Free Download Pop-Up Form for Lead Capture

How to Offer a Free Download with a Pop-Up Form in PhotoBiz

Overview

You can use a PhotoBiz form inside a website pop-up to capture leads and give visitors access to a free digital resource. This works well for pricing guides, planning checklists, session guides, ebooks, PDFs, and other lead magnets.

When someone submits the form, PhotoBiz adds or updates that person in your built-in Contacts. Any Tags assigned to the form are also automatically applied, making it easier to organize leads and follow up with people who requested a specific resource.

You can provide the download in the form's Thank You Message, send the Thank You Message by email, or redirect visitors to a custom confirmation page. This guide walks you through uploading your file, creating and tagging your lead capture form, connecting the form to a pop-up, configuring its display settings, publishing it, and testing the complete visitor experience.

STEP ONE

Log in to your PhotoBiz account and click FILES in the left-side menu. Open DOCUMENTS and upload the PDF or other file you want to offer as your free download.

After the file uploads, copy its direct URL. You will use this link when you configure how visitors receive the download.

If you need help uploading a file or finding its direct URL, see How Do I Get a Direct URL to a File?.

STEP TWO

Click FORMS in the left-side menu to open the Forms Dashboard.

The Forms Dashboard gives you access to your existing forms and the tools you need to create and manage forms.

STEP THREE

Click FORMS at the top center of the Forms Dashboard to open the Form Editor.

From here, you can select an existing form or create a new form for your free download offer.

STEP FOUR

Select an existing form or create a new form for your lead capture offer.

If you create a new form, we recommend starting with the Newsletter Sign-Up form under Lead Capture. This gives visitors a simple way to provide their email address from your pop-up.

Keep the form short and only request information you plan to use. The Email field is required on every PhotoBiz form because submitting the form creates or updates the visitor's contact record in your built-in CRM. You can also include other useful fields, such as Full Name.

STEP FIVE

Before visitors begin submitting the form, click Add a Tag near the upper-left area of the Form Editor and apply one or more Tags that identify these leads.

For example, you might use a Tag such as Wedding Guide, Pricing Guide, or Free Download.

Any Tags assigned to the form are automatically applied when the form is submitted. This works for both new and existing contacts, making it easy to identify which resource each person requested and organize those contacts for future follow-up.

STEP SIX

Click the gear icon in the upper-right area of the Form Editor, then click SETTINGS in the menu that opens.

This opens the settings that control what happens after someone submits your lead capture form.

STEP SEVEN

Configure how visitors will receive your free download after submitting the form.

You can add the direct file URL to your Thank You Message, enable Email Thank You Message so the message is also sent to the visitor by email, or use the Custom Confirmation Page URL to redirect the visitor after submission.

After you configure your preferred delivery method, click SAVE CHANGES.

STEP EIGHT

Click MARKETING in the left-side menu to open the Marketing Dashboard, then click Pop-Up Builder.

The Pop-Up Builder allows you to create and manage pop-ups for your PhotoBiz website and Client Galleries.

STEP NINE

Click NEW POP UP.

The right-side panel will open and display the available pop-up designs.

STEP TEN

In the right-side panel, select one of the Subscribe designs.

The previews show what each pop-up design includes, such as text with an image, an image-only layout, or an image background. Select a design that gives you enough room for a clear headline, short description, and form.

Your message should clearly explain what visitors will receive. For example, you might invite visitors to get your free wedding planning guide, download your portrait session checklist, or receive your current pricing guide.

Click SELECT to apply the design.

STEP ELEVEN

The pop-up preview will display. At the upper-right of the pop-up editor, you will see Edit, Settings, and Publish.

Click Edit to open the editing options in the right-side panel. Customize the headline, description, button text, size, colors, fonts, and other available design options so the pop-up matches your website and clearly communicates the value of your free resource.

Keep your call to action specific so visitors understand what they will receive after submitting the form.

See How To Set Up Pop Ups for more information about customizing pop-ups.

STEP TWELVE

In the right-side panel, click FORM to access the settings for the form displayed in your pop-up.

This is where you will connect the lead capture form you created or selected earlier.

STEP THIRTEEN

Under CHOOSE A FORM, use the two dropdown menus to choose your form.

The first dropdown contains the form categories you have set up in the Form Editor. After you select a category, use the second dropdown to select the form within that category.

