Do users really hate #doorslam pop-ups? I’ve receive this email from a webmaster whose site was featured here. (Published with permission)

Interesting idea. I will recommend we A/B test some “doorslam” to see if it qualifies as a true anti-pattern – for me the criteria is not opinion but measured user response based on acquisition, usage and retention. It is quite hard to measure the impact of this one because by definition successful app acquisitions tend to lead to reduction in that cohorts m-site use and the loop between site and app download is hard to measure due to a lack of affiliate install tracking in app stores. What I can measure however is whether door slams reduce the session funnel for users who do not utilise the download vs users who never see the slam. Good food 4 thought.

He’s absolutely correct. Without seeing hard data, it’s impossible to say with any degree of confidence whether pushing apps in this aggressive manner is a turn-off for the average customer.

The feedback this tumblr has received is that people are annoyed with the tactic. But emotion is no substitute for the facts.