Did you know that, on average, American smartphone users get nearly 50 push notifications daily? App developers need to get smart to stand out in that sea of attention-grabbing (yet often ignored) banners.
Until now, Android users were automatically opted-in to push notifications. From Android 13, they’ll become opt-in. So, developers working on this platform need to work out timing as much as ways to stand out (engage) and reduce unsubscribes.
Read on to learn about the latest push notification best practices.
Get the Timing Right
When Android app users get a notification, they’ll be blasted with sounds, vibrations, and a visual (usually a banner)—depending on their personal settings. This can be either annoying or welcomed.
It all comes down to when and how often you set up your push notification to send.
Each sector or industry has times of the day when users respond best to notifications. Of course, this could be different for your niche, so A/B test send times and days regularly.
And, depending on where in the world your subscribers are, make sure you’re taking note of timezones.
Make It Engaging
First up, whether you’ve built your app yourself or with the help of a service like builder.ai, consider the point of the notification.
It’s designed to prompt the user into taking action; you’re aiming to increase user engagement. They’re not (usually) used to inform of backend updates—unless they’re security-related or critical to the function of the app.
So your push notifications should focus on topics your subscribers care about or that add value to their lives. If you want them to click, that is.
And this requires doing market research to dig deep into what your subscribers need or want. You can:
- Segment your users to ensure the right notifications get to the right people
- Relate content to the user’s specific locality, interests, and preferences
- Use different types of push notifications, from promotions to delivery updates to the latest news
- Focus on creating visually appealing push notifications
Respect User Settings
Giving your subscribers the choice of which push notifications they receive is always beneficial. This way, you can tailor notifications to their needs with far less risk to your user retention.
However, your app performance then rests on you listening to the information your users are giving you. Respect their choices and don’t send them push notifications outside of their preferences.
Be aware, too, of the devices your user owns and uses regularly and ensure notifications are synchronized across all devices. There’s nothing worse than receiving a push notification twice in one day or hour—but at different times.
Push Notification Best Practices Revealed
Above, we highlighted some important push notification best practices you need to adhere to if you want your Android app to succeed.
At the end of the day, it’s all about retention. It was a lot of hard work to get those subscribers, so once people are on your app, you want to keep them there! Don’t let a poorly designed push notification system push them to leave.
We’re confident our builders will work for whatever industry you work in! Check out some builder.ai case studies to see how some of the world’s leading companies use our solutions.
