6 Best WordPress Notification Bar Plugins to Skyrocket Conversions in 2022
Want an easy way to direct traffic to your highest-converting pages and offers? Need to boost email signups without resorting to annoying pop-ups? You need a WordPress notification bar plugin.
Notification bars are those thin banners that sit at the top of a website, usually in a contrasting color to grab attention. While simple, they are extremely effective at getting your message in front of visitors and driving them to take action.
Just how effective are notification bars? Studies have found that well-designed notification bars can increase email signups by an average of 210%. By promoting a targeted offer at just the right time, notification bars have also been shown to boost sales by up to 50%.
The key is using a WordPress notification bar plugin that makes it easy to create, customize, and target your bars for maximum conversions. In this post, we‘ll review the 6 best options for 2022.
You‘ll get an in-depth look at each plugin‘s features, see real examples, and learn pro tips to help you craft high-converting notification bars. By the end, you‘ll have everything you need to turbocharge your conversions with this powerful marketing tactic.
1. HubSpot All-In-One WordPress Plugin
The HubSpot WordPress plugin lets you create and display notification bars using the same intuitive interface as its live chat, form, and pop-up tools. Its key strength is tight integration with your HubSpot CRM, making lead capture and nurturing a seamless process.
The drag-and-drop builder makes it simple to create notification bars that match your branding. You can easily add images, customize colors and fonts, and tweak the layout without any coding. The plugin provides several use-case based templates to start from.
Where HubSpot really shines is its advanced targeting and personalization options. You can display notification bars only to certain visitor segments based on demographics, device type, source, or any contact property in your CRM. Powerful behavioral triggers like exit intent ensure your bar appears at the optimal moment.
Another huge plus is the ability to add live chat, forms, and CTA buttons directly in your notification bar. This allows you to present visitors with the most appropriate next step, whether that‘s chatting with your team, signing up for your list, or enrolling in a course.
Notification bar performance data flows right into your HubSpot analytics dashboard. You can see views, clicks, and submission rates alongside the rest of your marketing metrics. Built-in A/B testing helps you optimize with data.
Key Features:
- Intuitive drag-and-drop builder
- Advanced segmentation & behavioral triggers
- Personalize any element based on CRM data
- Embed chat, forms & CTAs in bars
- Central performance reporting in HubSpot
Pricing: Free plan available. Paid plans start at $45/month.
2. OptinMonster
OptinMonster has established itself as one of the most powerful conversion optimization tools for WordPress. Its notification bar feature is robust and comes packed with options to customize every aspect.
The highlight is OptinMonster‘s vast library of professionally-designed notification bar templates. There are templates tailored for sales, product launches, webinars, coupon offers, and more. The drag-and-drop builder lets you modify any element easily.
No other plugin offers such deep targeting and trigger options. You can display notification bars based on geolocation, referring URL or search term, device, pages viewed, scroll depth, cart value, and more. If you can imagine a targeting scenario, OptinMonster can handle it.
The plugin also allows for an exceptional degree of personalization. Using shortcodes and ‘smart tags‘, you can dynamically insert a visitor‘s name, location, or other details to make your notification bars hyper-relevant. Combine this with page-level targeting for even better results.
OptinMonster‘s other claim to fame is its exit-intent popups. You can pair a notification bar with an exit popup and use a two-step opt-in process to maximize conversions. Present a teaser in the bar, then show the full signup form in the popup.
Real-time analytics and A/B testing help you monitor and improve notification bar performance. The conversion analytics identify your top performing bars and highest converting audience segments.
Key Features:
- 100+ prebuilt notification bar templates
- Unmatched targeting & personalization
- Exit-intent popups for two-step opt-ins
- Actionable conversion analytics
- Works on all screen sizes & devices
Pricing: Plans start at $9/month billed annually.
