Impact Of Push Notification Marketing On The eRetail Industry

With every new innovation revolutionizing the marketing sphere, we witness a drop in customer retention. It is getting increasingly difficult to keep your consumers engaged, and it is impacting lead generation severely. So, what do we do? How do we battle the fierce competition? Well, one of the answers to such questions is- push notification marketing.

Push notifications have been around for a while now and have served as a critical factor in influencing consumers for retail brands, especially the ones operating digitally. They emerged as a life-saver and drove re-engagement through the roof. With almost every potential consumer equipped with a mobile device, it has become extremely convenient for brands to entice them and keep them updated on relevant developments. Push notifications may seem invasive and forced, but according to research conducted by Accengage, eCommerce platforms witnessed a 278% rise in app launch in the first month of installation in users with push notifications enabled as compared to those who did not.

Push notifications, as fascinating an opportunity as it may seem, is a double-edged sword. If not done correctly, it could lead to uninstalls, opt-outs, harmful associations, and much more. However, you don’t need to worry because we have a comprehensive guide entailing everything you’d need to do to excel at push notification marketing.

Let’s take a look-

Hyper-personalization

The first thing that you need to do is push out the generic marketing methodologies out of your system. Today’s customers are not easily enticed as they have numerous options to choose from. What they are looking for is the best experience possible, and you need to give them that. By personalizing your approach, you can easily have their attention. What you with that attention is what will make the difference. Giving them meaningless notifications continuously will only annoy them into uninstalling the app. One of the most appropriate ways to get their attention is by tracking their history on your app and recommending products in line with the same. You can also make them aware of any upcoming or ongoing offers on related products to further entice them into launching the app. Another way to optimize your approach is by linking the notification with a relevant page instead of the home page. For instance, if you are sharing a push for a discount of workout apparel, link it to the list of items on sale.

Source: Unsplash

Localizing 

Now, who wants a notification at 4 in the morning for a sale? Almost no one! Timing your notifications in line with the location of the user is a very critical aspect of push marketing notification. According to VentureBeat, a study by Leanplum states that 63% of marketers globally miss the mark on timing, messaging, and frequency of their push notifications. Creating local campaigns is of the essence if you wish to harness the true potential of push notification marketing. You need to coordinate your time-zone with that of your consumer and pay close heed to their pattern of opening the messages. If you work in line with the demonstrated behavior of your consumer, you will be able to optimize your strategy by four-fold. The best way to determine the time to send push notifications is by analyzing the most active and last active time of a specific user. Geo-targeting can be of great help while a devising tailor-made approach.

Say goodbye to abandoned carts

Shopping cart abandonment is one of the biggest headaches for all retailers. According to Statista, about 88% of shopping orders were abandoned in March 2020. There could be several reasons why consumers abandon their carts, from a better alternative to high shipping costs, and it can be difficult to address all of these concerns. Now, emails addressing cart abandonment are an excellent opportunity without a doubt, but, according to AdWeek, the open rate for push notifications addressing the same concern is 50% higher. So, be strategic in your approach and remember that the catch lies in enticing them in such a manner that they go ahead with the purchase. We already know what they want, we just need to nudge them into clicking the buy button by giving them an offer they can’t refuse.

Lure your users 

We all have the apps for our favorite brands downloaded, and most of us respond to special offers and sales that take place on the app. This is the same with every consumer. We are enticed by getting things off of the rack price, and this is why most of us spend more on sale items than regular purchases. So, by pushing notifications for exclusive offers, limited-time period sales, and other special deals, you can lure the latent customers back to your app. Now the key here is to play smart. You don’t have to shoot special deals to every customer; you can simply start with latent customers and work your way up to loyal customers. The deals you offer to these different sections of consumers also need to be different and devised in a way that it balances out your finances. A promotional push is necessary for all every once in a while, as it not only provides customers with financial incentives but also makes them believe in your brand.

Find the right pages for Opt-ins

Since several users shop from their desktops, it is imperative to place push notifications or opt-ins strategically. Start with pages that get the most views and with a simple opt-in such as subscribing to a newsletter. You can also have a different style of push notification for each page as they will prompt each time differently enriching the user experience.

Push notification marketing is undoubtedly one of the most effective ways of marketing for retail brands. All you need to do is pay attention to the needs of your diverse consumer base and not overwhelm them into buying a product. Allow them the space to make up their mind and try to influence them to the best of your capabilities. Engagement is the key to a successful campaign, and there is no better way than push notifications to get your customers to launch the app.