Staying in touch with your customers is the need of the hour. There’s simply too much competition out there, with each of your competitors vying to take a piece of the pie. As a business, you cannot wait for your customers to return to you when they need your product/service. You must be able to send out important updates and invite them to check your latest offers. Push notifications in referral programs help you achieve just that!

The ability to send out push notifications 24×7 can be immensely beneficial for your business, You can easily share time-sensitive information or promote limited-time offers. However, it is important to remember that sending too many push notifications or notifications outside of normal business hours may be seen as intrusive or annoying to customers and ultimately harm the relationship. It’s important to understand the needs and preferences of the customers and to use push notifications in a way that is beneficial for both the business and the customer.

Read on to learn everything about push notifications and how to use them in your referral program.

1. What are push notifications in referral programs?

Push notifications in referral programs are messages that are sent to users’ mobile devices or desktop computers to remind them about an ongoing referral program or to inform them of a new referral opportunity. These notifications are typically sent through an app or web browser and can include information such as the referral reward, how to refer friends and the status of the referral program. Through geo-targeting, you can send push notifications when customers are in proximity of your store as well. That’s another feature we will talk about later though.

Push notifications can be a useful tool for increasing participation in referral programs and encouraging users to refer their friends and family.

2. What are some surprising facts about push notifications?

1. According to a survey, the average open rate for push notifications is around 40%. That is an impressive open rate – obviously higher than emails.
2. It has been discovered that weekends and holidays have a greater open rate for push notifications. Push notifications delivered on weekends had a 44% open rate, while those sent on weekdays have a 39% open rate, according to a Leanplum study.
3. Push notifications sent in the morning between 6 am and 12 pm have an open rate of 43%, while those sent in the evening between 6 pm and 12 am have a 37% open rate, according to research by Leanplum.
4. According to a survey by Accengage, Mondays had the lowest open rate of any day of the week for push notifications sent out.
5. Push notifications sent between 10 pm and 7 am have a greater open rate (45.9%) than those sent during the day (38.8%), according to a study by Accengage.
6. Push notifications containing emojis had a greater open rate than those without, according to a Leanplum study. Emoji-containing notifications are 85% more likely to be opened than those without.
7. Push alerts with a sense of urgency, such as “limited time offer” or “just a few left,” have a greater open rate than those without, finds a study by Leanplum.
8. Users who opt-in to push notifications are three times more likely to interact with an app than those who do not, according to research from the Mobile Marketing Association.

Please keep in mind that these numbers and statistics could vary depending on the sector, type of app, and target market; as such, they should only be regarded as broad trends rather than absolutes.

3. Which companies are successfully using push notifications in referral programs?

Push notifications are a popular tool used by businesses to advertise and promote their referral programs. A few businesses that have employed push notifications in referral programs well are listed below:

Uber: Uber employs push notifications to notify customers when a referred buddy has taken their first ride and to remind them about their referral program.

Airbnb: Airbnb employs push notifications to notify customers when a referred friend has completed a booking as well as to remind users about their referral program.

Dropbox: Dropbox employs push notifications to notify users when a referrer has created a new account and to remind them about their referral program.

Uber Eats: Popular food delivery model, Uber Eats, uses push notifications to remind users about their referral program and to let them know when a friend they referred placed their first order.

Postmates: Postmates uses push notifications to frequently remind their users about their referral program and to let them know when a friend they referred placed their first purchase.

Grubhub: Grubhub, a popular food ordering company, also uses push notifications to inform their customers of the rewards they have earned, and more.

These are but a few instances; numerous more businesses in a variety of sectors, including e-commerce, gaming, and fintech, employ push notifications to advertise their referral programmes.

4. Which type of customers like using push notifications in referral programs?

Certain categories of clients may be more inclined to interact with push alerts, according to some study.

