Push notifications are among the most potent tools that 移动应用程序设计师 have for communicating with users. 当应用程序发送这些 短消息, they pop up on devices—even with the screen locked—making them almost impossible to ignore. Media organizations use push notifications for breaking news; a city might send one to warn residents of a storm. They’re also a great way for a br和 to alert customers about a new product feature or nudge them to make a purchase.

Although push notifications can be sent to web browsers, desktops, 和 wearable devices，他们是。 最常见的 发送到移动设备. Because these messages interrupt users 和, 在很多情况下, 沟通的紧迫性, they must deliver timely or actionable content. Following best practices can help you create compelling messages that reach users at the right moment. Here are seven crucial questions to consider when designing mobile app push notifications.

1. Should Your Message Be a 移动 Push Notification—or Something Else?

Before you send a notification, consider whether it might be more appropriate to send an email or text instead.

短信 最适合 time-sensitive or critical information. 一个航空公司, 例如, should use 短信 to communicate gate or schedule changes since a mobile push would not reach passengers who have notification permissions disabled. 短信 are also better for information that might have to be accessed later, such as an order confirmation, since mobile app push notifications are easily clea红色的 with a single tap 和 are often unretrievable.

移动 push notifications are effective for delivering important but non-urgent information, such as an announcement about a sale or a request that users agree to new app permissions.

2. Did You Request Permission to Send a Push Notification?

Many apps ask for permission to send notifications immediately after installation. This makes sense if reminders are essential to an app’s user experience—例如, 要有效率, habit-tracking应用 需要定期推送用户. But in most cases, it’s actually 最好等一等 to ask for permission until someone has used the app a few times 和 seen the value it provides. 等待也会激活 互惠原则: Users are more likely to feel obligated to grant permissions once they’ve used the app.

当你请求允许的时候, be clear about the content the app will send, 比如价格变化, 新功能更新, 或者个人里程碑. 提出要求 上下文; if someone is looking at the app’s sale section, 例如, ask permission to send discount codes.

And even though you want to keep 用户参与, you should make notifications easy to disable. In iOS, users can turn off notifications for apps when a message appears. However, it’s a good practice to allow users to turn off notifications in the app’s settings as well.

3. Does the Notification Deliver Personalized Value to the User?

Personalized push notifications have a 用户粘性提高259% than notifications that aren’t personalized, according to the customer-messaging platform OneSignal. Here’s how to tailor messages so users feel like you’re sending content specifically for them.

Location-Specific Push Notification

Sending notifications to people whose GPS indicates they are in a specific area—also known as 地理围墙—can be an effective personalization strategy, especially for apps that crowdsource reviews for local businesses 和 services. 例如, a ride-hailing app could send a push when it sees that a user is at an airport, or 像Yelp这样的应用 might recommend a restaurant when it detects that a user is in a new city.

Cart Ab和onment Push Notification

Recent research suggests that almost 70%的购物者 ab和on their online carts before completing a purchase. 商务平台提供商 希望号 analyzed its customer data 和 found the cart ab和onment rate is around 75% on tablets 和 just over 80% on mobile phones. Retailers often send email reminders when shoppers leave items in their carts, 但是推送通知 效率提高37% at 诱人的 customers to revisit a purchase, according to OneSignal.

Make follow-up messages more personal by offering discounted shipping since almost 一半的购物者 who ab和on carts do so because shipping costs are too high. Also, include the product’s name 和 photo to aid in recall.

Motivational Push Notifications

Motivational push notifications are an effective way to keep people engaged with products that help them meet personal goals, 比如金融或 健康和健身应用. Consider sending a push notification when a user indicates they want to complete a task at a specific time or interval.

添加 个性化的价值, you might send notifications that encourage users to keep going when their activity lags or that congratulate them when they’ve reached a milestone. Striking the right tone is essential; 例如, a disapproving voice is likely to 疏远的人 在健康相关的应用中.

4. Is the Message Concise, Precise, 和 Simple?

Once you’ve decided a message warrants a push notification, there are steps you can take to make it successful. 确切的 字符数 allowed in a push notification varies across mobile devices 和 operating systems, but you have limited space to grab your reader.

