first.
• Who sees it. Existing subscribers are your most frequent visitors, so a popup shown to everyone is shown mostly to people who can't convert on it. Suppressing them raises measured conversion rate and stops annoying your best customers.
• What you ask for. One field converts better than three — but a question before the email field can be worth the drop, because it gives you something to segment on.

Step 1: Choose your format

Create a campaign in ConvertFlow and pick a popup format.

Overlay popups are centered and command attention — the standard choice for a welcome offer. Hook popups sit in a corner and are less disruptive, better for a returning-visitor prompt.

Then pick a template.

Step 2: Set the theme

Set your theme before editing content so every element inherits your brand styling.

Buttons are worth setting explicitly — they're the element shoppers actually click.

Step 3: Choose the trigger

This is the decision that most affects conversion rate.

• Exit-intent — fires as the shopper moves to leave. On mobile, when they tap back. The default choice for a welcome offer.
• Scroll point — after a set percentage of the page. Good on collection pages, where a deep scroll signals genuine browsing.
• Cart triggered — after an item is added to cart, detecting Shopify adds as well as ConvertFlow product elements. A shopper with something in their cart is a far better prospect than one who just landed.
• Timed delay — a set number of seconds after load. Blunt, but useful on long-dwell pages.
• Click triggered — preloads and opens from a button or link, for an inline "get 10% off" prompt.

Set suppression

With every trigger except click-only, you can keep the popup hidden for a set number of days after someone closes it.

Worth setting deliberately. A popup that reappears on every page view is the single fastest way to make a store feel cheap.

Step 4: Edit the offer

Click any element to edit its content and styling.

A percentage discount is the default, but it isn't the only option — a free gift, early access or free shipping can convert as well without training shoppers to wait for a code.

Step 5: Connect Shopify and your email platform

In your ConvertFlow dashboard, go to Settings → Integrations and connect Shopify. The ConvertFlow script is added to your store automatically — no theme editing.

Then connect wherever the emails should go — Klaviyo, Omnisend, Mailchimp, Attentive, Postscript and others are supported.

Step 6: Add the automation

Select the form in the popup and click Manage Actions.

Then add the automation that subscribes the shopper to the right list.

If your popup asks a question first, map the answer to a field or tag — that's what turns a list of addresses into segments your flows can use.

Step 7: Deliver the code properly

The step after submission matters more than most stores treat it. Show the code on-screen immediately rather than only emailing it — a shopper who has to check their inbox often doesn't come back.

Set the button action to send them somewhere useful — a collection page, a bestseller, or the cart.

Step 8: Launch and suppress for subscribers

Click Launch to set which pages and visitor segments see the popup.

Set the subscriber exclusion first. With your email platform connected, ConvertFlow can read your lists and hide the popup from anyone already subscribed. It costs nothing, stops your regulars being nagged, and makes your conversion rate an honest number — measured against shoppers who could actually convert.

Step 9: Test the trigger, not just the copy

Split traffic between variants and read views, conversions and attributed revenue.

Most stores test headlines. Testing the trigger and the offer type usually moves the number further — exit-intent against scroll, or a discount against a free gift.

To see templates and the full feature set, visit the Shopify popup builder.