1. Customers that are younger are more likely to interact with push alerts. Accengage found that users aged 18 to 24 had the greatest open rate for push notifications (47.5%).
2. Customers that have a strong affinity for an app or brand may be more inclined to interact with push notifications.
3. Localytics found that users who have used an app more than 10 times in the last 30 days had a higher push notification open rate (43.9%) than those who have used the app less often.
4. Customers who elect to get push notifications are more likely to interact with them. The Mobile Marketing Association found that users who opt-in to push notifications are three times more likely to interact with an app than those who opt out.
5. Customers are more likely to interact with push notifications if they think they are valuable and relevant. According to a research conducted by Leanplum, push notifications with tailored content had a greater open rate than those without.

It is essential to keep in mind that these are general patterns, not absolutes and that they vary by app type and business. Additionally, it is essential to segment your audience and customize push alerts to boost interaction.

5. What are the alternatives to use when you can’t use push notifications in referral programs?

There are additional methods to engage clients and promote referral programs besides push notifications. Alternatives to push notifications include:

1. Email: Email is an excellent method for contacting clients and promoting referral programs. You may send clients tailored emails with information about the referral program and any benefits they may earn for recommending friends.
2. SMS: SMS or text messaging is a terrific way to reach out to clients and promote referral programs, and it is also a highly personal and intimate kind of communication.
3. In-App Messaging: In-app messaging is a terrific method to communicate with clients who are presently using your application. You may advertise referral programs and give information on how to recommend friends through in-app messaging.
4. Social media: Reaching out on popular social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram may be a terrific method to reach out to clients and promote referral programs. You may develop a referral campaign and disseminate referral program information through social media.
5. In-person: Personal and face-to-face connection may be an excellent technique to increase referral program participation; having a customer service representative or sales representative explain the referral program with consumers can be quite beneficial.
6. Influencer Marketing: Partnering with influencers to promote your referral program is a terrific method to reach a new audience and enhance referral program engagement.

It is essential to recognize that various alternatives perform better for different sectors and target audiences, thus it is essential to test and experiment in order to choose the ideal method for your organization.

6. What are the job roles that should be familiar with push notifications?

Push notifications are a common tool used in mobile app development and marketing, so there are several job roles that should be familiar with them. Here are a few examples:

1. Mobile App Developers: Developers who work on mobile apps should be familiar with how to implement push notifications in their apps. This includes understanding the technical requirements for sending push notifications, as well as how to design and display them in the app.
2. Marketing Professionals: Marketing professionals who work on mobile app campaigns should be familiar with how to use push notifications to engage with customers and promote products or services. This includes understanding how to segment audiences and target specific groups with personalized messages.
3. Product Managers: Product managers who work on mobile apps should be familiar with push notifications and how they can be used to increase user engagement and retention.
4. Customer Service Representatives: Customer service representatives should be familiar with push notifications and how they can be used to provide personalized and timely support to customers.
5. Data Analysts: Data analysts should be familiar with push notifications to understand the impact of push notifications on customer engagement, retention, and conversion. They should also be able to use data to optimize the push notifications for better results.
6. Growth Hackers: Growth hackers should be familiar with push notifications and how they can be used to increase user acquisition, engagement and retention.

These are just a few examples, but in general, anyone who works on mobile app development or marketing should be familiar with push notifications and how they can be used to increase customer engagement and drive business growth.

7. How can push notifications in referral programs help marketing professionals?

Push notifications may be an effective marketing tool for marketing professionals in a number of ways.

1. Engage Customers: Push notifications may be used to engage consumers and alert them of new items, deals, and promotions. In addition, they may be used to remind clients of abandoned shopping carts and provide customized suggestions.
2. Increase Conversions: Push notifications may be utilized to increase conversions by alerting consumers to limited-time offers or special promotions. By targeting the appropriate consumers with customized content, marketing professionals may enhance conversion rates.
3. Retain Customers: Push notifications may be utilized to keep users engaged with your app or website, hence increasing client retention. This may be accomplished by delivering customized alerts, reminding consumers of their most recent purchases, or providing repeat customers with unique pricing.
4. Offer Positive Customer Experiences: By delivering timely and individualized service, push notifications may be used to enhance customer satisfaction. This may be accomplished via delivering order updates, delivery information, and customer service access alerts.
5. Boost Brand Recognition: Push notifications may be used to increase brand recognition by providing frequent updates on new goods or services, corporate news, and forthcoming events.
6. Measure Effectiveness: Marketing professionals may evaluate and analyze the effect of push notifications on customer engagement, retention, and conversion using data and analytics. This information may be used to improve the effectiveness of push notifications.

