1. You don’t know your audience

Sending push notifications just into the blue will hardly be of any use. Always create a Persona and set the wording for your messages accordingly. Data tools such as Google Analytics also help a lot in analyzing user behavior and avoiding this one of common mistakes.

Note the timing

The dispatch time should be mentioned here again separately,
because the success of an entire campaign stands or falls with it easily! Even if you have reliably grasped the characteristics of your target group, a message within the wrong timing will miss the mark. The optimal time depends on your offer, special occasions or the goal of the message sent. Pay attention to alleged small things like time zones or important events for your target group. Hardly anyone can do anything in the middle of the night with an information about a super sale. Or even looks at his cell phone while he is cheering for an important soccer tournament.

2. The content is irrelevant

As far as common mistakes are concerned, this ties in closely with the point mentioned above. However, this has already happened to companies that actually know their target group. Simple example: The user has allowed push notifications, because he is expecting updates from the international financial market. He will show little willingness to react, if local news is interspersed. Not to mention, that he still remains a subscriber.
Send notifications that actually deliver the value that is promised.

3. Your motto for updates: “A lot helps a lot!”

If you have new offers or content on a regular basis, the common mistake of communicating this right away tends to sneak in. First of all, it is a logical conclusion. However, don’t let this lead to new notifications every single time.
As long a bargain is not equipped with a countdown or if you are a provider of news, it is better to bundle your updates. Send e.g. 2-3 push messages / week as summaries. In this way you remind yourself. And the user feels informed – instead of overwhelmed with spam.
P.S .: Especially if you update carefully and not at every opportunity, a push message will earn even more attention.

4. You don’t measure results and performance

You are not informed about the opening rates or the click throughs. Maybe just about the convertions. If you lose sight of all the important numbers, you are simply putting your campaign at risk. And every campaign wthat comes after. You need to analyze to know which key visuals, which headlines, which content(s) etc. have aroused interest. Or which dispatching time has proven itself. You can only set up targeted campaigns if you know the whole range of values. Pick up the user on his customer journey and where he expects your support.

5. You do not clearly state why you´re sending messages

This often sneaks in as a common mistake. The user grants the opt-in. But you didn’t tell him why exactly you want to send push notifications. It can quickly happen that your intention and users expectation collides. It is obvious that the user does not appreciate this type of surprise. So always clearly state your reasons for sending push messages. This prevents misunderstandings – and the transparency leads to a higher click rate.

6. You are not checking for errors

Common mistakes, perhaps the most common ones, are typing or spelling errors. They crept in quickly and are all too human. It is therefore worth double-checking your message before clicking “Send”.

7. The Landing Page is not suitable

Sending a good push notification is one thing. It also depends a lot on where your customers are directed to after clicking onto your message. A common mistake is actually that the content of the message and the landing page are not aligned. So make absolutely sure that your landing page …

• matches the message in terms of content and design. Without any recognition value the user will only be confused – and jumps off immediately.
• is attainable. A 404 page is just as poisonous for your campaign as it is for your reputation as an advertiser.
• does not overwhelm the visitor with CTAs and pop-ups
• serves the expectations of your target group (see point 1)

8. The communication goal is missing

It already adressed above, now a little more concrete here. A common mistake found into a considerable number of campaigns is, that they lack a clear goal. All efforts seem to be directed to nothing certain. So always ask yourself what exactly you want to achieve. Traffic? More awareness? Sales / Subscriptions? Customer loyalty?
If you have not clearly defined your goal for yourself and your communication, you cannot carry it out clearly. Only when you know what you want to say, how to whom, with what intent, your users/future customers will understand you. And convert more reliably.

9. There is a lack of patience

Of course: Push campaigns cost time and, even if they are one of the less expensive advertising media, they still cost money. Accordingly, it is understandable if an action is not supposed to run forever. It is perfectly normal when you want to see success as quickly as possible. However, rushing it hardly helps. Allow time for campaigners and recipients alike. Observe user behavior, place A / B tests. With just a little patience and work, at least at the beginning, you can quickly send targeted and correspondingly successful push messages in the future.
What you already know from other aspects of life also applies here: keep the pot boiling, learn out of feedback, mistakes and – of course, your successes.

