Understanding Web Push Notifications for Shopify Merchants.

Shopify merchants are continuously seeking innovative ways to engage customers and drive sales. Web push notifications have emerged as a powerful marketing tool that allows merchants to connect with their audience in real-time and deliver personalized messages directly to their customers' devices. In this blog, we will explore web push notifications and best Practices for Implementing Web Push Notifications on Shopify.

What are web push notifications?

A recap first Push Notifications are short, personalized messages sent to users' devices, such as mobile phones or desktop browsers, even when they are not actively using an app or browsing a website. These notifications are delivered directly to the user's device, appearing as pop-up messages or banners, typically accompanied by a sound, vibration, or both.
The key benefits of push notifications for conversion optimization are mainly:

• Instant Delivery:
  Push notifications provide instant communication with your audience, allowing you to reach them in real-time.
• Increased Engagement:
  Push notifications have higher open rates compared to emails. They offer a direct and attention-grabbing channel to engage with your audience.

• Improved Conversion Rates:
  Push notifications have the potential to drive immediate action. By delivering timely offers, discounts, or reminders, you can nudge users to complete a purchase or take a desired action, thereby increasing your conversion rate.

Push notifications used to be limited to native apps that get installed on your phones but web push notifications bring the power of push notifications to websites or web applications. It can deliver real-time messages directly to users' devices, even when the users are not actively browsing the website through a web browser or a web-enabled mobile device, such as smartphones or tablets.
Web push notifications offer a convenient and efficient way for businesses and websites to engage with their audience and provide timely updates, alerts, promotions, or personalized messages. Unlike traditional email marketing, push notifications don't require users to share their email addresses, making the subscription process faster and frictionless.

Why use Web Push Notifications?

Some key reasons why web push notifications can help:

1. Real-Time Communication and Instant Delivery:
   One of the most significant advantages of web push notifications is the ability to deliver messages instantly to users' devices. This real-time communication ensures timely delivery of important updates, promotions, and offers. Whether it's a limited-time sale or a new product drop with limited stocks, web push notifications provide an immediate and direct channel to reach users, allowing businesses to be more responsive and agile in their communication strategies.
2. Higher Open and Click-Through Rates: 
   Web push notifications consistently show higher open and click-through rates compared to traditional email marketing campaigns. Since push notifications appear directly on users' screens and don't get lost in cluttered email inboxes, they are more likely to be noticed and acted upon. This makes them an effective way to capture users' attention and drive engagement. For example, SportsCafe implemented push notifications on desktop and mobile devices and they saw a 120% increase in time spent from ‘web push visitors’ compared to regular visitors and a 32% click-through rate for web push.

   (source:Sportscafe)

3. Advanced Personalization and User Segmentation: 
   Web push notifications allow businesses to deliver personalized messages based on user behavior, preferences, and past interactions with the website. By utilizing user data, such as browsing history, purchase behavior, and geographic location, businesses can segment their audience and send targeted notifications that resonate with individual interests. For example, sending product recommendations based on past purchases or offering location-specific promotions can make notifications more appealing to users. Personalization enhances the user experience and increases the likelihood of conversion. There are two ways you can give a personal touch to your promotions that aren’t time-consuming:
   • Address your subscriber by name: Hi Tom! Check out our car seats for your kids.”
   • Set up a workflow on Shopify Flow to send triggered push notification: Besides Segmentation, you can also use Shopify Flow. Flow allows you to set up specific triggered push notifications based on a customer’s activity. For instance, you can send a loyalty discount to a consumer who has purchased from you more than four times. For example, “Hey! Use code “LOYAL” and get 40% off. 
   
   
4.  Abandoned Cart Recovery and Remarketing: 
   When a user adds items to their cart but leaves the website without completing the purchase, businesses can send push notifications as reminders, enticing users to return and complete the checkout process. The great thing about push notifications is that you can target users (if they are subscribed) even if they have not entered their email address in the checkout process. By just reminding them or offering incentives, businesses can increase the chances of converting abandoned carts into completed orders. To know more about cart abandonment, read our blog.

Best Practices for Implementing Web Push Notifications on Shopify. 

We have listed a couple of best practices for implementing web push notifications:

1. Crafting Compelling Notification Copy:
   As different devices and browsers have different character length limitations, you need to keep your web push notification length of under 40 characters for title and message each. The content and copy of web push notifications should be concise, compelling, and action oriented. Keep the messages short and to the point, conveying the essential information clearly. Use persuasive language to entice users to take the desired action, such as visiting the store, completing a purchase, or exploring a new collection. Include a strong call-to-action (CTA) that prompts users to click on the notification and directs them to a relevant page on the website.

2. A/B Testing and Data Analysis:
   Merchants can experiment with different message formats, CTAs, delivery times, and even personalized content to determine which variations perform best. Analyzing the performance metrics, such as open rates, click-through rates, and conversion rates, will provide valuable insights to refine the notification strategy and enhance engagement.
3. Analyzing Metrics and Performance:
   Regularly monitoring and analyzing the performance metrics of web push notifications are essential for measuring their effectiveness and identifying areas for improvement. Pay close attention to open rates, click-through rates, conversion rates, and opt-out rates to gauge the success of each notification campaign. Use the insights gained from data analysis to refine the notification strategy and enhance user engagement.
4. Timing and Frequency:
   The timing and frequency of push notifications are critical factors in their success. Sending notifications at appropriate times ensures that users are more likely to notice and engage with them. Avoid bombarding users with excessive notifications, as this can lead to user fatigue and potential opt-outs. That doesn’t mean you should send just one notification a month. You don’t want your subscribers to forget about you either! Instead, aim for a balance between engaging users with timely updates and respecting their preferences to receive notifications. 
5. Perfect Images:
   Images entice customers better than text. So, it’s a must to take advantage of the hero image feature when creating your push notification. Make sure you design your images in both sizes (for desktop and mobile). Always keep your images catchy and show more about your product so that subscribers can click on it.

Challenges of Limitations of Web Push Notifications:

Inspite of so many advantages, there can be a lot of challenges that come with push notifications:

1. Network Connectivity and Offline Users:
   Web push notifications require an active internet connection to be delivered. If users are offline or have a poor internet connection, they may miss time-sensitive notifications. Merchants should consider this limitation when using push notifications for critical communications.
2. Deliverability: It is estimated that only about a third of your push notifications deliver. This is because of many factors like spam filters or opt-out preferences.

3. Limited Customization:
   Web push notifications offer limited customization options compared to native mobile app notifications. The shorter copy length also imposes constraints and needs you to work to create good copy.
4. User Experience and Notification Fatigue:
   When users receive too many notifications or notifications that are irrelevant to their interests, they may experience notification fatigue. This can lead to users unsubscribing or even disabling push notifications altogether, reducing the effectiveness of the communication channel. Merchants should focus on delivering valuable and personalized content to maintain a positive user experience.

Conclusion:

Web push notifications present numerous advantages for businesses and websites seeking to improve their communication strategies and engage with their audience effectively.