Mobile Push Alerts: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

1#mobilemarketer
Michael Boland, Senior Analyst and VP of Content at BIA/Kelsey
Cindy Krum, author and Founder/CEO at MobileMoxie
Steve Dille, SVP Marketing at Message Systems
Avoid Cross-Channel Message Fatigue
April 24, 2014

2#mobilemarketer
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Message Systems
Only Influencers
Cindy Krum
BIA/Kelsey

Mobile Push Alerts: The Good, the
Bad and the Ugly
Mike Boland
Sr. Analyst
VP, Content
BIA/Kelsey
mboland@biakesey.com
@mikeboland

5
© 2013 BIA/Kelsey. All Rights Reserved.
Agenda
• Market Forces Driving Push Alerts
• Push Alert Case Studies
• Conclusions, Takeaways & Checklist

6
App Usage: Where Are We Now?
Fun Fact: Over 1M
individual apps are
available in iOS alone.

7
The Result? APP FATIGUE
• Not only getting users to download your app…
… getting them to engage actively
– Apps have high abandonment rates (22% are used only once).
– Limited home screen real estate; mindshare for multiple apps.
– Highest valuations in today’s app environment go to those that
incite active daily usage (i.e. Snapchat, WhatsApp).
• These factors compel app developers to meet users half
way… let them engage without even opening your app.

8
Enter Push Alerts

9
Push Alerts: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly
The Good
• OS-resident system, sidesteps carrier-SMS
• Engage users out of app, at the OS level.
• Aligns with many tech & cultural trends:
– Mobile discovery
– Wearables
– Big data
– The age of social sharing (FOMO!)
– The advent of beacons
The Bad
• Battery Drain
• Overwhelming users
• “Creepy Factor”
The Ugly
• The art of the opt-in: When to ask for
permissions.
Now let’s see some examples…

10
Agenda

11
Case Study: Google Now
• Google’s “discovery”
play to maintain share
where mobile users are
doing less active
searching.
• Mines email, calendar,
and other personal
content to alert users of
important updates.
• Think: road closures on
your route to work;
flight delays; weather
that affects you, etc.
• Opens the door to push
commercial messaging.

12
Case Study: Find & Save
“Push alerts are one massive A/B
test. What do you push to whom and
when? We deliver push alerts when
you get close to certain stores. The
first time we did it, we set the radius
the same to everything. It ends up
that there are lots of Walgreens and
not as many Home Depots. With
Walgreens, your push alert could go
off five times when you walk across
the street. Home depot is different.
And the reasons you go to the two
stores is different, so we really have
to take types of retailer and deliver
pushes differently. Pushes are a
sensitive item. You’ve got to get
smart.”
-- Ben Smith, CEO Wanderful Media
(maker of Find & Save)

13
Find & Save, Cont’d
“We've been experimenting
with different times and day of weeks
and so far we haven't seen a clear
winner. Customers respond better
with a random pattern of pushes
rather than a fixed time/day pattern
so they perceive the pushes to be
more timely.
“Pushes that link to user
proximity (e.g., sales nearby) come
out on top, out-performing our
second most popular type of pushes
by as much as 20 percent. Our
consumers also respond well with
seasonal messages (e.g., St.
Patrick's Day or Super Bowl) as they
found these message more
relevant.”

3#mobilemarketer
Overview
Brands are getting more personal, targeted, immediate,
measurable and actionable with the right mobile
messaging strategy. However, are they keeping up with
their customers – and how much is too much?
This webinar will discuss what is working and what is not
with email, SMS and push in the mobile context as
message fatigue among consumers becomes a reality.
Webinar panelists Michael Boland, senior analyst and vice
president of content at BIA/Kelsey, and Cindy Krum,
founder/CEO of mobile marketing consultancy
MobileMoxie, as well as Steve Dille, senior vice president
of marketing at Message Systems, will offer insights and
analysis on how brands can steer themselves clear of
annoying consumers with mobile messages that do not
resonate, are intrusive and overwhelm.

15
Case Study: Foursquare
• Launched “Radar” in 2010 for location
discovery push alerts.
• Like Find & Save, it A/B tested it to learn
that the messages which resonate most
are “when you get there” messages.
• Arriving in a new city or new restaurant,
where should you go or what should you
order? What have friends done?
• Foursquare push alerts are now heavily
weighted towards these types of
messages.
• Takeaways:
– A/B test.
– Use push alerts sparingly and only for what
is most relevant to users.

16
… And you don’t want to miss out on this

17
Case Study: Tesco
• Tesco saw an opportunity to take back
territory lost from showrooming.
• Utilizing push alerts through in-store
beacon technology.
• Taking a different approach than in-store
marketing: Focus instead on service.
• Example: letting customers get information
on products and check out faster.
• Takeaway: Beacon-oriented alerts will be
worth watching and the killer apps will be
retail shopping and sporting
events/venues.
“The ideal experience needs
to provide relevant value to
the consumer versus simply
pushing messaging.”
-- Tom Edwards, SVP, The Marketing Arm

18
Case Study: Cluster
• A key strategic area for push alerts is when and how to ask
for permissions.
• If push notifications play a critical role in getting your user to
form a habit of using your app, declined access could lose
them forever.
• Cluster’s takeaway: don’t ask a user for access until you
really need it, and make sure it’s crystal clear what they will
get in return.

19
Permissions: You Only Have One Shot…
• If a user taps “Don’t Allow”, there is no easy way for them to
reverse that decision.
• The name of the game is doing everything you can to get
users to tap “OK”.

