12 Amazing Ideas For Your Notification Bars (& Some Great Examples)

Are you looking for notification bar examples that silently nudge your website visitors into making a purchase?

You've arrived at the right place - we've curated some great examples that have been driving clicks as well as conversions.

Let's go!

What is a website notification bar?

The average human attention span is about 8 seconds.

Meanwhile, the average session duration on e-commerce sites ranges between 80 to 100 seconds. 

So, that means you have just about 90 seconds to communicate everything about your brand.

Thus, a notification bar is THE tool to turn your website traffic into customers, subscribers, and fans.

A website notification bar, in its most common form, is a solid-colored block of text and CTA buttons that remains fixed at the top or bottom of the screen. 

Website notification bars are typically used to:

• Announce updates
• Promote ongoing sales campaigns
• Or, welcome visitors to your site

Take a look at this example below from Barnes & Noble ↓

Why Notification Bars Are Effective For eCommerce Stores?

Notification bars are quite similar to the billboard road signs, you may have seen on the Interstate.

They are silent yet effective messengers, delivering key information without disrupting user experience.

That is the reason notification bars go by many names, like:

1. Floating bars
2. Sticky bars
3. Hello bars

They're your way of gently nudging your audience, saying, “Hey, check this out!” 

Thus, here are 12 amazing ideas with examples for you to dive into:

1. Get those email sign-ups
2. Talk about a product launch
3. Update on an upcoming collab
4. Say you’ve been *featured*
5. Announce a “free gift worth X when you buy worth Y”
6. Create a nudge on priority shipping (holiday season ahoy!)
7. Feature a discount for a very specific target audience
8. Feature the good ol’ Free Shipping price threshold
9. Use it to help them “change location”
10. Highlight the most important offers running
11. Bring them to your best performing posts
12. Count’ it down

12 Amazing Ideas And Examples For Your Notification Bars

1. Get those email sign-ups

It’s true. Most people that enter your site, will probably not buy (immediately). Why? 

• Because they have no idea about the value you offer
• Or they might not just be in the right stage of the Conversion Funnel

This is exactly why you use the notification bar—to make a value offer your users can’t refuse. 

That too, without becoming obtrusive.

A great example of this is GAP Factory. 

They offer free shipping on orders above $50 for 'Rewards' members, and the notification bar is located at the header, per usual.

Now, this may sound suspiciously simple for a brand like GAP, right? 

However, if you check really well—you will see an additional notification bar, but this time, it’s at the footer.

The best part starts once you scroll. The moment you scroll down, you see this:

An expanded version of the notification bar, full of offers, pops up as a Notification Panel.

Quick Takeaways From GAP Factory’s Notification Bar:

1. Segment your Offers by User segment: GAP Factory makes sure to create an offer for everyone, from new visitors to Cardmembers
2. Personalize your Copy: Note how the notification panel/bar reads as “My Offers”
3. Create Time Limited Offers: Note how the Cardmember exclusive is time-limited

Note: Remember to optimize for mobile viewing as well. 

How to Maximize Email Signups with Notification Bars?

Offer exclusive incentives: Create a compelling reason for visitors to part with their email addresses. For example: 

• Discount code for their first purchase
• Access to exclusive content like behind-the-scenes videos or style guides

Highlight the benefits of joining your community: Tell them why becoming your email subscriber gets the better deal! Example: 

• "They get 35% off"
• Personalized product recommendations are delivered straight to their inbox
• Insider tips and invitations to special events are also part of the deal‍

Lastly, simplify the sign-up process: Make it easy for visitors to join your email list. Break down the sign-up form fields, and make sure to turn on double opt-in. 

Read more about how to simplify sign-ups with 45 highly converting sign-up examples.

2. Talk about a product launch

And, the award for the simplest and the easiest way to announce a new product goes to:

The notification bar.  

While a notification bar is unobtrusive, it’s also a great way to nudge your users into taking note.

Look at how HyperX, a gaming gear manufacturer, announces the launch of their latest headphone range.

Note how the notification bar leads to a landing page that bundles the new headphones with keyboard caps and headphone attachments. 

Along with the bundles, this landing page has a knowledge base and an invitation for collaboration.

Once you offer users the power to customize their product to their liking, you work up the power of recommendation.

Remember: 78% of millennials look for experiences instead of traditional products.

While Gen Z remains geared towards buying from brands that connect with what they stand for.

