How to craft killer push notifications

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Nov 17, 2017 / by
How to craft killer push notifications

It’s clear that communication methods have changed. Once upon a time, direct mail was a good way to get your message heard. Nowadays, mobile internet access is surging and we’re living in an era of instant gratification. People aren’t as keen to read long-winded marketing emails, but they always have their phones on them.

With push notifications, brands have the ability to create concise, personalised messages that people appreciate. However, not all brands get push notifications right. Not surprisingly, statistics show that over half of mobile users find push notifications annoying! Follow these tips and you can craft push notifications that your audience love instead of despise.

Personalisation is key

Katie Sweet, writing for Evergate states:

When consumers think more positively about a brand, they are more likely to shop, buy, or even recommend that brand to others. Personalization can lead to positive experiences that, in turn, lead to more engagement and purchases.

The easiest way to make an impact with personalisation is to include the person’s name in your message. People pay attention when their name is spoken in real life, but the same rule applies when communicating digitally.

Additionally, including other pieces of user data in your communications can be useful. For ecommerce stores, sending recommendation messages based on previous user purchasing history can be wise. If you can spot trends in the types of products or content that people enjoy, it’s easier to tailor your push notifications to them.

Be concise

Smart marketers know that it’s important to tailor your messaging for each individual platform. Extensive product information and FAQs can work well in a sales email, but with push notifications your goal is to get to the point as fast as possible.

People are easily distracted. If they can’t see that your message has immediate value to them, they’re likely to ignore you or worse, turn off push notifications from your brand. Don’t be long-winded and irritating, be concise and valuable.

Tone is everything

Would you rather receive a message from a long lost friend or from a fiendish corporate robot looking to extract as much money as possible from you? When you speak to people in a corporate tone, it immediately puts them on edge. However, when you act like a human and engage them using a jovial, conversational tone they’re more likely to be receptive.

Keep it positive

Amanda Zantal-WienerPositive message, writing for Hubspot, emphasises that the best push notifications are encouraging rather than shaming. She states:

Most health and fitness apps are traditionally created with a somewhat shared goal: To help their users get better at doing something. And one of the most ineffective ways of doing that? Feeling bad about not doing it.

Sure, you can encourage people to take action by making them feel insecure, but is this really fulfilling in the long run? It’s far more rewarding to inspire people with positive rewards rather than using derision as a motivating force.

Summary

As with all effective marketing, it’s crucial to write push notifications from a value-giving mindset. Be concise, keep your tone conversational and only promote offers that will improve the lives of your recipients. When you establish your brand as a source of awesome, informative messages, this will pay huge dividends as you continue to grow.