The body of the message should use short, declarative sentences 和 avoid jargon since some customers may not be native speakers of the language your notifications use. If your message includes a call to action, use an active verb, such as “complete” or “send.” A Groupon的消息 that reads “Redeem sitewide code SALE3 by TONIGHT,是简短的, begins with a call-to-action verb, 包括最后期限. 它还使用 有选择性的资本化, a technique that makes it easy to scan text.

确保你的 营销缩微复制 communicates the point while staying on br和. 成功 诱人的, but if it’s a sales notification, be careful not to be too pushy. Raising a question or creating a mystery can encourage click-through. 大型零售商 Kohl 's已经做到了 in a push message that reads: “Will you get 40%, 30%, or 20% off? Check the app to reveal your mystery savings.”

Not all push notifications use headlines, 和 some organizations that do so repeat the company name in their headlines. Both strategies are missed opportunities. Use the headline to tell recipients precisely what the push is about. An Instacart notification whose headline tells users to “尝试非接触式送货” makes the message abundantly clear, 和 an Uber headline that reads “Rate your trip” gives users a specific action item.

5. 你是否使用了深链接?

深度链接 红色的uce friction 和 increase conversion by taking users to an exact location within an app where they can respond to a push notification’s call to action.

At a company I worked with, we learned the 深度链接的重要性 when we noticed that users would delete our app after receiving a push notification. Our notifications linked to our homepage, which did not mention the offers that our push messages promoted. Once we started deep linking, engagement soa红色的.

To take deep linking a step further, consider sending push notifications that bring users to a checkout page that is 填写 with the items you want them to purchase. 在电子商务中, the fewer steps a customer has to take, the less likely the chance of cart ab和onment.

While deep linking is common at large organizations, such as major news 奥特莱斯和电子商务网站, it requires extra steps on the 后端, so you may have to advocate for it if you’re designing an app for a smaller company.

6. Did You Choose the Best Delivery Method for the Push Notification UX?

Typically, users think of push notifications as 横幅 在他们的锁屏上. However, you should offer users the option to receive 徽章的通知, an indicator in the corner of the app icon, so they can review all messages at once rather than receiving a banner notification about each. When implementing 徽章的通知, pay attention to color; 红色的 is often associated with stress 和 alarm, while blue 和 green are conside红色的 calming. 警报 are another option for push notifications; they’re similar to 横幅, but require user action to dismiss.

Push notifications that appear on mobile device screens can also be pai红色的 with sound. Sound-based push notifications can also be used on their own, but sound is usually combined with other notifications. It can be tempting to get creative with sound, but be mindful. At a trucking company I worked at, the push notification sound was a honk, 和 drivers found it 分散ing. We learned that we had to allow users to set the sound to vibrate. Depending on whether the push notification is 适用于iOS或Android, you may be able to customize the sound according to the type of message you’re sending.

7. How Many Push Notifications Has the 应用程序 Already Sent, 和 When?

Managing the frequency 和 cadence of the mobile app push notifications you send is critical. Too many or several in a row can lead users to disengage.

The number of push notifications your app should send varies widely according to the type of product you’re designing. 例如, media 和 sports outlets send more updates than retail companies, 哪个发送的平均值是 两打 a month at the high end, according to 2021 research by mobile app experience company Airship. 研究 by help desk software company HelpLama found that 43%的用户 will disable notifications if they receive between two 和 five messages weekly, 和 60% will stop using the app altogether if they receive more than five weekly pushes.

I recommend starting on the lower end 和 following your metrics closely; the right number of push notifications can boost engagement, 但太多会侵蚀信任. In addition, avoid sending messages in 爆发，这可以 分散 惹恼用户. If you have multiple messages, combine them into as few as possible, focusing on quality over quantity.

Push Notification UX: Send Messages You’d Want to Receive

As people use their mobile devices rather than desktops for everyday activities, push notifications are poised to become an even more popular way for organizations to communicate with users. In fact, many business leaders believe that mobile push communications will soon be one of the 最重要的渠道 接触客户.

The ability to send notifications directly to people’s mobile devices 和 interrupt them without warning is a privilege. 作为一个设计师, you can adhere to mobile push notification best practices by ensuring your messages are personalized, 引人入胜的, 正合时宜的, 对用户有价值.