Follow prompts, like bars and share popups

What the Facebook like bar and its cousins did

The MashShare era produced a family of engagement add-ons: LikeAfterShare opened a small window asking for a page like after someone shared, a Facebook like bar sat above or below posts, and a video popup asked for shares when a video ended. Their product pages collected links, which is why they still redirect here. The idea behind all three is the same: catch readers at the moment they have shown they value the content.

What changed since

• Official like buttons load a network script and an iframe, which set cookies. In the EU and UK that usually needs consent first; see share buttons and GDPR.
• Like buttons were removed from some contexts by the network itself, and embedded like counts became less reliable.
• Popup rules in search quality guidelines discourage intrusive interstitials, especially on mobile.

The respectful version

1. 01

   Trigger after a share, not on load

   Show the prompt only after the reader clicks a share button. They have already signalled interest.

2. 02

   Use a plain follow link

   "Follow us on LinkedIn" as a link to your profile loads nothing and needs no consent.

3. 03

   Show it once

   Remember the dismissal for the session, or longer, using local storage rather than a tracking cookie.

4. 04

   Make it small

   An inline note under the buttons beats a modal window.

5. 05

   Give a clear close

   A visible close button that works with the keyboard and Escape.

The script is a dozen lines. It waits for a click on any share link, reveals a note that is already in the HTML, and records the dismissal in local storage so the reader sees it once.

<p id="follow-note" hidden>Thanks for sharing. <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/example">Follow us on LinkedIn</a>
  <button type="button" id="follow-close" aria-label="Close">Close</button></p>
<script>
var note = document.getElementById('follow-note');
if (!localStorage.getItem('followNoteSeen')) {
  document.querySelectorAll('.share-row a').forEach(function (a) {
    a.addEventListener('click', function () { note.hidden = false; });
  });
}
document.getElementById('follow-close').addEventListener('click', function () {
  note.hidden = true; localStorage.setItem('followNoteSeen', '1');
});
</script>

Worked example: two ways to ask

The numbers here are invented but the ratios are the kind a site sees when it tests both patterns. A blog with 40,000 sessions a month ran an on-load like popup for one month and an after-share follow note the next. Everyone saw the popup; only the 1,200 readers who shared saw the note.

The popup gained more followers in absolute terms and cost far more: a consent dependency, a network script on every page and a visible bounce increase. The note asked fewer people and converted one in fourteen of them. The site kept the note, and its follower growth over the following quarter stayed within a few percent of the popup month once the bounce recovery was counted.

Video share prompts

Asking for a share when a video ends still makes sense, because the viewer has just finished. Place a share row under the player rather than an overlay, since overlays conflict with the player's own controls and captions.

What goes wrong

• The note appears on every share. Without the local storage flag, a reader who shares three posts sees it three times. Set the flag on dismissal and on the first display.
• Official widget inside the note. Dropping the network's like button into the note reintroduces the script and the consent problem. Keep it a plain link.
• Modal instead of inline. A window that blocks the page after a share feels like a penalty for sharing. Inline notes under the row are enough.
• Fires before the dialog opens. On some setups the note pushes the share row down as the reader's click lands, so the click misses. Reveal the note below the row, never above it.
• Counting the wrong thing. Measure follows on the network's own analytics, not clicks on the note; some clicks are curiosity.

Check it worked

• Load a post: no note, no popup, no request to any network in the browser's network panel.
• Click a share button: the note appears below the row and the share dialog opens as normal.
• Close the note, share again: it does not return. Clear site data: it returns once.
• Tab to the close button and press Enter or Escape: the note closes.
• The follow link points to the right profile and opens in a new tab.

Which networks deserve a follow link at all follows the same logic as choosing which share buttons to show. The history of these add-ons is on the MashShare add-ons record, and the rest of the patterns live in the share buttons section.

Sources

• Google Search Central: avoid intrusive interstitials and dialogs
• Google Search Central: understanding page experience

Questions

Related reading

1. 01Share buttons and GDPR: what needs consentWhich share buttons need consent under GDPR and ePrivacy rules, why plain share links usually do not, the two-click pattern, and privacy policy wording.6 min read
2. 02Which share networks to show, and how manyHow to choose which social share buttons to display: match networks to your audience, keep the row short, and add copy link, email and messaging options.6 min read
3. 03MashShare add-ons: what each one didA plain record of the MashShare add-ons and licences once sold on this domain, what each feature did, and where to find a current guide to the same feature.6 min read