Use the Set display rules tab on the sign-up unit designer to indicate when and where you want your sign-up unit to display.
Display rules are available for all sign-up unit types on both mobile and desktop, including fullscreen and partial units. Bubbles follow the display rules of the unit they are attached to.
Bubble behavior includes the following options. Options are available for selection by clicking Edit design on the sign-up unit, navigating to the bubble unit, and selecting options in the left side menu.
Note: You can add more than one display rule for a sign-up unit, as long as they're not conflicting. For example, you can have your sign-up unit display on your homepage (URL contains /home) after the viewer scrolls 25% of the page. However, you can't show a sign-up unit on your homepage (URL contains /home) and hide the same sign-up unit on your homepage (URL contains website/home).
Common scenarios
Use these scenarios to configure your display rules.
Scenario: Fullscreen immediately + Bubble on close
Use case: Prioritize sign-ups by having a signup unit present immediately with a persistent bubble unit.
| Sign-up units needed | Bubble mode | Display rules (Page, session, fatigue, timing) |
| [Sign-up unit 1] Fullscreen | Show immediately after the signup unit is closed | • Every page view • Every session • Close fatigue 24 hours • Display immediately |
Scenario: Fullscreen with scroll/exit intent only
Use case: Prioritize capturing subscribers before they leave your site. Incentivize them to come back with your messaging strategy.
| Sign-up units needed | Bubble mode | Display rules (Page, session, fatigue, timing) |
[Sign-up unit 1] Fullscreen
| [Unit 1] Show immediately after the signup unit is closed
| [Unit 1] • First page view only |
[Sign-up unit 2] Fullscreen
| [Unit 2]
| [Unit 2] • Second page view and beyond |
Scenario: Fullscreen immediately + Exit intent on Add to cart & checkout
Use case: Capture high intent subscribers when they move to abandon cart or checkout.
| Sign-up units needed | Bubble mode | Display rules (Page, session, fatigue, timing) |
[Sign-up unit 1] Fullscreen
| [Unit 1] Show immediately after the signup unit is closed
| [Unit 1] • Show on Every pageview
|
[Sign-up unit 2] Fullscreen
| [Unit 2]
| [Unit 2] • Show if URL contains [/cart] or [/checkout]
|
Show rules
Show rules determine when a sign-up unit appears. You can add more than one show rule for a sign-up unit, as long as they don't conflict.
Timing rules
Immediately — Sign-up unit displays when visitor lands on the URL. Default behavior.
After delay — Sign-up unit displays after specified time (increments of 1 second, max 30 seconds). Best for first-page units to prevent engagement loss if visitor navigates quickly.
After user scrolls — Sign-up unit displays after visitor scrolls to specified % of page (increments of 5%).
On exit intent — Sign-up unit displays when visitor behavior suggests they're about to leave (cursor exits browser on desktop; rapid scroll patterns on mobile). Best paired with second page view and beyond to avoid conflicting units.
On add to cart — Sign-up unit appears when shoppers add the first item to their cart on your eCommerce store. These sign-up units can appear in addition to others, like those that welcome shoppers on your homepage and bubbles that appear throughout your site.
Note: If you use exit intent units, we recommend placing them only on pages where no other sign-up units are present. This prevents display conflicts and avoids overwhelming visitors.
Sessions & Pageviews
Sessions — Control how often a sign-up unit shows across visits. Options: Every Session, First Session Only, Second Session & Beyond, Third Session & Beyond, Fourth Session & Beyond, Custom Range. Attentive’s sessions have a 30-minute timer. If a user is idle for > 30 minutes, when that idle user navigates to the next page it will trigger a new Session.
Pageviews — Control when sign-up unit shows based on page view number within a session (e.g., First page view only, Second page view only, Second page view and beyond).
Location
Country – Available for email-only sign-up units only. Show rule displays unit only in specified countries; hide rule displays unit everywhere except specified countries.
Note: Country can only be a show OR hide rule per unit, not both. For SMS units, country field is automatically populated by company country and cannot be edited.
Add a display rule
URL contains
Sign-up unit displays only on pages containing specified URL string or parameter. Can include partial URL (example.com), full URL (https://www.example.com), or page (/cart).
Recommendation: Set block rules for /cart and /checkout for seamless purchase path.
UTM parameter
Sign-up unit displays when visitor lands with specified UTM parameter. UTM rules persist throughout visitor's session and are case-sensitive.
Referrer domain
Sign-up unit displays based on which domain visitor came from (e.g., google.com, facebook.com). Differs from URL contains (current page) and persists throughout session.
Cookie
Sign-up unit displays when specific cookie/value pair is present in visitor's browser. Applies when page loads; post-load cookie updates require page refresh.
Hide rules
Hide rules determine when a sign-up unit does NOT appear and block user from seeing the unit if any hide rule is true.
Fatigue rules
Control how soon a sign-up unit shows up again after initial interaction.
View fatigue — Visitor is fatigued from exposure (unit displayed) for X days/hours, regardless of visitor behavior (e.g., even if they didn't close it, refresh the page, or interact).
Close fatigue — Visitor is fatigued after they close the sign-up unit for X days/hours. Requires active engagement.
URL contains, UTM parameter, Referrer domain, Cookie
Use the same configuration as show rules to hide units on specific URLs, with specific UTM parameters, from specific referrers, or when specific cookies are present.
Exit intent best practices
- Add exit intent as an additional sign-up unit (don't replace primary immediate-view sign-up units). Remove the bubble unit from this sign-up form.
- Use Allow/block lists to input URLs that decide which pages should receive which type of sign-up unit.
- Consider using SMS-only sign-up units (instead of email + SMS) for exit intent so users aren't overwhelmed when they're about to exit.
- Include a sense of urgency in your message, like "last chance."
Exit intent limitations
- On desktop, exit intent relies on access to mouse position relative to the page's top border.
- Exit intent doesn't function correctly if your site has an iframe overlay at the top of the page.
General rules
- You can add more than one show rule for a sign-up unit, as long as they don't conflict.
- You can only assign one hide rule per sign-up unit.
- You can't target specific user segments.