Push notifications are one of the most powerful tools an app has. They reach people directly on their lock screen, without waiting for them to remember to open your app. That power cuts both ways. Send too many, or send the wrong ones, and users will switch them off, or simply delete the app.
When our team plans an app with clients, notifications get their own conversation early on. Here’s the approach we use to make them genuinely useful.
Ask permission at the right moment
On iPhones, apps must ask permission before sending push notifications, and recent versions of Android also ask. Many apps make the mistake of asking the second someone opens the app for the first time, before the person has any idea why they’d want alerts.
A better approach is to ask in context. A food delivery app can ask right after the first order is placed: “Want us to tell you when your order is on the way?” A booking app can ask after the first appointment is confirmed. When people understand the benefit, they’re far more likely to say yes.
Some apps show a short explanation screen first and only trigger the system prompt if the person taps “Yes, notify me”. That way, a “not now” doesn’t permanently close the door, because the system prompt usually can only be shown once.
Separate transactional and promotional messages
Not all notifications are equal. We sort them into two broad groups:
- Transactional: order confirmations, delivery updates, appointment reminders, payment receipts, security alerts. People expect and usually welcome these.
- Promotional: offers, new features, content recommendations, re-engagement nudges. These need much more care.
Transactional notifications build trust because they’re tied to something the user did. Promotional ones spend that trust, so use them sparingly and make sure each one offers real value.
Let users choose what they receive
Instead of an all-or-nothing switch, give people simple notification settings inside your app. For example, a fitness app might offer separate toggles for workout reminders, progress summaries and new programme announcements.
When users can turn off the category that annoys them, they’re less likely to turn off everything. Android also supports notification channels, which let people control categories from the phone’s system settings.
Make every message specific and useful
Compare these two notifications:
- “Don’t forget to check out our app today!”
- “Your appointment with Dr. Fernandes is tomorrow at 10:30 AM. Tap to view directions.”
The second one is specific, timely and actionable. That’s the standard we aim for. Good notifications usually answer three questions: what happened, why it matters to me, and what I can do now.
Keep the text short, since lock screens truncate long messages. Put the most important information first.
Respect timing and time zones
A notification at 2 AM is a quick way to get muted. Schedule non-urgent messages for reasonable hours in the user’s own time zone. Reminders work best when they arrive with enough time to act, such as a reminder the evening before an early appointment rather than ten minutes before.
Also think about frequency. There’s no universal right number, but if you find yourself sending something every day just to stay visible, that’s a warning sign. Ask whether each message would still be worth sending if the user could see you’d decided to interrupt them.
Deep link to the right screen
When someone taps a notification, it should take them straight to the relevant screen: the order tracking page, the specific article, the booking details. Landing on the home screen and having to hunt for the right content is frustrating and wastes the attention you just earned.
Deep linking needs to be planned during development, so it’s worth raising early with your app team.
Measure, then adjust
Most notification services report how many messages were delivered and opened. Watch those numbers alongside uninstalls and opt-out rates. If a particular type of notification gets few opens, or opt-outs rise after a campaign, that’s useful feedback.
You can also test variations, such as different wording or send times, with small groups before rolling a message out to everyone. Let the results guide you rather than guessing.
A simple notification plan
Before launch, we like to write a one-page plan listing every notification the app will send. For each one, note:
- What triggers it
- Who receives it
- Whether it’s transactional or promotional
- The message text
- Where tapping it leads
- How often it can be sent
This document keeps the whole team aligned and stops notifications from being added ad hoc over time until the app becomes noisy.
Wrapping up
Push notifications work best when they feel like a helpful assistant tapping you on the shoulder, not a salesperson following you around. Ask permission at the right moment, prioritise transactional messages, give users control, keep each message specific and respect their time.
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