In reply to Terence.

Same here, unless I know what's there is good enough to outweigh the nuisance of finding that 'x' and clicking away, I usually just click the browser window close. (Of course, the site owner won't know they just lost me as a potential reader, because the bounce-stats can't measure 'why' I left.)

But, the data is there... it works. The question is more around what is really being accomplished. Are you driving away your best potential clients, and gathering a lower-level potential client list? Or, maybe you're actually getting just what you want? I'm just not sure most people following these tactics (and that's what they are!) really understand what's going on.

What I always find a bit ironic, is that some of the top people in, for example, blogging and podcasting - a crowd who brag about how they are a 'new media' that isn't disruptive, and instead attracts a voluntary audience of interest - don't seem to recognize that pop-up email collection is a form of disruptive marketing.... right in the way of every page of their content marketing!

I probably err on the other side, and haven't optimized my mail-list *visibility*. But, I'm pretty sure if I deliver great content that people are really interested in, I'm not going to miss too many email signups because I didn't throw the signup in their faces. *EVERY* great content producer I've ever run across who I'm interested in following, I've found their email signup (and signed up!) if they had one.