How to Talk About Your Product Launch On a Notification Bar?

• Tease the product with your copy (use blurred images or teaser videos) 
• Make sure your landing page keeps to the promise you have made in the notification bar

‍Pro Tip: Always make sure to ‘highlight the promise, above the fold. 

Note how the HRX landing page has the line “Let your Style Soar” and this keeps in sync with what the notification bar promises.

The rest of the page sticks to the theme of personalization.

3. Update on an upcoming collab

71% of customers love it, when two or more brands announce that there’s a new product they have come up with—together.

So, much like a product launch, your latest collaboration too needs the maximum coverage.

Thus, naturally, the first and foremost place to announce it is your notification bar. 

Does that mean you do not cover anything else? Not at all. 

Remember, the average notification bars take up about 5% of screen space in terms of height. 

Note how Tiffany & Co. launches its 'Full Heart' collection with the notification bar. However, along with messaging, they tie in other messages as well.

Tips to successfully carry out a co-brand launch on a notification bar:

• Keep the messages on brand
• Carry the branding theme on your landing page as well
• Provide a quote about the product from influencers/reviewers/news articles
• Feature your logos creatively

4. Say you’ve been *featured*

As a business owner, you already have a fair bit of idea about the power of reviews. 

Done right, they can be just what you need to add to your goodwill. 

Right from the moment a user enters your site, the notification bar can be the bringer of goodwill.

Look at how Beauty Pie does it for their brand by adding their Trustpilot rating on their notification bar.

It’s worthwhile to remember that online reviews have an impact on 93% of consumers worldwide.

How to Leverage The Notification Bar for Features?

1. Feature a quote from coverages of news articles, industry publications, or online reviews
2. Display testimonials from satisfied customers
3. Highlight any awards and recognition that you have received
4. Make sure to lead to landing pages that support your claims
5. Use another notification bar to drive the AOV and get signups

Beauty Pie uses two announcement bars to drive traffic to their membership page, by offering a free trial.

Pro Tip: Always remember to A/B Test your notification/announcement bars to see which one gets more clicks and conversions.

5. Announce a “free gift worth X when you buy worth Y”

Product Bundling has been the classic method of increasing your AOV and clearing out slow-moving stock. 

However, there’s a creative way to do exactly that and amplify your profit margins. How?

You offer a free gift or offer points in exchange for a certain amount of cart value.

All while driving your sales, pumping up your AOV, and clearing slow-moving inventory.

Take a look at how Lego does it, through their notification bar.

Lego, known for its active community base, offers not only points but also exclusive merchandise that fans will love.

Once you click on their notification bar, you will be led to a landing page that offers:

• Community points
• Exclusive Christmas-themed Lego merchandise on a cart value of $70 and above.

Note how Lego ties the bow on their promotion by including the good ol’ “offer is valid till stocks last.”

6. Create a nudge on priority shipping (holiday season ahoy!)

If you are worried about the holiday season and not being able to handle orders, it’s time you celebrate.

Yes, that includes you too.

Here’s why: You can charge for faster shipping, and you won’t lose customers because of it.

People are huddling over stores, trying to get their purchases in on time. 

So, as an e-commerce store, you should get your shipping moving faster than lightning.

Tips on Announcing Priority Shipping with Notification Bars

• Link to a shipping calculator to keep costs transparent
• Always ensure that you keep your delivery deadline clear.
• Lastly, keep a standard delivery option as always. (and they won’t hate you for it)

Note how Fendi and Adidas tap into the ‘last-minute’ psychology of the consumer.

Fendi plays into subtlety, by offering information about when customers will receive a product with priority shipping.

Meanwhile, Adidas takes it up a notch by making the messaging simple— “If you don’t shop by 12/13, you ain’t getting your deliveries in time. Do you want it? Get it now.”

Also Read: 32 Best Performing Holiday Marketing Ideas for eCommerce Stores

7. Feature a discount for a very specific target audience 

Offering a discount can woo 77% of customers.  

However, with customers accustomed to discounts, finding an audience that has an ‘affinity’ towards your brand, is critical. 

Note, how Dr Martens does it, by offering a discount of 20% on their notification bar to their ideal Target Audience: Students.

