What are push notifications?

A push notification is an effective tool for marketers to engage audiences with special offers, reminders, and updates. By sending out push notifications with content tailored to a user’s individual interests, marketers can increase usage of their app, drive conversions, and even generate new leads.

The more personalized and relevant the message is, the better chance it has of resonating with the recipient and driving action — whether it’s buying a product or browsing something new.

What are the different types of push notifications?

There are two types of push notifications: remote push notifications and local push notifications. Remote push notifications are sent from a server owned by either the developer or a third-party provider, while local push notifications originate from within the app itself. In both cases, each device must register for push services before any messages can be sent out.

Push notifications are an important tool for keeping users engaged in an app, particularly when it is no longer open on their devices. Tweaks and adjustments can easily be made to notify users about new content, changes in functionality, or other messages tailored just for them and delivered in real-time.

What are the most common use cases for push notifications?

Promotional notifications: Marketers can use personalized push notifications to effectively advertise new promotions or discounts provided the user has opted in to receive them. This is especially helpful in driving repeat purchase.

Re-engagement notifications: These types of messages are great for reminding users about a product or service when they haven’t been active on the app for some time.

New content notifications: Sending out push notifications whenever new content has been added helps drive app engagement. This is crucial for apps that offer frequently updated content, such as streaming services.

Event reminders: If an event or deadline is coming up, pushing out reminders to all users ensures none of them miss out on anything important. This can be particularly useful when combined with promotional offers as a way to drive conversion.

What’s the difference between a push notification and an SMS?

SMS and push notifications are two messaging channels commonly used by marketers to engage their target audience. However, there are important differences between the two, which marketers should take into account when deciding which one to use in their campaigns.

SMS: SMS stands for Short Message Service and is also known as text messages. It allows you to send out short messages (up to 160 characters) directly to a person’s phone number. It works even if the user doesn’t have an internet connection. This makes it great for sending out personalized messages and alerts that require immediate attention.

Push notifications: Push notifications are messages sent through an app or web browser directly to a user’s device (phone, tablet, etc.). They can be customized just like SMS but they also allow users to interact with the message without leaving the app (e.g., respond “Yes” or “No”). That being said, they require an internet connection in order to work properly.

Push notifications with Emarsys

Emarsys works with leading brands like PUMA, Pizza Hut, and Nike to increase their acquisition, purchase frequency, average order value, and retention by unifying their customer, sales, and product data to power push notifications.