Now you know 9 common mistakes when sending push messages. You will have everything right under control with us – immediately. Talk to us, we´re looking forward to advice you on your project!.

Der Beitrag 9 Common Mistakes when sending Push Notifications erschien zuerst auf CleverPush.

Lead generation? What is a Lead anyway?

The term “lead generation” describes the targeted contacting – from a diligent customer search – between the provider and the interested party. The name “Lead” already shows the high value of this contact. It is clearly not just any arbitrary expression of interest. The potential customer has given the supplier his contact info – and therefore the permission, to send updates, etc.
Lead generation is considered a part of the customer journey. And in there as an important phase between taking notice and buying

What Data does the Lead transfer?

Depending on the industry and level (B2B or B2C), different information may be required to generate leads. Basically, however, the lead names:

• First and last name(s)
• Held position if necessary, sometimes with basic information about the company (pivotal on B2B level)
• Postal address and telephone number
• Email address
• Social media presence (more B2B-area)

Are there qualitative Differences between the Leads?

In fact, a distinction is made between those valuable contacts. Because there are some true treasures among them:
MQL = Marketing Qualified Lead
The contact has given details in order to receive information and updates. This shown interest is valuable for further marketing measures. In very simplified term, you could speak of the pre-stage to the …
SQL = Sales Qualified Lead
These are the treasures. The potential buyer is ready to convert into an actual buyer. In this case the responsibilities are changing within the company. Now the sales department is in charge to conduct the customer into the buying process.

Useful Methods for successful Lead Generation

As already mentioned, the lead generation is sometimes tedious. The main reason behind this: in fact “the magical formular” simply does not exist. The costs and effort also vary accordingly.
But: more awareness, greater range, stronger sales and growth are the reward. Correspondingly, successful companies use quite a few resources to generate leads – it’s simply worth it.

1. Use the Potential of your Website

You are already using one of the most valuable tools for generating leads: your own site. You can boost lead generation – also monetization – by offering quality content here.
This is useful in B2C, even more – and especially- in B2B. Here you often need to convince several decision-makers. Establish yourself as a provider with real expertise on your side. Therefore establishing your own (specialist) blog is always a good investment.
Pay attention to the parameters of search engine optimization. If you appear under the top results in the organic search, this not only arouses the interest of completely new visitors. A high ranking also enjoys a seriousness bonus for guests who already know your name.

2. Create (simple!) Lead forms

“Lead readiness” is awakened. Too often, however, it experiences a damper because of difficult registration procedures. Therefore you should offer the interested party an as quick and easy lead form as possible. This is quite important, especially for the B2C area. Here, in particular, frequency and tonality is important as well. If the interested party is asked to register too quickly, too often or even too demanding, he leaps off.
So pay attention to …

• Form placement (As Pop-Up? Embedded into the footer …?)
• ask as few queries as possible (too many fields increase the churn rate, especially at B2C)
• install an Progress indicator for multi-page lead forms
• give Feedback in case of incorrect or missing information (e.g. through quickly recognizable fields with a red background)
• explain the reasons for possibly sensitive queries (in a tooltip)
• avoid captchas. (They have a rather annoying than motivating effect. This unnecessarily jeopardizes the entire lead generation process.)
• of course, the requirements of the GDPR.

Timing is also decisive. Ask to register before downloading, participating in a raffle or access to test- or generally free access.

3. Use the Social Media Network

Social media has become a valuable channel to establish and maintain a corporate identity and, at first, to build up a network of sympathizers. This succeeds, especially in the B2C area, with Facebook & Co. At the B2C level accordingly via Xing or LinkedIn. Especially with the help of latter channels you have the opportunity to recommend yourself as an competent contact in your field. This works to convince the decision makers, as already mentioned above.
Attention: Social media is the channel that needs to be devoted the most time and care. Your reaction to feedback must be quick – and above all competent. Professional errors, for example, are exposed much faster here. And it can be difficult to correct them.
But as time-consuming as it is, it is also very worthwhile: Social media is certainly the most fertile channel for generating leads!

