Traffic Collector - How to Configure AriseAds Traffic Collector

The Traffic Collector module allows you to create customizable forms to capture visitor information, such as email addresses and names. These forms can be embedded directly into your website’s content, displayed as popups based on various triggers, or launched manually by user interactions. Collected data can be stored locally and/or sent to third-party email marketing services.

Table of Contents

Accessing Traffic Collectors

Navigate to AriseAds in your WordPress admin dashboard.

Click on “Traffic Collectors” in the AriseAds submenu. This will take you to the main list of your collectors.

The Traffic Collectors List View

This page displays a table of all the traffic collectors you’ve created. Key columns include:

Title: The name you’ve given to your collector.
Auto Popup: Shows “Yes” (via a checkmark icon) if the collector is configured to automatically pop up, or “No” (via a cross icon) if it’s not.
Connections: Lists the services this collector is connected to (e.g., Local Storage, Mailchimp).
Impressions: The number of times this collector form has been displayed to visitors.
Submissions: The number of times this collector form has been successfully submitted.
Shortcode: Displays the shortcode [ariseads_traffic_collector id="..."] for this specific collector.

Actions available on this page:

Add New: Button at the top to create a new traffic collector.
Row Actions (when hovering over a collector title):
- Edit: Modify the collector’s settings and design.
- Clone: Creates a duplicate of the collector (as a draft) for quick setup of similar forms.
- Trash: Moves the collector to the trash.
Standard WordPress bulk actions (e.g., Move to Trash) are also available.

Creating or Editing a Traffic Collector

Click “Add New” or “Edit” an existing collector to open the main configuration screen.

Title: Enter a clear and descriptive title for your collector (e.g., “Website Newsletter Signup,” “Ebook Download Form”). This is for your internal reference.

The Collector Builder: The central part of the screen is the builder interface, where you customize the form’s content, behavior, and appearance. It typically consists of several sections or tabs:

Fields Tab

Configure the elements of your form:

Form Heading:

Enable/Disable: Show or hide a main heading for your form.
Content: Enter your heading text (HTML is allowed). You can use the visual editor for formatting.

Email Field:

Enable/Disable: Almost always enabled for collecting emails.
Label: Text displayed above the email input field (e.g., “Email Address”).
Placeholder: Text shown inside the input field before the user types (e.g., “Enter your email”).
Required: Check if an email address is mandatory for submission.

Name Field:

Enable/Disable: Choose whether to ask for the user’s name.
Label: E.g., “Your Name”.
Placeholder: E.g., “Enter your first name”.
Required: Check if the name is mandatory.

Consent Checkbox:

Enable/Disable: Crucial for GDPR and other privacy regulations.
Content: The text next to the checkbox. HTML is allowed, so you can link to your Privacy Policy (e.g., I agree to the <a href="/privacy-policy/" target="_blank">Privacy Policy</a>).
Required: Check if users must agree to submit the form.

Submit Button:

Content: The text on the submission button (e.g., “Subscribe Now,” “Download PDF”).

Form Footer:

Enable/Disable: Show or hide a footer section below the submit button.
Content: Additional text or links (HTML allowed, e.g., spam disclaimers, links to terms).

Settings Tab

Control how your collector functions:

Enable Popup

Check this to make your collector appear as a popup/modal window instead of being embedded directly in the page content.

Trigger: If “Enable Popup” is checked, choose how it appears:

Time Delay: Appears after a specified number of seconds.
Scroll Percentage: Appears after the user scrolls down a certain percentage of the page.

Enable Popup Hide: If checked, after a user closes the popup (without subscribing), it won’t appear again for them for a set number of days. (Uses a cookie: tc_closed_COLLECTOR_ID).

Popup Hide Days: Number of days to hide the popup after closing.

Enable Subscriber Hide: If checked, after a user successfully subscribes through this popup, it won’t appear again for them for a set number of days. (Uses a cookie: tc_subscribed_COLLECTOR_ID).

Subscriber Hide Days: Number of days to hide the popup after subscription.

Connections

Select where the collected data should be sent. You can select multiple options:

Local Storage: Saves the submission to your WordPress database.
Other options: Any third-party email marketing services (e.g., Mailchimp, ConvertKit) you’ve configured in AriseAds > Connections will appear here.

