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OneSignal is a competitor of Roost, who were the first company to provide web push notifications.
What are push notifications?
Push notifications have been available through apps for some time, and they have helped drive user engagement. We have all been receiving push notifications on our smart phones for quite some time. For example, probably the most common types are reminders and to-do notes that we send ourselves to help us keep up with our busy lives. Or the alerts you get when a new emails in your inbox. The good news, is they are becoming more prevalent via web browsers as we see more services providing web push notifications.
What can I use web push notifications for?
As with push notifications in smartphone apps, web push notifications can help promote reader engagement. With respect to our publishers, we hope to see it used as a tool to communicate more directly with your readers as well as an additional tool to support your marketing efforts.
OneSignal's documentation more information on what their services provides and more details on how to get started. Some highlights are the ability to set up more than web push notifications, include custom icons with your messages, and schedule and A/B test messages.
Here's a quick screenshot of what a reader would see when they first arrive at your site and have not yet opted in to receive your notifications.
OneSignal opt-in
Example of how a reader would opt-in for notifications from you when they visit your site.
Afterwards, here's an example of the reader's experience receiving notifications once they've opted in.
Sample push notification on desktop browser
Here's how a reader would see a web push notification on their desktop browser, and how it could look on an smartphone that supports web push.
As of the writing of this post, Android supports web push notifications, but there is still some development needed for IOS to support it. This means that Android phone users will also receive your notifications, but iPhone users won't. Hopefully IOS will support web push soon, as many readers are using their mobile phones more and more to keep up with their favorite publishers.
Here is a link to the support document that explains how to set up this new service on your Metro Publisher site.
We look forward to seeing how you are able to use this new integration to grow your business!