In conclusion, push notifications in referral programs may be a useful tool for marketing professionals looking to promote customer engagement, generate conversions, improve customer retention and happiness, and boost brand recognition.

8. How can push notifications help growth hackers?

Growth hackers can benefit a lot from the push notification feature in referral programs:

1. Boost user acquisition: Push notifications may be used to increase user acquisition by advertising the app or website to a targeted audience. To attract new users, this might be accomplished by providing alerts about new features, discounts, or limited-time deals.
2. Increase user engagement: Push notifications may be used to keep users engaged with the app or website by sending out frequent reminders about new material, changes, or tailored suggestions. This may boost customer retention and decrease the turnover rate.
3. Increase brand revenue: Push notifications may be utilized to increase revenue by offering in-app purchases, subscriptions or other monetization opportunities. By targeting the appropriate people with customized content, growth hackers may enhance conversion and revenue prospects.
4. Increase efficacy: Utilizing data and analytics, growth hackers can determine the effect of push notifications on user acquisition, engagement, and revenue. This information may be used to improve the effectiveness of push notifications.
5. A/B test: Growth hackers may utilize A/B testing to evaluate various push notifications to identify the most effective message, timing, and targeting. This may assist them to improve the performance of their alerts and raise their conversion rate.
6. Personalization: Growth hackers may utilise personalization to provide relevant and timely push alerts to the appropriate people. This may assist in boosting user engagement and conversion rates.

In summary, push notifications in engagement programmes may be a helpful tool for growth hackers to enhance user acquisition, raise user engagement, increase revenue, and optimise their efforts by monitoring and evaluating the outcomes.

9. What capabilities should push notifications have?

Push notifications should have the following capabilities:

1. Timely delivery: Notifications should be delivered to users in a timely manner, ensuring that they are able to act on the information provided.
2. Customization options: Users should be able to customize and manage the notifications they receive, such as choosing the type of notifications they receive, and the frequency of notifications.
3. Interaction: Notifications should allow users to easily access and interact with the content of the notification, such as opening an app or website, or responding to a message.
4. Rich media support: Notifications should be able to handle and display rich media content such as images and videos.
5. Mute/Suppress: Users should be able to mute or suppress notifications if they do not wish to receive them.
6. Tracking and Analytics: It should have the ability to track user engagement with the notification and provide analytics to understand the effectiveness of the push notifications
7. Operating system compatibility: Push notifications should be compatible with multiple operating systems such as iOS, Android, Windows, and more.
8. Segmentation: Users should be able to target notifications to specific segments of users based on their preferences and behavior.
9. Personalization: Push notifications should be able to personalize content based on user preferences and behavior.
10. Multi-language support: Push notifications should be able to support multiple languages, allowing to reach global audience.

10. How can you optimize the use of push notifications in referral programs?

Push notifications can be optimized in several ways:

1. Segment your customers: Segmenting users based on their preferences and behavior and targeting notifications to specific segments can increase the relevance of the notifications and improve engagement.
2. Use analytics: Use analytics to track the performance of push notifications and identify opportunities for optimization.
3. Personalization: Personalizing the content of push notifications based on customer preferences and behavior can increase engagement and open rates.
4. Limit notification frequency: Don’t overdo! Limit the number of notifications to avoid overwhelming users and maintain the effectiveness of the notifications.
5. Timing: Send notifications at the right time to increase the chances of users seeing and engaging with the notification.
6. A/B testing: Conduct A/B testing to determine the best time, content, and format of notifications to improve engagement.
7. Rich media content: Use rich media content such as images and videos in notifications to increase engagement and make the notifications more visually appealing.
8. Clear call-to-action: Notifications should have a clear call-to-action that encourages users to engage with the notification.
9. Use deep linking: Use deep linking to take users directly to the relevant content within the app or website when they open the notification.
10. Prioritize: Use push notifications sparingly for important events or critical information instead of using them for promotional or non-essential information.
11. Opt-out: Allow users to opt out or mute the notifications if they are not interested in the message or if they receive too many notifications.

