How iOS Web App Push Notifications Change Marketing

Apple's new iOS and iPadOS 16.4 betas have been released into the wild, bringing a brand new feature that many businesses, marketers and webmasters might find interesting. Once a device has been updated to run the latest iOS, it will allow Safari web apps on your homescreen to send you push notifications.

Homescreen apps are nothing new, but they haven't had as much love from Apple in previous updates. In fact, homescreen apps go back as far back as the first iPhone. Apple users have been used to creating shortcuts to websites on their homescreen instead of a simple safari bookmark, and Apple clearly thinks that this user behaviour will not stop and aims to encourage it.

Homescreen apps and progressive web apps have a clear future; it is far cheaper to run than a native iOS and Android app requiring only one code base for your website and fewer compliance issues with devices and manufacturers. Users and app builders also get to bypass the app store making the distribution of homescreen apps far easier.

How homescreen push notifications will work?

Once a user has added a web app to the Home Screen, the app or website can request permission to send push notifications as long as that request is in response to direct user interaction — such as tapping on a 'subscribe' button provided by the web app.

iOS or iPadOS will prompt the user to give the web app permission to send notifications. The user can then manage those permissions per web app in Notifications Settings — just like any other app on iPhone and iPad.

The notifications from web apps work like notifications from native apps. They show on the Lock Screen, in Notification Center, and on a paired Apple Watch, so you can now get updates from your favourite blog or website without needing every single app on the planet.

Web apps will also be able to set a notification badge count, and the notifications will support Focus modes, too, so you can shut them up temporarily when they get too much.

You are not tied to Safari.

Despite being the native browser on iOS devices, Apple knows that many people aren't fans of Safari and prefer to use other browsers instead. This is why this update is not only tied to Safari and starting with iOS and iPadOS 16.4. You can save websites and apps from third-party browsers to your homescreen, too.

Bringing native app power to your website

Now that websites are starting to have the same arsenal of tools as web apps, a whole new cohort of websites will be able to leverage tools and campaigns that were once gated from them by not being listed in the app store.

Build your homescreen audience.

If you're planning on taking advantage of this new feature, the first step would be to build an audience. You can do this by creating an "app" page on your website and educating users on how they can pin your website to the homescreen should they wish to have access to your site easily and receive notifications.

You can also add a link to this page in your site's footer, email footers or pin them on social media accounts to encourage users to pin your site to their device's homescreen.

As iOS users begin to add your app to their homescreen, your next step would be to shape direct communication campaigns.

Increased engagement

Push notifications like SMS messages tend to have strong re-engaging power that direct communication like email simply cannot match. Apps and brands would not use these mediums to contact users; they do it because it works.

Sending push messages enables brands to stay in touch with customers by staying top of mind on a device that is always in a user's hand. Push notifications allow brands to push special offers or remind them of upcoming events.

Using push notifications, you now have a direct line to a user's phone screen, and you can use it to create short, personalized, and attractive updates that prompt them to revisit an application or website and check what is new.

Greater customer retention

Online customers are becoming harder to secure as competition for their eyeballs heats up. You're not only competing with social feeds but instant messaging and a host of other fun apps that keep users entertained.

All these services can break a user's concentration, and they might lose sight of what they were planning to do, such as make a purchase on your website or sign up for a subscription.

With the dynamic development of homescreen push notifications, you could find users who fell off on a certain page and ping them to remind them to come back and finish their intended action.

Higher conversion rates

Push notifications provide guaranteed impressions because users are triggered to take action as soon as they see them; while impressions are high, it's up to you to drive click-through rates with your offering and messaging.

Prompt messages appearing in the notifications tab turn out to have a large impact on the conversion rates. Push notifications are an excellent way to communicate deals because they can be sent in real-time, letting customers take advantage of the offer before it expires.

Push notifications can drive instant uptake if offers are limited, and you could even use deals as an exclusive to get more users into your push notification audience.

Audience segmentation

To be successful in marketing, one must first identify their customers' preferences and then adjust their strategy to meet those needs. Thanks to web push notification systems, you can divide your clients into groups based on such factors as location, operating system, browser, pages they view and more.

This kind of information is acquired when users visit your site, and you could use this information to craft custom campaigns to reach out to users with tailored messaging.

Efficient upselling and cross-selling strategies

If you're keen on increasing your average basket size, then upselling and cross-selling tactics should be part of your CRM cycle of messaging.

• Upselling is the practice of recommending to a consumer services or goods that are more expensive and of higher quality than the chosen one.
• Cross-selling, on the other hand, is about offering additional items that may come in handy with the one put in the cart.

Inserting upselling and cross-selling suggestions into push messages is a great way to encourage users to return to your app, browse longer and hopefully end up with a bigger basket of goodies.

When a customer browses your store and clicks on a specific product, a pop-up message suggests a similar but more expensive item, or if a customer leaves that product, you could recommend an alternative.

If a user has products in their cart and has not checked out, you could also include a push notification that encourages them to look at products often bought together with what is in their basket.

Using your data on customers, you can shape attractive offers tailored to a user and increase the likelihood that they will buy additional things and spend more money, generating higher profits for the brand.

Tracking push notification performance

When driving a push notification from your website, you could tag up URLs with UTM tracking to tag traffic coming to your site from this new medium.

You can use UTM tracking to compare various messaging and campaigns and refine your notification strategy over time as well as get an idea of the viability of this new medium. It's always fun to try out a new tool or possible channel to reach customers, but marketers have limited time and have to focus on ROI, something UTM tracking can provide.

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Recommended reading

If you enjoyed this post and have a little extra time to dive deeper down the rabbit hole, why not check out the following posts on mobile apps & mobile marketing.

• How To Reduce Your Spending When Developing an App
• Progressive Web Apps Now Available for iOS
• How to Write an Effective App Description That Generates Downloads
• Track and Improve Your App Performance With Firebase
• How To Track Your App Marketing Campaigns In GA

Tags: Mobile Marketing, App Marketing, Online Marketing , Digital Marketing