3. Thrive Ultimatum
If your main goal is to create urgency and scarcity around an offer, Thrive Ultimatum is the ideal WordPress notification bar plugin. As the name suggests, this plugin specializes in limited-time promotions.
The standout feature is the dynamic countdown timers you can add to your notification bars. Use them to visually show visitors how much time is left to claim a discount, join a course, or access a resource before it‘s no longer available.
Thrive Ultimatum‘s evergreen countdown technology is perfect for automated promotions. Simply set a cut-off point (like 15 minutes after a visitor opts in), and the countdown timer will be dynamically generated for each individual visitor. It‘s an incredibly effective way to boost conversions.
Design your notification bars using the visual editor, or leverage the included templates. The plugin lets you display both header and footer notification bars simultaneously for maximum urgency. You can even ‘lock‘ the screen with a full-size overlay bar.
Thrive Ultimatum is built to work seamlessly with other Thrive Suite tools like Thrive Leads and Thrive Automator. This opens up possibilities like triggering a notification bar to appear after a visitor completes a specific action, or sending leads to your email service provider.
Key Features:
- Countdown timers for scarcity
- Evergreen promotions
- Header, footer & full-screen bars
- Integrates with Thrive Suite
- Affordable one-time pricing
Pricing: $97 one-time (or included in Thrive Suite)
4. FOMO
FOMO (fear of missing out) is a powerful conversion driver. The FOMO plugin ingeniously leverages this psychological trigger in its notification bars.
Unlike traditional notification bars that display static messages, FOMO shows real-time social proof notifications. It displays a live feed of customer actions like purchases, signups, and registrations directly in the notification bar.
Seeing that other visitors are actively engaging with your brand is extremely motivating. It builds instant trust and credibility. According to FOMO, this form of social proof has been shown to increase conversions by up to 15%.
The plugin integrates with all popular ecommerce, event, and email platforms to automatically pull in recent customer interactions. You can customize the message template to match your brand voice. Timing controls let you set the delay between notifications and limit how many display.
FOMO‘s signature feature is its advanced targeting engine. You can display different social proof notifications to visitors based on traffic source, location, referral URL, and more. There‘s even a ‘Visitor Insights‘ feature that lets you see detailed profiles of each visitor who converts.
Key Features:
- Leverage social proof in notification bars
- Real-time activity feed for urgency
- 100+ integrations to track conversions
- Granular visitor targeting
- Actionable conversion insights
Pricing: Plans start at $19/month.
5. NotificationX
NotificationX is an all-purpose WordPress notification bar plugin that covers a variety of use cases. Like FOMO, it supports showing real-time social proof alerts in the notification bar. But it goes beyond that with email opt-in bars, promotional offers, and more.
Creating your notification bar is easy with the visual composer. Start with a premade template, then customize the content, colors, and layout to suit your needs. You can include images, CTA buttons, and opt-in forms right in the bar.
NotificationX offers several different notification types. In addition to the live social proof feeds, you can display content from your WordPress site like recent posts or reviews. There are also notification bars designed for promoting sales, driving traffic to your store, and making announcements.
Display settings let you control exactly where and when your notification bar appears. You can target it to certain pages, devices, or user roles. Set a start and end date if your notification is time-sensitive.
One especially useful feature is the ‘notification scheduler‘ that lets you set up multiple notification bars in advance and configure them to appear on a set schedule. It‘s great for planning out a series of promotions.
Key Features:
- Multipurpose notification & email opt-in bars
- Live social proof notifications
- Includes WooCommerce & EDD integrations
- Notification scheduling & display rules
- Built-in analytics & A/B testing
Pricing: Free with limited features. Pro plans start at $39/year.
6. SeedProd
SeedProd is best known as a powerful landing page builder for WordPress. But it also includes flexible notification bar functionality as part of its feature set.
SeedProd‘s notification bars stand out with their unique position options. You can display them as a bar at the top or bottom of the page, or as a floating ‘alert box‘ notification in the corner of the screen. This less intrusive alert box style has been shown to improve conversions in some cases.