11. What are the challenges in using push notifications in a referral program?

There are several challenges and problems in using push notifications, including:

1. Opt-in rate: Users must opt-in to receive push notifications, which can lead to a low opt-in rate and a small audience for notifications.
2. Overuse: Sending too many notifications can lead to users becoming overwhelmed and turning off push notifications altogether.
3. Relevance: Notifications must be relevant and useful to users in order to be effective, which can be difficult to achieve.
4. Personalization: Personalizing notifications based on user preferences and behavior can be challenging and requires a significant amount of data and resources.
5. Timing: Sending notifications at the right time can be difficult to determine, as different users have different schedules and preferences.
6. Battery Drain: Continuously sending push notifications can drain user’s battery life.
7. Spamming: Users may mark notifications as spam if they find them irrelevant or annoying.
8. Privacy: Push notifications can raise concerns about privacy and data security, as they require users to share personal information with the app or website.
9. Incompatible operating systems: Push notifications may not be compatible with all operating systems, which can limit the reach of the notifications.
10. Limited engagement: Notifications that are not well-designed or relevant may not result in customer engagement.
11. Lack of tracking and analytics: Without proper tracking and analytics, it may be difficult to understand the effectiveness of push notifications and make data-driven decisions for optimization.

12. How can you resolve low opt-in issues in push notifications?

There are a number of techniques to address opt-in rates in push notifications:

Provide value: Communicate to consumers the importance of push notifications and the benefits they will get by opting in.
Timing: Request permission to deliver push notifications at a suitable moment, such as when a user completes an activity or reaches a certain point in the app or website.
Allow consumers to choose their push notification options, including the frequency and kind of alerts they receive.
Transparency: Be transparent with the data and information that will be gathered and how it will be used.
Offer enticements, such as special material or discounts, to encourage consumers to opt-in to push alerts.
Permit users to revoke their consent to receive push alerts at any time.
Clarity: In the permission request, specify the kind of alerts that will be issued and the frequency with which they will be received.
Explain the repercussions: Describe the repercussions of opting out, such as losing out on key updates or promotions.
Utilize a progressive strategy: Utilize a progressive strategy, beginning with a minimal amount of push notifications and progressively requesting more permissions as the user engages with the app or website.
A excellent user experience with the app or website is likely to boost the likelihood that consumers will opt in to push notifications.
Test and Improve: Increase the number of opt-ins by using analytics to observe user activity and varying tactics to enhance the opt-in process.

13. How can you avoid overusing push notifications in referral programs?

There are several ways to resolve overuse issues in push notifications:

1. Limit frequency: Limit the number of notifications sent to users, such as sending notifications only for important or critical information.
2. Customization: Allow users to customize their push notification preferences, such as the frequency and type of notifications they receive.
3. Timing: Send notifications at appropriate times, such as during the user’s active hours or when they are most likely to engage with the notification.
4. Use analytics: Use analytics to track user engagement with push notifications and identify patterns of overuse.
5. A/B testing: Conduct A/B testing to determine the optimal frequency and timing of notifications.
6. Use in-app messaging: Use in-app messaging to supplement push notifications, allowing users to interact with the notifications within the app or website.
7. Use of a progressive approach: Gradually increase the frequency of notifications as the user continues to engage with the app or website.
8. Re-permission: Allow users to re-permission themselves to push notifications at any time, and ask them if they want to receive more or fewer push notifications.
9. Provide an option to mute or suppress notifications: Provide an option for users to mute or suppress notifications if they are not interested in the message or if they receive too many notifications.
10. Good User Experience: A good user experience with the app or website is likely to increase the chances of users not opting out of push notifications.

