4 Tips for Effective Push Notifications in Marketing
Push notifications have become a powerful tool for businesses and marketers to distinguish their apps and increase customer engagement. With mobile usage on the rise, push notifications offer an opportunity for direct selling companies and distributors to drive user retention and re-engagement. However, the effectiveness of push notifications depends heavily on personalization and timing. When done right, they can significantly enhance engagement. Done poorly, they can drive users away. Here are some key trends and tips for marketers looking to optimize push notifications, focusing on personalization to create meaningful interactions.
1 / Personalization is Key
One of the most important aspects of successful push notifications is personalization. People want messages tailored to their interests and needs, not generic blasts. Data from engagement platform Leanplum show personalized push notifications deliver four-times higher open rates compared to non-personalized messages. Brands like Netflix and Uber excel at this by leveraging user behavior data to send targeted notifications. For example, if a user consistently views healthy energy supplements for men, a push notification showcasing benefits of these products can significantly improve engagement and conversions.
Another effective way to personalize push notifications is by deep-linking users directly to the content or products of interest. Instead of leading users to the app’s home screen, deep linking takes them directly to the relevant page, providing an immediate and seamless experience.
2 / Combat Cart Abandonment
Cart abandonment remains a huge challenge for ecommerce platforms. With an average abandonment rate of 70 percent, many users abandon carts due to factors like high shipping costs or a complicated checkout process. Push notifications targeting cart abandonment can help recover lost sales. For example, UNIQLO sends notifications to users who have abandoned carts, offering a price drop as an incentive to complete the purchase. These types of notifications have a click rate of 16 percent, significantly improving chances of conversion.
To measure the success of cart abandonment notifications, marketers can track the conversion rate, which shows the percentage of notifications that lead to a completed purchase.
3 / Time and Location-Based Targeting
Timing is crucial for push notifications. Sending a message at the wrong time—such as 3 a.m.—can quickly frustrate users and lead to opt-outs. Instead, marketers should focus on sending notifications based on user behavior. For example, if a user normally opens an app and makes a purchase two hours later, sending a push notification around the time the user typically makes a purchase will likely deliver better results.
Location-based notifications allow for hyper-personalization, such as sending special offers when users are near a physical store. Sephora, for example, uses geo-targeting to send push notifications to travelers at airports, offering makeup deals that resonate with their audience. Studies show that location-based messaging can lead to a 45 percent click-through rate.
4 / Engage Latent Users with Limited-Time Offers
Limited-time offers are an effective way to bring inactive users back to your app. Data from Responsys shows that 50 percent of users enable push notifications specifically to access special deals or discounts. Retailers can create push campaigns targeting users who haven’t engaged with the app in a certain time frame, offering exclusive deals or time-sensitive discounts to re-engage them.
Automating these campaigns is crucial. For example, sending a discount offer to users who haven’t opened the app in 10 days and capping the number of notifications prevents spam while maximizing effectiveness.
From the November 2024 issue of Direct Selling News magazine.