Select your lead capture form and click Save Changes.

When someone submits the form through the pop-up, PhotoBiz adds or updates the person in Contacts, applies any Tags assigned to the form, and uses the confirmation settings you configured to provide access to the free resource.

STEP FOURTEEN

Click Settings at the upper-right of the pop-up editor to control where, when, and how often the pop-up appears.

Review the settings for your lead capture offer and make any changes you need. By default, the pop-up displays on all Website Builder pages, does not display in Client Galleries, appears after 0 seconds, and uses the Every day Frequency setting.

When you are finished, click Save Changes.

FINAL STEP

Click Publish at the upper-right of the pop-up editor to make your pop-up active.

Test the complete visitor experience before promoting your free download. We recommend opening your live website in a private or incognito browser window when testing. Without clearing your browser's cache and cookies, the pop-up may not appear again for at least 24 hours based on its Frequency setting. A private or incognito window makes repeated testing easier.

Wait for the pop-up to appear, submit a test email address, confirm that the contact appears in Contacts with the correct Tag, and verify that the download link, email, or custom confirmation page works as expected.

Once your test is successful, your pop-up is ready to capture leads and provide visitors with your free resource.

Pop-Up Display Settings

Click Settings at the upper-right of the pop-up editor to control where and when your pop-up appears.

Available settings include:

Pop-Up Name: Enter a name that helps you identify the pop-up in your account.
Display in Builder: Choose All pages, Specific page, or Do Not Display. All pages is selected by default.
Display in Client Galleries: Choose All pages, Specific category, or Do Not Display. Do Not Display is selected by default.
When to Show: Choose 0 seconds, 5 seconds, 10 seconds, or 30 seconds. 0 seconds is selected by default.
Frequency: Choose Only once, Every day, Every 7 days, or Every 30 days. Every day is selected by default.

The Frequency setting controls how soon the pop-up can display again after a visitor closes it. Keep this setting in mind when testing your pop-up or deciding how often you want visitors to see your offer.

After making changes, click Save Changes.

Ways to Deliver Your Free Download

You can choose the delivery method that works best for your lead capture offer.

Thank You Message: Add the direct download link to the message visitors see immediately after submitting the form.
Email Thank You Message: Enable this option to also send the Thank You Message to the email address submitted with the form.
Custom Confirmation Page URL: Redirect visitors to a separate thank-you page, landing page, or another URL after submission.

A custom confirmation page can be useful if you want to provide the resource along with additional information, such as links to your services, portfolio, Scheduler, or another call to action.

Using Tags for Lead Follow-Up

Tags make it easier to identify which contacts requested a specific resource.

If you offer multiple lead magnets, consider using a separate Tag for each one, such as:

Wedding Guide
Senior Pricing Guide
Family Session Checklist
Free Consultation Guide

Because the Tag is applied automatically when the form is submitted, you can use it later to organize contacts and send relevant email marketing campaigns from the Marketing tools included with your PhotoBiz website.

Marketing Email Opt-In

If you plan to send ongoing marketing emails to people who request your free resource, you can add a marketing email opt-in option to the form.

This allows visitors to indicate whether they want to receive future marketing emails in addition to receiving the free download.

For setup instructions, see How Do I Add an Email Opt-In to My Forms?.

Helpful Notes

Keep your lead capture form short. A simple form works well for a free-download pop-up because visitors can complete it quickly.

Use messaging that focuses on the value of the resource rather than simply asking visitors to join a mailing list. Tell them what they will receive and why it may be useful to them.

Use a private or incognito browser window when testing your pop-up. This makes it easier to test the complete workflow more than once without waiting for the pop-up to become eligible to display again or clearing your browser's cache and cookies.

Test the workflow again any time you replace or move the downloadable file. If the file URL changes, update the link in your form settings so visitors continue receiving the correct resource.

The PhotoBiz Website Package supports file uploads up to 4 MB. Files larger than 4 MB require the Original Files upgrade, which supports files up to 50 MB.

If you want to place a free-download form directly on a website page instead of displaying it in a pop-up, see How to Create a Lead Capture Form with a Free Download in PhotoBiz.

Need Help?

Support Hours: Monday to Friday, 9am to 6pm EST

Phone: 866.463.7620

Support Channels: Phone, Live Chat, Support Ticket

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