By replacing a standard evergreen popup with a gamified “Scratch Card” version, we believed that interactivity would engage visitors more deeply, making the opt-in experience fun and rewarding. This increased engagement was expected to lift both email and SMS conversion rates, while also positively impacting downstream revenue metrics like orders, RPV, and CVR.

A/B tests were conducted across three different brands in different verticals:

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• Body Care Brand (US & UK markets)
• Major Candle Brand
• Beauty Brand

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Two popup versions were compared:

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Performance was tracked across:

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• Email Conversion Rate – % of visitors submitting email
• SMS Conversion Rate – % of visitors submitting phone number
• Subscribers Collected – raw volume of signups
• Revenue & Orders – attributed downstream performance
• RPV (Revenue per Visitor) and CVR (Conversion Rate)

Visitors during the test period were randomly or sequentially exposed to either:

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• The Evergreen control popup, or
• The Scratch Card variant, designed to increase interactivity and participation.

The Scratch Card popup delivered consistent double-digit lifts for both email and SMS opt-ins in the body care and candle verticals. These results show that gamification can significantly boost engagement and list growth when the interactive experience resonates with the audience.

However, the beauty brand test told a different story: the Scratch Card format actually reduced opt-ins (−12% email, −14% SMS) compared to the evergreen control, while downstream metrics remained neutral. This suggests that in some verticals, the gamified element may introduce friction or misalignment with customer expectations.

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Key Takeaway:

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Gamification is a powerful but not universal lever. For some brands (like body care and candles), the Scratch Card popup was a clear winner, driving ~20% more opt-ins and incremental revenue. For others (like beauty), the traditional evergreen popup performed better.

When testing gamified experiences, it’s essential to validate results by vertical and audience segment. The Scratch Card popup can be a strong growth driver — but its success depends heavily on context and brand fit.

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