Push Notification
A message delivered to a customer's phone by the operating system, shown on the lock screen or notification tray without the customer opening an app.
A push notification is a short message that the phone displays on behalf of an app or a wallet pass. For loyalty programs, notifications are used to announce a reward that is ready, remind a customer of their progress, mark a birthday, re-engage someone who has not visited for a while, or run a campaign.
It matters because it is the business's channel back to the cardholder after they leave. Example: a salon sends a message to members who have not booked in eight weeks; a cafe announces double stamps on a quiet weekday afternoon.
Notifications from a wallet pass differ from app notifications in one important way: the customer did not install an app to receive them; the pass itself is the channel. They still depend on the customer's device and wallet settings, and delivery is never guaranteed. A push notification is different from a geofenced notification, which is triggered by location rather than sent by the business.
With Loyal-T Cards, manual and automated push notifications, reward notifications, inactivity reminders and birthday messages are supported where configured. Your team decides what to send and when.
Related terms
Geofencing
A location-based technique that triggers an action, such as a notification, when a customer's device enters a defined area around a place.
Apple Wallet Pass
A digital pass stored in the Wallet app built into iPhone, used for loyalty cards, tickets, boarding passes and coupons.
Digital Loyalty Card
A loyalty card that exists as a pass on the customer's phone, typically in Apple Wallet or Google Wallet, instead of as a physical card.