Want to learn more about the infamous “push notifications“? What makes them so popular? What are they used for? How are they set up? You’ve come to the right place. 😜
What are push notifications?
“A push notification is a message sent in real time by an app to a mobile device or computer, usually to immediately notify the user of something new or important about the brand or product.” 💌
Push notifications are usually targeted to a specific recipient and can be used for things like reminding the user to complete a task, or informing of new updates or special offers. 🎁
They are often sent via email or SMS and can be configured by the user to be turned on or off. They are often used to keep the user engaged with an app, service, or brand by providing relevant information or prompting a purchase!
Push notification examples
As I just explained, there are 2 types of push notifications: promotional and informational. These notifications both have a different purpose and a common goal.
Examples of promotional push notifications
It’s time to promote your activity, tool, mobile app, solution, or service… here are some templates.
🎯 The purpose of promotional notifications.
Promotional notification objectives: Increase sales, and increase conversion rate.
Common goal: Build loyalty, and have a good response rate.
They must contain a call-to-action!
“New product available! 😎 Come check out our latest collection of [product name].”
“Don’t miss our flash sale of [product name]! 🤩 Get it now at a great price.”
“Amazing discounts on [product name]! 🎁 Don’t miss out on this opportunity for a great deal.”
“Win a free [product name]! Enter our sweepstakes by giving your opinion on our latest collection.”
“New service available: [service name]. Sign up now to take advantage 👈.”
Examples of informational push notifications
Here are some examples of informational notifications, which are equally important for the user of the application or product.
🎯 Reminder of the purpose of these notifications:
Informational notification goal: Enhance user experience, and engage users with the brand with the right push message.
Common goal: Build loyalty, and have a good response rate.
“Some amazing new features were just added to our app. 🤩 Update now to take advantage of them.”
“You haven’t used [Name of app] in X days. Is everything okay?” 😱
“🚩 Our [product/service name] is now available in new regions! Click here to learn more.
Don’t forget to create a notification depending on your target. Usually, no one like to receive a pop-up. So make sure you’re not sending notifications that will bother your prospects.
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🟢 By using an SMS push notification service: there are many services that allow you to send SMS push notifications to your users. You can sign up with one of these services, connect your contact database and create notification templates to be sent via SMS.
Here are two examples of services. They both have loads of options and offer different rates depending on your needs. 👇
Twilio.
Nexmo.
🟢 Using SMS marketing software: if you need more SMS marketing features, like the ability to create targeted SMS campaigns, you can set your pushes with marketing software.
Here are two examples of software that allow you to create real marketing campaigns. 👇
SimplyCast.
CallFire.
🟢 Using an SMS API: If you already have an app or website that handles push notifications, you can use an SMS API to send SMS push notifications to your users. You can sign up with an SMS API provider and integrate their API with your app or website to send SMS notifications.
How do you find the phone numbers of your target customers?
There are two ways to send SMS push: either you already have the contact of your customers because they have filled in a contact form, or you have used a scrapping tool to find the phone numbers of your potential customers.
If you already have the contact of your customers, you will use the solution mentioned above. If not, you’re going to have to find the contact of your prospects. 🔍
We have a turnkey tool to find phone numbers of people matching your targets on LinkedIn: see the article. 👀
Waalaxy allows you to get: a pro email address, phone number, and even date of birth and location.
And if you’re thinking that your customers aren’t on LinkedIn, well, know this: everyone is on LinkedIn. 😜
There are a few specifics to consider when configuring push messaging to iPhone, but nothing too bad. 😇
Pushes must be sent via an Apple Notification Server (APNS) and not just any API.
You must use a developer certificate to connect to APNS: This certificate allows you to connect to APNS and send push notifications to your users.
Push notification on WhatsApp
It’s not possible to set up push messages on WhatsApp in the same way as on other platforms, as WhatsApp doesn’t allow third-party developers to send notifications directly to users via their API. However, there are a few ways to create a push notification-like experience on WhatsApp:
🥇 Using a chatbotsender service: you can use a chatbot service to create a bot that sends messages to your users on WhatsApp. Chatbots can be configured to send automated messages in response to specific commands or triggers, which can be used to simulate push notifications.
🥈 Using a chat link: you can create a WhatsApp chat link that opens a conversation with your business on WhatsApp when clicked. You can include this link in emails or push notifications on other platforms to allow your users to start a conversation with you on WhatsApp.
It is important to note that to use these methods, you will need to have a WhatsApp Business account and follow WhatsApp’s rules for business use of their platform.
Push notifications summary
How to send a push notification?
To send a push notification, you must first have an app or service that sends notifications. You can then use the push notification API of the target device’s operating system (for example, iOS or Android) to send the notification to the notification server. The notification server will then send the notification to the user’s device.
What are the benefits of sending personalized push notifications?
Customized and personalized push messages can be more effective than generic notifications because they are designed specifically for each user or group of users.
This means they can better target users’ interests and needs thanks to segmentation, which can increase user engagement, and retention and depend on the campaign – subscription and conversions. 🤑
Conclusion on PUSH Notification
💉 Sting of reminder:
What is a push notification? A push notification is a short message sent by an app or service to a user on a mobile device or desktop computer.
It can contain text, images, links, and other elements. Push notifications are often used to inform users of new updates, new messages, or other important information. This kind of personalization is called “lead nurturing“.
How do push notifications appear to users?
Push messages usually appear in different ways to users, depending on the platform and the device used. Here are some examples of how push notifications can appear to users:
📞 On a mobile device: To a mobile device, push notifications usually appear at the top of the screen, even when the app is not running. They can be displayed as a banner or dialog box and can be configured to display a title, message body, and icon.
💻 On a computer: On a computer, push notifications can be displayed as a notification in the operating system notification bar or in an application-specific notification window. They can be configured to display a title, message body, and icon.
How to unsubscribe from push messages?
If you don’t want toreceive push notifications, there are several ways to unsubscribe andenable push messages, depending on the platform and app used. Here are some examples of how you can unsubscribe from push notifications. 👇
📞 On a mobile device: You can usually unsubscribe from push notifications by accessing the settings of the app or your device. In the app settings, you should be able to find an option to disable push notifications, you can also choose to receive an alert from a certain app but not another depending on your preferences.
💻 On a computer: You can usually unsubscribe from push notifications by going to the app settings or your web browser. In the app settings, you should be able to find an option to disable push notifications. Once turned off, the browser pop-up should not show up anymore!
It’s also possible to set upnotification preferences!
How are push notifications customized?
Push text messages can be customized in different ways, such as changing the content of the message or targeting certain categories of users. 🎯
You can also use notification settings to customize the look and behavior of the notification on the user’s device, such as changing the color of the notification icon or setting a specific ringtone. 🔵🟠🔊
How to send a push of new messages?
To send a new message push notification, you must first have a mechanism to detect new messages and trigger the notification to be sent.
For example, once message one is sent > wait two days > and send a new message.
👇 Here’s an example scenario I picked up from Waalaxy’s dashboard that could just about work for a push campaign.
It can be done using a database or by monitoring a real-time data stream. Once you detect a new message, you can use the push notification API to send a notification containing a preview of the message to the user.
Hi [First Name]. The items in your cart are running out of stock soon – If you want to order, we need to jump in. 🚀
And there you have it, you know all about push notifications and their importance in your marketing automation strategy.
