Why and How to Use iOS Web Push Notifications

Mobile web push is finally here for Apple devices! After years of anticipation and demand, Apple has at long last embraced modern web technology and launched support for web push on iOS and iPadOS 16.4+. Now, Apple joins Google Chrome and Android in enabling companies to communicate with their iPhone and iPad users in a mobile-first way.

The Benefits of Using iOS Web Push

Unlock New Audiences

Apple devices account for almost a quarter of smartphones globally and over half in the United States. That’s over 1.5 billion active iPhone users worldwide, and that audience is now accessible with web push.

Companies that are strapped for developer resources and don’t have a native mobile app can finally reach this desirable new channel in a cost-effective way. Even companies that have a mobile app will benefit from reaching users that haven’t downloaded the app. Depending on your device breakdown, you can more than double your mobile reach.

Engage Anonymous Users

The average website traffic comprises 97 to 98 percent anonymous visitors. And companies spend a ton of money on acquisition to drive those visitors to the website. Unfortunately, most never become a lead. Nurture and activate anonymous visitors into leads and browsers into buyers — if you don’t capture them, that’s wasted spend. Privacy-focused users can easily engage with companies without providing personal information.

Send Real-time, Mobile-first Messaging

Users continue to prefer mobile for browsing the internet. In fact, the majority of website traffic occurs on mobile devices. Before, companies could only reach their iPhone users if they downloaded the app or signed up with their email address or phone number. With this release, it’s much easier to engage users in a mobile-first and repeatable way.

These notifications will behave like any other iOS mobile notification. This means they can be filtered out by relevant Focus modes, delivered to the Apple Watch, and more.

Drive Traffic and Conversions

Similar to mobile push notifications, web push is so powerful because it reaches users when they aren’t on your website and can bring them directly back to your product. Media companies use push to send breaking news to increase site visits and ad revenue. Fintech and crypto companies send price alerts to drive transactions. ECommerce companies advertise new products and abandoned carts to re-capture revenue.

Improve ROI

People who opt in to push want to hear from you, so this new release represents a sizable business opportunity. With OneSignal, you can send unlimited web push, whereas previously, you may have used costly SMS or WhatsApp to reach users on mobile or spent a sizable budget to retarget website visitors. Now, you can acquire and retain more users and lower your costs.

Set up iOS Web Push With OneSignal

Once your website is ready, your users will need to add your website to their home screen and opt in to notifications. Be sure to clearly communicate how the user will benefit; for example, share how they can easily stay on top of breaking news, sports score updates, financial market movements, and more. Follow our add to home screen guide.

Increase Opt-ins With OneSignal’s Superior Prompting Experience

OneSignal offers a variety of user-friendly prompting options that lead to higher opt-in rates than the native browser prompt. Companies can easily customize a bell prompt, slide prompt, or custom prompt. Add delays based on time on site or page views and give users a chance to experience value before deciding whether to opt in.

We also have lots of great guides to help you better understand web push use cases, best practices, and strategies, including:

Now’s the time to add web push to your marketing mix. Marketers can send targeted, personalized push campaigns with our no-code dashboard or set up sophisticated automated messaging workflows with Journeys. Developers can trigger real-time push at scale with our powerful APIs. Our intuitive platform enables you to easily test and iterate, analyze, and optimize your messaging. Visit our setup guide to start converting your mobile Apple users.

See why over 1.9 million developers and marketers turn to OneSignal for reliable, real-time messaging across push, in-app, email, and SMS, all in one unified platform. Create a free account to start today, or contact one of our messaging experts to find the right plan for you.

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