A lightbox is a web technology that is an overlay box containing an image or text. Lightboxes are often used within websites as a pop-up feature to encourage visitors to take action, such as subscribing, donating, and downloading. This great way to grab attention, get your contact information out there, and build relationships. This guide will explore the essential tips to create a website lightbox with no fuss.
What Is A Lightbox?
A lightbox, also known as a pop-up box or an overlay box, is a user interface widget that displays additional information regarding the current context. The information can be text, images, videos, or any content.
Lightboxes are commonly used to promote products and services or to get visitors to subscribe to newsletters. Lightboxes make it easy for users to take action on various tasks without leaving the page they are on. They usually appear when a visitor clicks on a link inside an image gallery or a specific kind of button.
Website Lightbox Types
Lightboxes display text, images, videos, and other types of content on websites. In order to understand the features of these lightboxes, it is important to understand the major types of lightbox applications. The three most common types of lightboxes are:
Promotion Lightbox
These are used for promotional purposes. They display banners or allow users to view more information about a particular product or service outside of the website through pop-up windows. The promotion lightboxes can be either full-screen or sidebar windows that appear inside other websites, such as blogs.
Mobile Lightbox
A mobile lightbox is a website that can be opened in a pop-up window on phones with touchscreen capabilities. They are often used to display special offers or product information and are typically presented with images or text rather than video.
Email Lightbox
An email lightbox is used to highlight and display your email messages in small popup windows inside emails you have sent to various recipients. This feature allows you to view certain newsletters, advertisements, or information regarding products/services at a glance without having to visit your website directly.
Cookies Lightbox
A cookie lightbox is a feature that allows the user to view an interactive popup window containing text and images regarding their cookies. Many websites use this lightbox, including Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest, etc.
Lightbox Design And Copywriting Tips
The design of a lightbox can be as simple as it gets – just establishing a grid on which your image will be placed and adding some text to the popup window – or it can be more complex than the great design itself. Before we look at the design elements, though, let’s talk about some tips to cover in the copywriting stage.
Keep It Simple
When you’re working on a lightbox, one of the biggest mistakes you can make is putting too much text in it. At first glance, it may seem like having a lot of text will make your customer take action and click through the box to read everything on offer. In reality, though, all this does is make them lose interest in your offer and move on quickly. Only include text highlighting the main benefits they’ll miss out on if they don’t take action now!
Implement Clear Language
After planning how the lightbox will look, this is another thing you need to do. Write a short, clear, concise description of what’s included in the box before you do anything else. Don’t make it too long because nobody wants to read a novella before they can see what you have to offer.
Use Visual Hierarchy In Your Text
When creating a lightbox, ensure that every sentence has an equal amount of importance and visual weight as each other in your copywriting process. When you’re writing, don’t worry about the organization of each sentence. Just decide which sentences are most important and create your sentences in that fashion.
Make Your Call-To-Action Button Stand Out
The most important lightbox element is the CTA button or call-to-action button (CTA) you place inside. This button should be the one that users look at to see if they want to take action on something or not. The CTA can be placed in any place within your lightbox, but putting it somewhere where it will catch most readers’ eyes is a good idea. The best place is always right where the user will look first.
The CTA button should stand out and serve as a clear trigger to encourage your users to take action. It should also look appealing and not distract from the rest of the page.
Include Clear Text On Your CTA
Never make your lightbox text too small; it will be hard for users to decipher what it says. You might consider not including the copy on your CTA but having a large button that pops out and stands out when users look at your lightbox. The button should be clear with a simple text informing them about what’s inside the box.
Keep in mind that some users will be looking at your lightbox on a mobile phone, so you may need to create two separate CTAs – one for the desktop site and another for mobile. This is especially important if you want users to register or subscribe to something via your CTA.
The Bottom Line
Lightboxes are an incredibly powerful tool for designers, marketers, and content creators. They provide a way to keep users engaged with your site while they remain on the page. The vast majority of these applications allow you to include images, text, and other information to inform them about a particular product or service, as well as encourage them to take action.
If you use lightboxes professionally, consider learning more about what can be done with designs and copywriting in a lightbox to make something truly unique.
