Cybersecurity has been on the rise as a priority, and nowadays, companies with an online presence must comprehend how GDPR works.

This regulation also shapes numerous online communication processes with web interfaces, including website pop-ups. That is why it is crucial for all firms operating within the digital environment to be aware of GDPR and follow all the rules.

GDPR shifts the digital solutions and practices paradigm, as evident in cases involving web pop-ups for marketing and cookie consent forms.

These elements, which were previously insignificant in the process, have become critical when seeking users’ approval in line with the GDPR to show how it has played a massive role in handling personal data using the internet.

This blog is meant to help readers understand GDPR rules, emphasizing website popups. It uses both entertainment and informative elements.

In this webinar, we will provide an overview of the GDPR, how it applies to website popups, some rules to follow for creating GDPR-compliant popups, and how to be GDPR-compliant through an example with Maddy.

Impact of GDPR on Website Popups

Pop-ups are online banners for advertisement, demand generation, and enhancing customer interaction. They notably reflect the GDPR’s effects.

Historically, such popups mainly gathered user information to create a personally identifiable profile without obtaining consent, which is prohibited under GDPR. The regulation states that as a user, you cannot be subjected to data collection, including through popups, without first giving your consent, which should also be well informed and informed at that.

This has led to a reflection on the modal window approaches, which is good because they should emphasize consent and notice.

A tear must now tell the PI /PO in reasonable detail about the purpose of collecting personal data and how it will be used. Consent needs to be an affirmative action (for instance, ticking ‘I agree’).

It targets increasing user privacy and control while raising concerns to companies concerning their approach to adapting to change while guaranteeing a positive user experience and an optimal conversion rate.

Best Practices for GDPR-Friendly Popups

Designing GDPR-compliant popups also means focusing on principles to maintain customers’ rights and decision-making freedom. Below are detailed best practices for designing GDPR-friendly popups:

Clear Communication

Even though popups are common, they must be GDPR-compliant, and one crucial aspect of the regulation here is clear communication. This means having an implied explanation of why the information is being collected, which should be in the simplest language usable by the public.

The popup should state what information is being gathered, such as email addresses or frequent sites, and for what reason, such as a newsletter or relevant content.

In this case, it is critical to guarantee that users understand these elements by looking at the popup without necessitating them to expand the menu or read through volumes of legal information.

The concept here is to provide users with simple and direct information regarding how their data will be processed, thereby fostering trust.

Explicit Consent

Therefore, the consent required under GDPR must be clear and communicated to the users regarding an action being taken.

It means the right of the individual to object to the receipt of marketing communications from those organizations where prior consent shall not have been given, including the use of pre-ticked opt-out boxes or complicated statements where one cannot assume that consenting to the receipt of such messages would mean that the individual does not wish to receive such communication.

However, simple consent procedures, including those that use unchecked form checkboxes or unmarked ‘I agree’ buttons, must be avoided as they do not guarantee users’ consent but provide performative gestures of consent in data processing activities.

Forcing the user into a restrictive opt-in or easy wider opt-out choice betrays the principles of autonomy espoused by the GDPR and gives users clear, informed choices at five key points of the product process.

Easy Opt-Out

Easy opt-out is crucial for a GDPR-compliant popup, and it is risky to remove it. This means that users should be able to undo their consent easily.

This can be achieved by integrating Cut & Paste Sermons, which will include easy ways for users to update their consent anytime.

It should be quite evident where, how, or through what exact button one can withdraw one’s consent—whether in the form of a link in the receipt of an e-mail, a separate webpage, a section of the website devoted solely to privacy, or within the settings of the popup itself.

This makes it easier for users to unsubscribe and protects their right to have their personal information displayed to influence and make decisions about it.

Record Keeping

Making it a best practice to keep proper records of how and when the consent was obtained is part of what compliant data officers do each time they work under the GDPR.

It includes writing down the particulars stated in the popup while receiving consent for collected data, the exact words used, consent date and time, and different ways a user may have shown his/her consent.

Record-keeping around consent is, therefore, crucial for GDPR compliance, as the business records will serve as an audit trail for essential documentation in case of investigations or audits.

Record management meets legal requirements in most organizational environments and ensures that the company complies with data protection rules by operating an efficient record management system.

Privacy by Design

Privacy integration is a more strategic approach in which data protection principles are incorporated into the design phase of popups in a project instead of being planned and implemented after the project has already been implemented.

This means already having stored privacy for data gathering in mind and looking for a means to reduce data use to the essential, as explained in the original article. In this approach, they periodically check through and update popups to conform with GDPR and other privacy laws when necessary.

Thus, the design of pop-ups from the preliminary stage can be oriented to privacy, minimizing the risk-benefit ratio of such pop-ups while considering users’ needs. This creates confidence in users and makes it possible for users to understand to whom priority is given among the company’s executive Functions.

How to Create GDPR-Compliant Popups

Follow the simple steps to create a successful GDPR-Compliant Popups campaign:

Step 1: Click “Add new” to create a GDPR-Compliant Popup.

Step 2: Write your “Campaign name “ and click the “Save & Design Your Campaign” button, and your campaign is ready to design.

Step 3: OptinAble offers dozens of pre-designed templates. Using these templates, you can design your Popup campaign in one click.

Step 4: Set your campaign activation rules with smart triggers. Capture your visitor’s focus using these triggers to get a high conversion rate. OptinAble offers you a collection of smart triggers to apply to make a successful Pop-up campaign. Triggers offered by OptinAble are

• Exit-intent Trigger
• Time-based Trigger
• OptinLinks

Step 5: OptinAble’s global visibility feature enables you to display your campaign on the entire website by default, but you can also create a targeting campaign that allows you to display your campaign on specific posts, pages, and categories.

You can also create a targeted campaign for referral identification and URL query detection to target your specific audience.

Examples of GDPR Popups

Indeed, numerous popular websites have used popups that are compliant with the GDPR. Let’s take a look at them:

1. Coventry University

The UK-based Coventry University uses a footer banner to inform users where they can set the cookies required for the website and those that are banned.

Even with an opportunity to change cookie settings, the message has simple and understandable text explaining the session, preference, and essential cookies set by default. An important aspect again applies under GDPR is that the cookies necessary for a site to work do not require consent.

2. Consid

Consid is a Swedish IT firm that has adopted the prevalent bottom-right cookie popup. If expanded, the default popup can reveal cookie categories. 

3. Leeds City College

One example of lean implementations of the cookie banner source of collecting consent is Leeds City College in the UK, which utilizes a footer banner that shows the categories of cookies used for consent purposes. This is because the message informs users that they can alter the cookie settings on the received banner independently without the company’s help.

The banner also takes the users to the privacy policy, where they get to read and understand how the website will use personal data, including cookies.

4. Axel Springer

The footer banner Axel Springer’s Verlag (German Publisher) Ideation Council uses is consistent with the rest of the website. Another feature of the MySpace design is the Preference window, which is intended to complement the site’s overall aesthetic.

Out of the 1000 consent notices analyzed, fewer than 58% adopted the footer banner, while only 27% utilized the top banner.