20
…And how do you do that?
• Demonstrate the
value exchange for
allowing access
• Ask only after
users have been
engaged in the
setup process and
truly perceive the
value in allowing
access.
• After doing this,
Cluster grew
acceptance from
less than 40% to
66%

21
Develop Dialogue Before Sending Users to
OS Permission
Read this article
1 2 3

22
Agenda

23
Summary: Tactics and Takeaways
• Messages should not only be relevant and engaging, but improve
over time.
• Relevant message frequency varies per app. Do lots of A/B testing.
• Track message attributes that lead to favorable response.
• Segment audiences and customize messages accordingly. No one-
sized-fits-all push messaging.
• Utilize system tools: iOS 7 backgrounding APIs to save battery life,
M7 chip, And Passbook!
• Don’t forget OS regulations around push alerts (especially iOS).
• In the case of Beacon-driven push alerts, utilize store signage to
get users to opt in (turn on bluetooth).

24
Provide Easy Settings Controls
• After all the testing (optimal message content, tone, timing,
frequency etc.) go one step further…
• Allow easy controls for users to manually control push alert
settings such as “quiet times” or days.
• Failing to do so will lose users – difficult push alert settings
might cause users to just delete the app altogether…

25
Push Notifications are a Privilege… Use it
Wisely
“An app without push is an app without a voice and with
more than 100 apps on an average phone, there's more
than a good chance you'll be forgotten about. However, it's
up to you whether that voice offers a service and
experience, or comes across as a nagging annoyance.”
--Corey Gault, director of communications, Urban Airship

Questions and Comments:
Michael Boland, Senior Analyst, BIA/Kelsey
mboland@biakelsey.com
This published material is for internal client use only. It may not be duplicated or distributed in any manner not permitted by contract. Any
unauthorized distribution could result in termination of the client relationship, fines and other civil or criminal penalties under federal law.
BIA/Kelsey disclaims all warranties regarding the accuracy of the information herein and similarly disclaims any liability for direct, indirect or
consequential damages that may result from the use or interpretation of this information.

27#mobilemarketer
The Mobile Marketer: Catch Your Customers (If You Can)

28#mobilemarketer
Mobile is Approaching 100% Penetration

29#mobilemarketer
Mobile Adoption & Usage is Changing

36#mobilemarketer
Message Fatigue is Real

37#mobilemarketer
Enough is Enough: A 3-Year Study
People could only tolerate w/o Brand Fatigue & Negative
Response
• 3 phone calls
• 4 emails
• 10 mailings
• Mobile was not evaluated unfortunately
Increased frequency in 1 channel = decrease tolerance for
more communication in ALL channels
The quality, suitability and sustainability of a message all
play a role in the effectiveness of communication.

38#mobilemarketer
Message Fatigue Hurts Customer Relationships

39#mobilemarketer
How to Manage Message Fatigue with Mobile
Using the Mobile Site, Analytics &
Attribution
Using a Preference Center

40#mobilemarketer
Mobile Site Requirements
• Fast, Usable Mobile Site
• Easy Mobile Conversion & Confirmation
• Meaningful User-Account Access
• Cross-Device Consistency of
Content/Experience
- Email
- Vide
- Site Functionality
• Preference Center

41#mobilemarketer
Smart Preference Center
Goals:
Personalize Interaction
Send Messages that Work
Avoid Message Fatigue
Identify & Leverage:
Multiple Devices
Offline Behavior
Engagement Triggers
• Discounts
• Events
Conversion Preferences
Algorithmic Message Controls

42#mobilemarketer
How to Start a Preference Center
DIALOGUE
• In Store/POS
• In Email
• In SMS
• In App
• On Website
• Offline
• Push To
Mobile-
Friendly Web
• Achieve Opt-In
or 2nd Opt-in
• Register Campaign
Tracking
• Detect User-Agent
• Attribute to Existing
or Dummy Account
• Push to Account
Login/Register
• Save Implied
Preferences
• Request Overt
Preferences

43#mobilemarketer
Tips for Managing Your Messages
• Create multiple, targeted subscription types, and let subscribers
pick and choose among their options.
• Let them control the frequency of the emails, SMS & push
notifications.
• Let them control which topics for which they receive
communication by device.
• Give them an option to change these any time, from any device.
• Provide a clear confirmation message whenever their preferences
are updated.

44#mobilemarketer
Understand Where Mobile Comes In to the Mix for
Your Customers

45#mobilemarketer
Tips for Managing Opt-Out
• Make it easy for subscribers to find the unsubscribe links &
access their preferences from the app and the website.
• Include the option to unsubscribe from all email & SMS
communications at once.
• Allow people to unsubscribe without having to do anything else,
like entering email address again, completing a feedback survey,
etc.
• Unsubscribing should not eliminate access to their log-in account,
prevent new subscriptions later.
• Allow them to send feedback about why they are unsubscribing
from SMS, Email and anything else.

47#mobilemarketer
Cindy Krum
CEO & Founder,
MobileMoxie
cindy@mobilemoxie.com
2 Months Free MobileMoxie
Tools with This Promo Code:
MOBILEMKTR
www.mobilemoxie.com/register
For More Info:

48#mobilemarketer
Introduction: The Leader in Messaging
20%

49#mobilemarketer
Email / Marketing Services Providers
Social
Networking
Daily
Deals
Telco
Financial
Services
Consumer
Technology
Travel &
Hospitality
Publishing
& Media
Hosting
& SaaS
Sampling of Key Clients by Vertical Markets

50#mobilemarketer
Cross-Channel Messaging Platform

51#mobilemarketer
Thank You!
To learn more about Message Systems:
Email info@messagesystems.com
If you would like a copy of today’s slides:
Email events@messagesystems.com
To speak with someone at Message Systems:
Call 877-887-3031
---------------------------------------------
To learn more about BIA/Kelsey:
Email info@biakelsey.com
To learn more about MobileMoxie:
Email info@mobilemoxie.com

Mobile Push Alerts: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

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