After the Lead Generation: How do MQL convert to SQL?

You created successfully a positive image, so the prospect has chosen your company and service for further information. Now you´re free to get the most out of this contact.
The classical way to persuade the lead to convert is definitely email marketing. It has undoubtedly proven itself and, if a viable campaign is set up, it is bearing the fruit.
However, there are also some disadvantages inherent in this. These can be weighted, so that the lead simply withdraws his registration. Or you are no longer be remembered because your email is intercepted by the spam folder. If it doesn’t sink into the flood of inboxes right away …

Our Recommendation

Push notifications are a good solution to counteract the weaknesses in email dispatch. You can reach the lead much more flexible, because your message appears on his mobile. Moreover this messages can be customized much better, especially regarding to the mailing times. Your opportunities go even up to personalized retargeting.
Of course, you don’t have to turn your back on email marketing, if this method always worked for you! We recommend expanding the communication channel. Simply combine email and push notifications.

Would you like more information and initial advice? Please talk to us, we will be happy to support you and your strategy!

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How do I subscribe to push notifications?

‌‌Different platforms have different requirements for building a subscriber base. Take Android and iOS, for example.

iOS

The opt-in model for iOS push notifications does not allow app publishers to send notifications, before users agree to receive them. The command prompt is enabled by default. Changing the view is not possible.
Note that when you send your first messages to iOS users, they will appear on their lock screen. When you unlock the screen, the message disappears and is only visible in the notification center. To open it, the user should swipe down and find it in their notification history.

Android

The push-in model for push notifications is more loyal to app publishers. It´s much easier for them to grow subscribers via Android. Users are activated automatically and reserve the right to manually deactivate the settings. ‌‌‌‌Android makes push notifications much more accessible, even after a user unlocks the screen. The messages remain visible in the bar at the top of the screen. It will not be removed until the user takes additional steps to remove it.

What is a good OPT-in rate?

In principle, there is no such thing as an “ultimately good” opt-in rate that applies to everyone. There are two main factors that have a significant impact on this metric.

1. The platform type

With the opt-in model for automatic push notifications, Android has a much higher opt-in rate – around 90-95%. The average sign-up rate for iOS is around 50%.

2. The industry

To successful grow subscribers also depends on their behavioral patterns and the varies from branch to branch. Travel, e-commerce, media and social media apps have much higher rates than B2B, finance or gaming apps.
What does that mean exactly? In some cases, push notifications become an irreplaceable part of the user experience. It´s leaving users with no choice but to sign up.

For example:

• Travel app users need to know if their flight has been canceled or a taxi has arrived.
• News fans want to be the first to hear the latest news and updates on important events.
• Social media users want to be notified when they have a new message or missed an important call.

In other cases, it may be less obvious why users should subscribe to push notifications. Or continue to subscribe to them. Although they may seem just as helpful.

Does your app really need push notifications?

A question that is still astonishingly frequently asked. Nowadays, the use of push notifications has long become indispensable.

The advantages speak for themselves:

• Improvement of functions and product acceptance
• Increase in-apps CR and improve the onboarding experience
• Higher overall product engagement
• Increase the LTV (Loan to Value) of the users
• Assistance in monetizing the app and growing in-app subscriptions

How do I grow subscribers for push notifications? ‌‌‌‌

The best strategy is to show the value of signing up and giving the context of the notifications you want to send. The main techniques to help with this are personalization, segmentation, and experimentation. Let’s take a closer look at them.

But first:

Don’t rush anything. Wait until the right moment.
Many app publishers display a subscription prompt right after users register in the app. But is that really advisable? As practice shows, the best moment to ask users to log in is the moment with …

5 Steps: What to do to grow subscribers

1. Customize your pre-authorization screens

Let’s consider the iOS case. While you can’t change the screen to get permissions, you can experiment with your pre-permission screens to get more subscribers. ‌‌‌‌Create the funnel or just use an in-app message with a strong value proposition.

