Social Proof Popup Examples That Improve Conversion Rate

Social Proof Popups: What Are They?

Pop-ups are on-site messages that appear while browsing a website. You’ve likely seen them everywhere from e-commerce stores to service providers.

Social proof, on the other hand, is the psychological principle that makes people follow others’ behavior.

When you see that other people trust a brand, buy its products, or recommend its services, you feel more confident doing the same.

6 Types of Social Proof

• Expert social proof
• Celebrity social proof
• User social proof
• Wisdom of the crowds
• Friends and family
• Negative social proof

Combine these with website popups, and you get social proof popups. Subtle yet powerful trust signals that influence visitors in real time.

They can display customer reviews, testimonials, recent purchases, or even live activity on your site. The goal is simple: show that your brand is trusted by real people.

You can customize the timing of popups too. For instance, showing them when a visitor is about to leave or offering a special deal to first-time visitors.

Why Social Proof Popups Boost Conversions

Did you know that social proof can improve your conversion rate?

Social proof popups work because they combine credibility and urgency. These are the two key elements that drive decisions.

1) Social Proof Popups Build Trust Instantly

People trust the opinions of other customers far more than traditional ads.

When a potential buyer sees that others have had positive experiences with your brand, they feel safer choosing you.

Trustmary customer stories illustrate this perfectly:

• Ruokaboksi, the Finnish meal delivery company, increased online sales by 37% after embedding customer reviews and testimonials collected with Trustmary.
• Kattotutka used testimonial popups and trust widgets on their landing pages — resulting in 62% more contact requests.
• Satokausikalenteri saw a 20% growth in sales when they showcased real customer stories on their website.

That’s because authentic feedback reduces uncertainty. And when uncertainty fades, conversions rise.

2) Social Proof Popups Trigger FOMO (Fear of Missing Out)

When people see popups like “15 people just booked a consultation” or “This item was bought 5 times today,” they subconsciously fear missing a good opportunity.
That sense of urgency nudges them toward action, whether it’s buying a product, booking a demo, or signing up for a newsletter.

This makes them more willing to convert to paying customers.

How to Create Social Proof Popups

You can create basic popups using tools like OptinMonster, Poptin, or Fomo, but if you want to collect, manage, and display authentic reviews automatically, Trustmary offers everything you need in one place.

With Trustmary, you can:

• Gather customer feedback with CSAT, NPS, and open-text surveys
• Turn that feedback into written or video testimonials
• Embed testimonials as popups, carousels, or review widgets
• Automate the entire process from survey to publication

Let’s explore some of the most effective pop-up templates available in Trustmary, the comprehensive social proof software.

Popup Templates for Different Uses

See these 7 different social proof popup templates.

They are especially good for an eCommerce website, but why not other businesses as well!

1: Testimonial Popup

Showcase written or video testimonials from happy customers.

This creates a positive brand image: someone is so happy with the purchase or cooperation that they are willing to have their name and face publicly connected to your business.

With Trustmary, you can collect written and video testimonials from your customers with a simple survey tool.

After you get them, you can easily showcase them on your website with popups or other widgets.

2: Review Popup

Display recent or top-rated reviews about a specific product or service.

Trustmary lets you embed product-specific reviews on eCommerce pages or industry-specific testimonials on service pages.

That’s exactly how Academy of Brain showcases customer satisfaction, directly where visitors are deciding to buy.

3: Page Visitors Popup

Show how many people have visited or interacted with your website recently.

However, use this only if your traffic volume is large enough — small numbers can backfire and act as negative social proof.

“If only this many people have visited this page, there must be something wrong. They probably don’t have very good selection or services anyway. I should go somewhere else”, your potential customer might think.

4: Visitor Activity Popup

“Event feed” template gets you a popup that showcases visitor activity like recent purchases or live visitor count.

It is a type of FOMO social proof.

When your potential customer notices that many people are viewing e.g. the same online store item, it creates a sense of urgency. 

“I must buy this before those other people do!”

This is an especially powerful social proof tool for online stores.

5: Video Testimonial Popup

Feature customer videos in a subtle popup player that doesn’t interrupt browsing.
Video is ridiculously effective and popular. Especially when it's paired with demographic information.

Since collecting video reviews is easy (and free!) with Trustmary’s software, you really have no excuse not to try it!

See tips on how to get video testimonials from customers.

6: Social Media Popup

Encourage visitors to follow your social media accounts.

You can display follower counts or simply include a call-to-action to connect on Instagram, LinkedIn, or Facebook.

7: Custom Content Popup

If you have any other topic in mind for a popup, the content popup template is for you.

This template lets you create manual entries and formulate a custom message for your web page visitors.

Some ideas for the custom message are:

• Highlight a sold out product and offer the visitors a “back in stock” notification
• Feature high-in-demand products by inviting users to buy them before they are gone
• Showcase some products in a way that mimic personal recommendations
• Tell about recent media coverage
• Tell about your policies such as money back guarantee
• Advertise content and special offers such as a free plan
• Show a celebrity or expert endorsement of your product

Check out these B2B social proof examples to get even more inspiration!

Smart Social Proof Popup Placement

The placement of popups depends on what you want to say with them.

The placement and timing of popups determine their effectiveness.

Some examples:

• Pair every popup with a clear CTA so visitors can act instantly.
• Place testimonial pop-ups on landing pages to build trust early.
• Use review popups next to pricing or product details to support buying decisions.
• Trigger exit-intent popups to give one last incentive before visitors leave.

You should also consider if you want the popup on the side of the page, or really accentuate it by making it fit the screen.

Whatever you do, try to combine social proof with CTAs wherever you can. This way, the potential customers can act on their urge right away.

Trustmary allows you to set many different rules for the visibility of your popups and modify the customer experience.

Let Social Proof Do the Selling for You

Social proof pop-up templates and tools are built into the Trustmary platform, along with everything else you need to boost conversions:

• Lead generation forms
• Review and testimonial widgets
• Automated feedback collection
• A/B testing
• Video testimonial recording
• Reporting and analytics
• CRM and website integrations

With Trustmary, you can collect social proof, automate its display, and measure its impact, all from one dashboard.

Utilizing social proof has never been easier!

FAQ