After Subscribe Action

What happens after the success message (or directly after submission if no message):

Show Message: Simply displays the success message.
Redirect: Automatically sends the user to another URL.
Show Message and Link: Displays the success message along with a clickable button/link.

Success Message: The message displayed to the user immediately after a successful form submission (e.g., “Thanks for subscribing!”).

Redirect URL: If you chose “Redirect” or “Show Message and Link,” enter the full URL here (e.g., a thank-you page, a download link).

Redirect Button Text: The text for the button if you chose “Show Message and Link” (e.g., “Continue,” “Access Your Download”).

Manual Trigger Link as Redirect URL: (Applies if the popup is triggered by a user clicking a link with the special class – see “Manual Triggers” below). If checked, the URL of the link the user clicked to open the popup will be used as the URL for the “Redirect” or “Show Message and Link” action.

Manual Trigger Proceed Button Text: Text for the button when using the “Manual Trigger Link as Redirect URL” option.

Manual Trigger Skip Link Text: If the collector is a popup triggered by a link, this text will be used for an additional “skip” link allowing the user to go to the original link’s destination without filling out the form (e.g., “No thanks, take me to the content”).

Styles Tab

Customize the visual appearance of your collector:

Layout: Fullwidth (fields stack vertically) or Inline (fields try to align horizontally, space permitting).
Container: Background Color, Text Color (for general text within the form), Text Alignment (Left, Center, Right), Border Radius (for rounded corners).
Headings/Subheadings: Font Size (for the Form Heading content).
Labels: Color and Font Size for field labels (e.g., “Email Address”).
Input Fields: Background Color, Text Color (user’s typed input), Placeholder Text Color, Border Color, Border Widths (top, right, bottom, left), Border Radius, Font Size.
Submit Button: Background Color, Text Color, Font Size, Border Radius, Border Color, Border Widths.
Footer Text: Font Size and Color for the Form Footer content.

Saving Collector

Once you’re done configuring, click the “Publish” (or “Update” for existing collectors) button.

Displaying Your Collector on Your Website

There are three main ways to show your traffic collector to visitors:

Using the Shortcode

Paste the shortcode [ariseads_traffic_collector id="YOUR_COLLECTOR_ID"] into the content of any post, page, or text widget. The form will appear directly embedded in that location.

Manual Triggers (for Popups)

First, ensure the “Enable Popup” option is checked in your collector’s settings.

Add the specific class show-tc-YOUR_COLLECTOR_ID to any clickable HTML element (button, link, image, etc.) on your site. When a visitor clicks this element, the collector will appear as a popup.

Example: <a href="/my-product-page/" class="my-custom-button show-tc-123">Learn More & Sign Up!</a>

In this example, if the user clicks the link, the popup for collector 123 appears. If they submit the form and you’ve configured “Manual Trigger Link as Redirect URL” and relevant button text, they might then be taken to /my-product-page/. If they use a “skip” link (if configured), they would also go to /my-product-page/.

Automatic Popups

Ensure “Enable Popup” is checked in the collector’s settings.

Configure the Trigger to either Time Delay (set the delay in seconds) or Scroll Percentage (set the scroll depth).

The popup will then automatically appear based on these conditions for visitors.

The display of automatic popups respects the “Popup Hide Days” and “Subscriber Hide Days” settings to avoid annoying users who have already interacted with or closed the popup.

Managing Collected Data

Local Storage: If you’ve selected “Local Storage” in the collector’s connections, all submissions (email, name, consent, country, source ID, source name) are saved in your WordPress database. You may find a separate section within the AriseAds admin area or under “Traffic Collectors” to view and manage these subscribers.

External Connections: If you’ve connected to services like Mailchimp, the data will also be sent to those platforms according to their API rules.

How to Export Local Subscribers

If you are using the “Local Storage” connection for your traffic collectors, you can export a list of these subscribers as a CSV (Comma Separated Values) file, which can be easily opened in spreadsheet programs like Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets.

Navigate to Traffic Storage

In your WordPress admin dashboard, go to AriseAds > Traffic Collector.

Look for a sub-menu item named “Storage” or “Subscribers”. Click on it. This will display a list of all subscribers collected locally.