2. Personalize your pre-authorization screens with custom tags and filters

3. Create different messages for different segments

Your target audience can be broken down into segments based on language, country, traffic source, age, etc. Depending on your goals, you can create four types of segments:

1. Social (income, professional status, etc.)
2. Demographic (age, gender, language, etc.)
3. Geographical (country, city, specific area, etc.)
4. Behavior (time spent in the app, purchase history, opening the email, etc.)

4. Use dynamic content

‌Did you know that basic personalization can increase your push click-through rate by 9%? Show to your users that you know them and take care of them.

Make it part of your series of greetings

The first few screens, users see the first time when they open your app, have a direct impact on your sales and key product metrics. If you’re not using a paywall, you can set the opt-in rate for push notifications as the end point of your onboarding flow. 80% of your users will likely stop using your app after 30 days if you don’t include it in the communication.

Numbers show that with effective onboarding, you can reduce this trend by 50%. In addition to push notifications and in-app messages, you can also use emails to implement your onboarding hypothesis.

5. Take advantage of special offers

Everyone loves bargains and specials. That makes the fourth quarter a profitable time for any online business. Even if people aren’t buying your product or service right now, you can still capture their intent and ask them if they’d like to be notified when prices drop. It works especially well with non-essential goods: airline tickets, hotel bookings, entertainment apps, financial- and business products, and so on. You can create a special segment, a special cross-channel workflow from those who responded to this offer, to warm up users and convert them into customers.

Der Beitrag Push Notifications: 5 Practical Ways to Grow Subscribers erschien zuerst auf CleverPush.

But that doesn’t always have to happen. Notifications have their advantages and can very well attract users. Writing good texts drews attention and generates interest. You can successfully stimulate desires, sell products, find new subscribers, make your brand known, etc.
We will show you in just 5 steps how to map a strategy for your push notifcations correctly. Thus you can bind your target group – instead of feeding the churn rates.

1. Respect your users

Push notifications are primarily intended to attract the attention of your users. Furthermore they´re supposed to arouse interest while users surfing a homepage or app.
But: In most cases, push notifications are just perceived as intrusive. Not at least due to unsuitable content.
Check the tonality carefully. Find the right moments to target your audience. Users will feel taken seriously and more respected as valued customers.
Always bear in mind: Their attention is extremely important to you. Therefore you should absolutely respect them.

2. Short and sweet

You have to convey your advertising message within the shortest attention span in the age of the 21st century. So its essential to be as brief and concise as possible. After all, nobody wants to read through an endless number of sentences. So keep them – your tonality as well- clearly and precisely.
Every second counts to engage and generate interactions. Make sure you only bring the most important things into the text. If you wander off the point, the reader will lose patience. And that drives the churn rates up further …

3. Lowered churn rates guaranteed: stay entertaining

The best push notifications are friendly and loose. This way, you come across as natural and sociable. Your users get the feeling of being involved in a conversation.
There is no need to say that you should avoid using a reproachful tone such as “You’re doing this wrong!”. Unless the aim is to repel and annoy users. Instead of luring them.
It is much better if you are a little more personal. Let´s call it human. Use sayings such as “Hey you” or “Sorry to disturb you”. Immediately you no longer sound like some kind of mailbot. Try adding some humor. Use emojis to make the notifications a little livelier (German language article). Because if you can bring a smile to your users’ face, you will of course be much better received by them.

4. Personalization and addressing the right audience

Address the recipient as personally as possible and adapt to the target group. You can insert the name of the user and, for example, start with “Hey Laura, we have an offer for you”. You can also segment your target group according to user demographics or behavior. Thus it´s possible to develop more customer-specific texts. This will also make the messages more positive to your customer and make them interact with you.

5. The very best remedy to stop churn rates: Generate curiosity

Always make sure that your users want more. And it’s not that difficult at all. People are curious by nature. So if we have only just a piece of information, we usually want the rest of it as well. You can write something right at the beginning of the text to arouse curiosity. Because that’s how they’ll want to read on – without being annoyed.

Conclusion

To avoid churn rates make always sure that you keep your push notifications open and direct. Try to personalize them as much as possible. Invite users by bringing in a little curiosity so that they want to read the notifications. Also make sure not to bother your users with too frequent messaging, but to find the right amount.

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