The real-time visual editor in SeedProd is top-notch. Simply click on any element to change the text, color, font, border, and more. The template library offers a range of modern, professional designs to customize.
Another handy feature is SeedProd‘s built-in coming soon and maintenance mode. You can display a notification bar on top of these temporary pages to alert visitors and get them to take action, like joining your waiting list.
SeedProd offers basic targeting rules to determine which content your notification bar displays on. But it lacks some of the more advanced targeting and personalization features of other solutions.
Key Features:
- Flexible position options (alert box style)
- No-code visual builder
- Works with coming soon & maintenance mode
- Built-in subscriber management
- WooCommerce & MailChimp integrations
Pricing: $39.50/year and up. Lifetime purchase options also available.
How to Choose the Best WordPress Notification Bar Plugin
With so many great options, how do you decide which WordPress notification bar plugin is right for your site? It ultimately depends on your specific goals and needs.
Here are some key factors to consider:
| Factor | What to Look For |
|---|---|
| Ease of Use | Code-free visual builder, WYSIWYG editor, pre-built templates |
| Display Options | Sticky header/footer bars, time on page triggers, scheduling, mobile-friendly |
| Targeting & Personalization | Audience segmentation, dynamic text replacement, bot filtering |
| Goal-Oriented Features | Email capture, countdown timers for scarcity, social proof notifications, two-step opt-ins |
| Conversion Tracking | Built-in analytics, conversion logs, A/B testing |
| Integrations | Connects with your email service provider, CRM, ecommerce or membership platform |
| Performance & Support | Lightweight, actively maintained, reliable support & documentation |
To find the best fit, make a list of your must-have notification bar features. Then assess how well each plugin aligns with those requirements.
It‘s also wise to carefully review the pricing and terms for any solution you‘re considering. Some are one-time purchases, while others require an ongoing subscription. Be sure to factor in any addon or usage-based costs as well.
Best Practices for High-Converting Notification Bars
Having the right tool is essential. But equally important is following notification bar best practices. Here are some tips to keep in mind:
1. Use actionable, benefit-driven copy. Keep your message concise and focused on the value to the visitor. Start with a strong hook and include a clear call-to-action.
2. Create an attractive, on-brand design. Choose colors that contrast with your site background, but still fit your overall aesthetic. Include your logo and other familiar brand elements.
3. Leverage the fear of missing out (FOMO). Limited-time offers, low-stock alerts, and dynamic social proof notifications are all powerful FOMO techniques to try.
4. Capture leads with a compelling offer. Gate a discount or free content upgrade behind an email opt-in form right in your notification bar. Make sure there‘s a clear value exchange.
5. Take advantage of targeting. Avoid showing the same generic message to everyone. Use your notification bar tool‘s targeting features to personalize the experience based on each visitor‘s traits and behaviors.
6. Test and optimize for continuous improvement. Use built-in A/B testing to experiment with different copy, colors, offers and formats. Let the data inform your optimization decisions.
When in doubt, put yourself in your visitor‘s shoes. Think about what would motivate you to engage with a notification bar if you were in their position.
Driving Conversions with WordPress Notification Bars
Adding a notification bar to your WordPress site is one of the quickest ways to make a measurable impact on your bottom line. When done right, these humble banners can substantially boost signups and sales.
To recap, here are the 6 best WordPress notification bar plugins we covered:
- HubSpot All-In-One WordPress Plugin
- OptinMonster
- Thrive Ultimatum
- FOMO
- NotificationX
- SeedProd
Whether you‘re looking to grow your email list, promote a sale, or instill urgency with a countdown timer, there‘s a plugin that can help. Use the guidance in this post to choose the optimal solution for your needs and craft high-converting notification bars.
Implement notification bars on your WordPress site, follow notification bar best practices, and you‘ll be well on your way to more leads and revenue in 2022 and beyond.