Initiate Export

On the Subscribers list page, you should see an “Export All” button, usually located near the top of the page beside the “Subscribers” heading. Click this button.

Configure Export Columns (Export Modal)

A popup window (modal) titled “Export Subscribers as CSV” will appear.

Inside this modal, you’ll see a list of available data columns that can be included in your export, such as:

Email
Name
Country
Date (submission date)

Each column will have a checkbox. By default, all are usually checked. Uncheck any columns you do not want to include in your exported file.

Reorder Columns: You can change the order of the columns in your CSV file by dragging and dropping them within this list. Look for a drag handle (often a menu icon or a series of dots) next to each column name.

Download CSV File

Once you’ve selected and ordered your desired columns, click the “Export” button at the bottom of the modal.

The system will generate the CSV file, and your browser will automatically start downloading it. The filename will typically be something like ariseads-subscribers-YYYY-MM-DD.csv.

This CSV file can then be used for backups, imported into other marketing tools, or for your own analysis.

How to Add or Update an Email Service Connection

To send the data collected by your Traffic Collector forms to third-party email marketing services (like Mailchimp, Sendy, etc.), you first need to set up “Connections” within the AriseAds plugin.

You can create multiple connections, even to the same email service, but targeting different lists or audiences. This allows a single Traffic Collector form to send subscriber data to several destinations simultaneously. Once a connection is established and named, it will be available to select (or multi-select) in your Traffic Collector’s “Settings” tab under “Connections”.

Here’s how to add or update an email service connection:

Navigate to Connections

In your WordPress admin dashboard, go to AriseAds > Settings > Connections. This is where you manage all your third-party service integrations.

Add New or Edit Existing Connection:
- To create a new connection, click the “Add New” button at the top of the Connections list page.
- To modify an existing connection, find it in the list and click its title or the “Edit” link that appears when you hover over it.
Configure the Connection:
- Connection Title: Enter a descriptive name for this connection (e.g., “My Mailchimp Account,” “Main Sendy List”). This title is for your internal reference. This field is usually required.
- Choose Your Email Service (Connection Type):
  - You’ll see a selection of available email marketing services, often displayed as cards or a dropdown list.
  - Click on the card or select the service you want to connect with (e.g., Mailchimp, Sendy).
  - Note: Some services might have a limit on how many connections of that type you can create (e.g., you might only be able to connect to one Mailchimp account). If a service card is disabled and mentions a limit, you may need to edit an existing connection for that service instead of adding a new one.
- Enter Service-Specific Details:
  - Once you select a service, specific fields required for that integration will appear. These vary by service:
    - For Mailchimp:
      - Mailchimp API Key: Enter your API key from your Mailchimp account.
      - Connect Button: After entering your API key, click the “Connect” (or similar) button next to this field. This will verify your API key and then fetch your available Mailchimp Audiences.
      - Select Audience: Once connected, this dropdown will be populated with your Mailchimp audiences (lists). Select the audience where you want new subscribers from your Traffic Collectors to be added. This field is usually required after connecting.
    - For Sendy:
      - Sendy URL: The full URL of your Sendy installation (e.g., https://yourdomain.com/sendy).
      - API Key: Your Sendy API key.
      - List ID: The ID of the specific Sendy list you want to connect to.
    - Other services will have their own specific fields (API keys, tokens, list IDs, etc.). Follow the on-screen labels.
- Test Connection (Optional but Recommended):
  - Many integrations provide a “Test Connection” button. After filling in the required fields for your selected service, click this button.
  - You’ll see a success message (e.g., “Connection successful!”) or an error message indicating what might be wrong (e.g., “Invalid API key,” “Failed to connect”).
  - This step helps ensure your details are correct before saving.
Save the Connection:
- Once all details are entered and tested (if applicable), click the “Publish” button (for new connections) or “Update” button (for existing connections) in the WordPress publish meta box (usually on the right side of the screen).

After saving a connection, it will appear as an option in the “Connections” multi-select field within the Settings tab of any Traffic Collector form you create or edit. You can select one or more of your configured connections for each Traffic Collector, enabling you to send subscriber data to multiple lists or services from a single form.