14. How can you evaluate good referral program providers offering push notifications?

When evaluating a referral program provider offering push notification as a feature, you should consider the following factors:

1. User-friendly interface: Always look for a provider with a user-friendly interface that makes it easy for users to participate in the referral program. This removes unnecessary friction in signing in.
2. Customization options: Seek the services of a push notifications provider that offers a range of customization options for the referral program, such as the ability to design and customize referral pages, email templates, and push notifications.
3. Analytics and reporting: The best push notification platforms offer detailed analytics and reporting on the referral program, such as referral conversion rates, referral source, and referral performance.
4. Integration: Look for a provider that can easily integrate with your existing systems, such as your website, CRM, or marketing automation platform.
5. Support: The best push notification software offers support and guidance to help you set up and optimize the referral program.
6. Scalability: Ensure that your push notification provider for referral programs can handle the amount of data and traffic your referral program will generate as your business grows.
7. Security: Look for a provider that meets industry standards for data security and compliance.
8. Price: Compare prices and consider the cost-benefit of different providers to determine the best value for your business.
9. Referral Tracking: The top push notification tools in referral programs should be able to track the referral process from start to finish and provide analytics on the referral performance.
10. Analyze capabilities: Look for a provider that offers push notifications for referral program, this will help to increase user engagement and increase referral rate.
11. Look for testimonials: Look for a provider that has positive testimonials from other businesses, this will help you to evaluate the effectiveness and reliability of the provider.

15. Which companies provide push notifications in referral programs?

There are several companies that provide push notifications in referral programs, including:

1. ReferralCandy: Provides a referral marketing platform that includes push notifications, email templates, and detailed analytics and reporting.
2. NextBee: Among the best referral marketing software that allows businesses to create and launch referral programs within hours, not days with pre-designed templates. You get push notifications, the ability to send email and SMS campaigns, send geo-targeted messages, and track referral performance with advanced analytics.
3. ReferralHero: A referral marketing platform that allows businesses to create and manage referral programs with ease.
4. Growsurf: One of the best referral marketing platforms that allows businesses of all sizes to create and manage referral programs, with push notifications, email and SMS campaigns, and customizable referral pages.
5. Referral Factory: Another popular referral marketing platform which offers  you the ability to send targeted push notifications and comes with detailed analytics and reporting.

These are just a few of the best referral marketing platforms with push notification feature. Remember, it is important to review and compare the features and pricing of each provider to determine which one is the best fit for your business.

16. What makes NextBee, Growsurf, and Referral Factory good referral marketing platforms with push notifications?

NextBee, Growsurf, and Referral Factory are considered to be good referral marketing platforms with push notifications for the following reasons:

NextBee

NextBee offers a variety of referral marketing solutions, including email, SMS and push notifications, which allows businesses to reach customers through multiple channels. It also allows businesses to personalize and segment their campaigns, increasing the chances of customer engagement.

Growsurf

Growsurf provides a referral marketing platform that allows businesses to create and manage referral programs, with push notifications, email and SMS campaigns, and customizable referral pages. It also allows businesses to track referral performance and provides detailed analytics and reporting.

Referral Factory

Referral Factory provides a referral marketing platform that allows businesses to create and manage referral programs, with push notifications, email and SMS campaigns and detailed analytics and reporting. It also allows businesses to personalize and segment their campaigns, increasing the chances of customer engagement.

This list features the best referral marketing platforms which include push notifications as a core feature. They offer customization options, analytics, and reporting, allowing businesses to create, manage and optimize their referral programs to increase referral rates. These companies also offer easy integration with existing systems and user-friendly interfaces, making it easy for businesses to use and track their referral program’s performance. We have also compiled our list of 5 top push notification tools in 2023. Check it out to see how your can optimize your customer engagement program for success.