WEB Push Notifications Are Finally on Safari: How Big Change Is This Going to Make?

What Were iOS Push Notifications Like Before the Update?

To understand just how big this is, we must take a stroll down memory lane. An the past, the push notification system used on iOS, was relatively crude and even risked causing a countereffect. Instead of getting a notification directly, users would have to authorize these notifications in their iOS calendar ads. As a result, they would see these ads as event notifications.

Now, it’s clear from square one that this is an improvised solution, used not because it was efficient but because it was the only option available. As for its effectiveness… well, it would be safe to assume that there are numerous instances in which this caused a countereffect (when it comes to the UX).

Just How Big of a Difference Are We Talking About?

Web push notifications are one of the most effective tools in any marketer’s inventory. Their biggest flaw of this engagement method was that Safari, the most commonly used browser on iOS did not allow them. Well, starting in October 2022, this will change forever, and, to make matters even more interesting, it’s speculated that Safari will be the first of many browsers to follow suit. In other words, this update regarding the web push notifications, might just represent a proper revolution when it comes to iOS-targeted marketing.

• As how it’s a predominant browser on iOS, Safari makes up almost 20% of the global browser market share. In other words, the feature of web push notifications (in a conventional sense) will automatically become available to 20% more potential customers.

• Sure, this is an impressive number, but being able to reach more people this way is not supposed to make that much of a difference, right? According to numerous studies, web push notifications have approximately 30 times higher conversion rates than emails.

• So, 30 times higher conversion rates mean 30 times higher profit? Well, not exactly. You see, things seem to grow even more exponentially since iPhone users, on average, make more than their Android counterparts. An average annual salary of an Android user is roughly $37,000, while iPhone users, on average, make $53,000 annually.

• Also, some industries are bound to see a higher increase than others. For instance, iPhone users spend an average of $101 per month on tech products. In other words, the impact of this change on these fields may be even higher.

• Lastly, if you want to observe the very top of the marketing world, it’s worth pointing out that web push notifications are used by 8% of top-rated websites.

While no one can tell how lucrative this change will be, judging by the above-listed stats, the profits are bound to go up.

Will Push Notifications Work the Same Like on Android?

When we mentioned that web push notifications are finally coming to iOS, the majority of people expected a direct transplant. However, the team behind iOS had a different concept in mind. On Android, these notifications are at the top of the screen to emphasize visibility.

On the other hand, iOS put their notifications at the bottom to avoid cluttering and allow users to see more of their wallpaper. Similarly, to their Android counterparts, these notifications will be easy to dismiss, delete, tap, and manage. For instance,

• The user will be able to customize their Lock Screen to show the number of notifications instead of seeing notifications directly.

• They’ll also be able to stack the notifications by groups.

• To maintain the sense of continuity, the users will also be able to see notifications in a list.

While it is unclear whether these design choices are planned with efficiency in mind or if the designers merely want to make the system appear more iOS-like, it’s an innovation worth monitoring. Who knows, if this system seems more effective, Android might soon decide to follow suit regarding its notification placement.

Creating a Web Push Notifications Strategy with Ocamba

This massive update to iOS creates great potential, however, to take advantage of this potential, you need the right strategy. A platform like Ocamba provides web analytics and web push notifications within the same tool, making things simpler and more effective.

While you can try applying your Android push notification strategy to this new environment, it might not be the most effective method. Make no mistake; the concept of using push notifications for e-commerce is familiar. This means that some previously used strategies will still apply. Still, some (seemingly minor) differences might make a huge difference.

Via this platform, you can analyze your web traffic, segment your audience, label visitors to track them in the future, and do all of this in quick succession. This process would be far more complex if you were forced to hop from one platform to the next. It is also the clearest indicator of how platforms with a holistic approach, like Ocamba, hold an advantage. Accurately segmenting gives a higher conversion rate than sending notifications in bulk.

The best thing about push notifications are delivered even if the browser is not open. This allows you to choose the exact time and content of engagement. Still, you also want to avoid spamming your audience, and you have numerous tools to do so in Ocamba. You can segment your audience by how much they’re interacting with your notifications. If, notifications are time-limited or updates, you can use Type Tag notifications to push the previous one with the same tag. This way, you always get to serve your audience fresh content.

Wrap Up

Previously, we’ve already mentioned that both marketers and analysts have high hopes for web push notifications on iOS. While some are expecting iOS to follow suit, when it comes to push notification marketing trends, it’s not beyond the realm of possibility for things to be the other way around either.

This massive new market might spark an increased interest and new data of unprecedented volumes. In other words, web push notifications on iOS might spearhead the innovation in this field instead of just transcribing what works with Android push notification marketing.

With this major iOS update, you’ll have one more trick up your sleeve. Now, even on iOS, effective outreach is determined by two things – speed and accuracy. Not having to switch platforms will already make your engagement efforts a lot faster and the analytical capabilities of Ocamba are second to none. To take advantage of this, you should read more about Ocamba and how it helps you understand and engage your target audience.