Tips for Offering Discounts to Target Audiences Through Notification Bars:

• Ensure that your landing page reflects the offer and the same amount of discount
• Research your buyer persona, well before offering the discount. Find your biggest promoters who want to buy from you or haven’t discovered your product yet
• Offer a greater discount percentage by browsing history. That means offering a better discount to repeat customers. 93% of them will love you for it

Note how Dr Marten’s landing page is in sync with the same offer they have made in the notification bar.

You must read: Cyber Monday eCommerce: 18 *Last-Minute* Hacks to Boost Conversions

8. Feature the good ol’ Free Shipping price threshold

Tis’ the season of Free Shipping, and the best place to announce it is your notification bar.

Remember: Nearly 70% of shoppers abandon their carts because:

1. The costs of shipping to their addresses were too high
2. Or, the Delivery was too slow

Note how Wayfair & Bed, Bath & Beyond announce their shipping thresholds.

Instead of a landing page, both Wayfair and Bed, Bath, and Beyond pull consumers to a modal, instead of a separate landing page. 

Tips On How to Announce Your Free Shipping Price Threshold:

Show the progress, not the pressure: Ditch the generic "free shipping" message. Instead, use a progress bar that visually shows customers how close they are to unlocking free shipping. 

This gamified approach will not only increase your session duration but also your cart value. 😉

Double the deal with a discount: If free shipping isn’t enough, sweeten the deal with a discount. 

Offer a discount once customers reach the free shipping threshold. 

This double-pronged approach incentivizes them to spend more and unlock both savings and convenience.

Our CRO 360 tool helps you tailor and personalize your notification bar discounts for every segment of your visitors. 

Want a free demo of how it all works?

Sign up for a free audit.

‍Make the savings crystal clear: Quantify the value! Highlight the exact amount saved on shipping costs when customers reach the threshold. 

Everyone loves savings, and if you provide the right triggers, you seal the deal. Here's you make sure that the savings is crystal clear on your notification bar:

• Ensure that the free shipping is actually applied 
• Highlight how fast your shipping works, and 
• Showcase your returns policy like Wayfair and Bed, Bath, and Beyond have

9. Use it to help them “change location”

Brace yourself, there are a lot of examples on this one. 

We love this one, particularly because this is a genuinely delightful way to personalize your user’s experience. 

You can imagine why. As we mentioned in Point 2, Millennials love an experience and Gen Z. Serving users content that relates to their unique needs, helps you generate more sales, better retention, and better ROI. 

Look at how Target automatically shows a location and lets the user select their nearest store. 

Or look at how UPS asks the user to select the nearest servicable location on the notification bar itself.

Or for that matter Tiffany & Co., asks for confirmation regarding the location of the user, while providing them with a quick and easy option to switch to their preferred country or region.

Note how all of this happens in the notification bar.

Tips For Offering Location Selectors In Notification Bars

• Cut the guesswork on location
• Make sure your users can see where they are (in the event they want to change it)
• Offer relevant content and location-tailored currency, pricing, and promotions

10. Highlight the most important offers running

Forget blasting everyone with the same generic message. 

Today's savvy shoppers crave offers that perfectly align with each visitor's interests and desires.

How do you fit all that in a notification bar?

You bring in multiple messages in one bar. How? With dynamic content (content that changes on its own).

There are two ways, you can do this:

• By leveraging customer data and browsing behavior, (we talk about this in Point 9)
• Or by creating predefined messages for predefined target audiences

Either way, your notification bar becomes a personalized machine that appeals to every segment of your choice. 

Suddenly, you're not just talking, you're speaking directly to their needs, sparking their curiosity and driving engagement like never before.

Note how Levi’s shows an automatically changing notification bar, featuring:

• 20% discount + free shipping for first-time purchasers
• Discounts for subscribers/members
• A 30% off sale

Some Useful Tips for Announcing Multiple Offers on the Notification Bar

• Make it as creative as possible. Note how Tote Umbrellas do it with their notifications bar, in a news channel type bar

• Include at least 2 offers. One for first-time visitors and one for returning customers

• Incorporate seasonality into the notification bar. If you are a bit wary of announcing discounts head on, take Bon Bon’s approach

• Play around with the shape: Note, how BonBon plays around with the shape of the bar, to showcase a simple message that is simple yet effectively plays into the seasonality

11. Bring them to your best performing posts

Yes, everyone knows you can use the notification bar to link visitors to specific landing pages or product pages. 

But have you thought about using it to drive traffic to your best-performing posts?

These pages are already proven to convert visitors into customers. 

Or, better yet, they serve the seasonality and have the highest chances of landing sales.

Check out how Mattels does this same thing with their holiday gift guide.

Note how the products are bundled together by age, price, brand, and consumer segments. 

Here are some tips for using the notification bar to bring visitors to your best-performing pages:

1. Identify your top-performing pages. Look for pages are generating the most traffic, conversions, and sales 
2. Or, create seasonal landing pages or guides. Redirect visitors to pages that contain exactly what they are looking for—information. For example: Mattel's Holiday Gift Guide
3. Gamify it with a quiz/test
4. Lastly, make sure to A/B test different approaches

You'd also like to read: 24 Scientific Strategies to Increase your eCommerce Conversion Rate

12. Count’ it down

Time is money, and it can be the difference between a sale and a lost opportunity. 

Limited-time offers, inject a powerful dose of urgency into your marketing mix. 

This is why the notification bar provides the perfect platform to create a sense of urgency by incorporating a countdown timer.

Highlight that the deals are going away. Include phrases like "Limited Time Offer" or "Ends Soon." 

Look at how Tee Public does it with their countdown timer. Note how they use an Ochre shade of yellow that plays to their branding to bring out the color contrast. 

The result of this? Customers become motivated by FOMO, and either of the following will happen:

• They end up buying,
• Or they will visit once again—just before the sale ends

The likelihood of a chunk of visitors not purchasing will remain, but your chances increase by a lot.

It is worthwhile to remember that countdown timers can be used to:

• Build anticipation for product launches
• Promote early-bird discounts
• Increase urgency for abandoned carts

Tips on Using Countdown Timers In Notification Bars

• Set realistic deadlines: Make sure the time limit is believable and achievable. Don't create unrealistic urgency that could damage trust with your audience
• Highlight the timer prominently: Use clear and contrasting colors to ensure the timer is easily visible and captures attention
• Communicate the benefit: Convey the specific offer or benefit associated with the timer, such as a limited-time discount or early access

Questions People Ask

What is the top bar announcement on a website?

As we have mentioned before, the top bar announcement is just another name for the notification bar.

The job of a notification bar is to highlight important information, such as payment options, website updates, maintenance announcements, or urgent news.

Note how Insomnia Cookies uses a notification bar to offer free shipping for their users. 

What are some best practices for a website announcement bar?

1. Craft the message as clearly as you can
2. Make sure it matches your audience's interests and needs
3. Use minimal yet eye-catching visuals (countdown timers) and design elements like (arrows) to engage your audience
4. Clearly tell users what you want them to do next (like sign up for a newsletter)
5. Experiment with different designs, messaging, and targeting options
6. Create a sense of urgency if needed
7. Provide an easy option to dismiss the message if the user is not interested

The thumb rule for notification bars is not to make it annoying.

If your notification bar follows the user around the screen, make sure it doesn’t take up too much screen space. 

What is the difference between a notification bar and a notification panel?

A notification bar is just a thin bar positioned at the top or bottom of a website displaying announcements, updates, or promotions. 

It may feature a dismissable option, or it may not.

Typically, an average notification bar takes up about 5% of screen space.

Meanwhile, a Notification panel is a slightly more interactive and larger element. It may appear as a pop-up or dropdown menu triggered by user interaction. 

It can provide more detailed information and offer various actions beyond dismissal.

Take a look at the image below. The parts that are marked in red are the notification bars. Meanwhile, the rest are all parts of the panel.

Note how the rectangular box containing the “Sign up to receive 10% off” is the notifications panel.

What is a sticky bar? Is it the same thing as a notification bar?

A sticky bar is a type of notification bar that remains ‘stuck’ in place as users scroll through the website content. 

This ensures constant visibility and increases the chances of users noticing the message. 

Sticky bars are particularly effective for promoting calls to action or highlighting urgent announcements.

Note how Happy Socks’s notification bar remains sticky as the user scrolls around.

The Closing Statement: Notification Bars? Yay!

If all these examples have your head spinning, let us show you how to do it for your brand.

At Convertcart, we believe in a 1:1 approach. 

That means we go beyond just giving you a CRO tool or a notification bar. 

It means we provide you with a dedicated team that knows what your store needs to up the conversion rates.

So, if you are worried about what message goes right for your notifications bar, let us do it for you.

Want to learn more about which notification bar to use to ramp up your conversion rate? 

Sign up for a Free Audit today.