Complete Guide to Push Notifications for Loyalty Programs

Push notifications are one of the most powerful tools for keeping your loyalty program active and relevant. When used correctly, they can increase retention by up to 65% and triple visit frequency. When used poorly, they cause customers to disable notifications or worse, delete your digital card.

This guide teaches you how to implement an effective push notification strategy that keeps your customers engaged without annoying them.

Why push notifications work

Push notifications have a unique advantage over email or social media: they appear directly on the customer’s phone screen, even when they’re not using the app.

Key advantages:

50% average open rate vs 20% for email
Instant delivery in seconds, not minutes
No internet connection required to appear
Immediate context with the loyalty card

But with great power comes great responsibility. 60% of users disable notifications from apps that send irrelevant or overly frequent messages.

Types of push notifications for loyalty programs

1. Transactional notifications

These are the most important and have the highest open rates because customers expect to receive them.

When to send them:

When customer earns points or stamps
When they redeem a reward
When they reach a new level or achievement
When their reward is ready to use

Example: “You earned 1 stamp. 4 more until your free coffee.”

Frequency: Immediate after each transaction

Best practices:

Be specific with numbers (how many points earned, how many left)
Include progress toward next reward
Keep message short (under 50 characters)
Never skip these notifications, customers value them

2. Urgency notifications

Create a sense of scarcity or limited time that motivates action.

When to send them:

Points or rewards about to expire
Last chance to redeem a promotion
Limited offer for first people
Reminder of unused reward

Example: “You have 50 points expiring in 5 days. Visit us and use them before losing them.”

Frequency:

First alert: 7 days before expiration
Second alert: 2 days before
Final alert: Day of expiration

Best practices:

Be honest, don’t create false urgency
Give enough time for customer to act
Include specific expiration date
Don’t send more than 3 alerts per event

3. Promotional notifications

Announce special offers, new products, or events.

When to send them:

New product launch
Seasonal promotions
Double points for limited time
Special events at your business

Example: “This week: double points on all products. Valid until Sunday.”

Frequency: Maximum 2 per week, ideally 1 every 7-10 days

Best practices:

Segment by customer behavior
Choose strategic times (see timing section)
Personalize based on purchase history
Always include clear end date

4. Reminder notifications

Reactivate customers who haven’t visited in a while.

When to send them:

Customer hasn’t visited in 14 days (frequent customers)
Customer hasn’t visited in 30 days (regular customers)
Customer hasn’t visited in 60 days (last chance)

Example: “We miss you. You have 8 points waiting for you. Stop by soon.”

Frequency: Based on normal purchase cycle of your business

Best practices:

Personalize with customer name if possible
Mention their current points
Offer small incentive to return
Don’t be pushy if they don’t respond

5. Value-added notifications

Provide useful information without asking anything in return.

When to send them:

Tips related to your industry
Schedule or location updates
Maintenance or temporary closure notices
Birthday greetings

Example: “Happy birthday. You have a special gift waiting on your next visit.”

Frequency: Maximum 1 per month

Best practices:

Provide real value, not disguised promotion
Be brief and direct
Don’t include aggressive calls to action
These messages build goodwill

The golden rule: sending frequency

The most common question is: “How often should I send notifications?”

General recommendation:

Transactional: Unlimited (because customer expects them)
Urgency: Maximum 3 per event
Promotional: 1-2 per week maximum
Reminders: Based on purchase cycle
Value-added: 1 per month

Absolute limit: Never more than 4 promotional notifications per customer per month, in addition to transactional ones.

If you sell coffee and your customers come 3 times per week, they can receive:

12 transactional notifications (each visit)
3 promotional notifications
1 value-added notification
Total: ~16 notifications per month

This is acceptable because most are transactional and expected.

Timing: when to send notifications

Time of day matters as much as content.

Best times by business type

Coffee shops and breakfast:

6:30-8:00 AM (before going to work)
2:00-3:00 PM (afternoon craving)

Restaurants:

11:00 AM-12:00 PM (lunch)
6:00-7:00 PM (dinner)

Retail and services:

10:00 AM-12:00 PM (productive morning)
5:00-7:00 PM (after work)

Gyms:

5:00-6:00 AM (early risers)
5:00-7:00 PM (after work)

Beauty salons:

10:00 AM-12:00 PM (appointment planning)
7:00-8:00 PM (evening relaxation)

Times to avoid

Before 7:00 AM (nobody wants notifications when waking up)
During meal hours (11:30 AM-1:30 PM) unless you sell food
After 9:00 PM (respect personal time)
Sunday mornings (rest day for many)

Exception: Transactional notifications are sent immediately, regardless of time.

Personalization: the secret to success

Generic notifications have 40% less engagement than personalized ones.

Basic segmentation

Group your customers and personalize the message:

By visit frequency:

Frequent customers (visit weekly): Exclusive promotions, new product previews
Regular customers (visit monthly): Friendly reminders, special offers
Inactive customers (over 60 days): Return incentives, “we miss you”

By average spend:

High value: Early access, VIP events, premium rewards
Medium value: Standard offers, double points
Low value: Introduction to new products, budget combos

By product type:

If customer always orders coffee: “New coffee blend available”
If they prefer desserts: “New cheesecake available this week”
If they come for breakfast: Morning promotions

Data you can use

With a digital system like Ganafy, you have access to:

Visit frequency
Preferred visit times
Most purchased products
Days since last visit
Reward redemption rate
Response to previous notifications

Use this information to make each notification more relevant.

Copywriting: how to write effective notifications

Ideal structure

Hook (first sentence, 20-30 characters)
Value (what customer gains)
Action (what they should do)
Urgency (when it expires, optional)

Good vs bad examples

Bad: “We have new offers at our store. Visit us soon to see everything we have.”

Good: “Double points today. Every purchase counts x2. Valid until 8 PM.”

Bad: “You haven’t been here in a long time. We want to see you again.”

Good: “You’re 2 stamps away from your reward. Don’t lose them, visit us this week.”

Copywriting rules

Maximum 120 characters (optimal 80-100)
Action verb in first sentence
Specific numbers (not “many points”, but “50 points”)
Avoid jargon or technical terms
One call to action per message
Conversational tone (as you’d speak in person)
No multiple exclamation marks
No ALL CAPS (looks like spam)

A/B testing: optimize your notifications

Don’t guess what works, test and measure.

What you can test

Content:

Two versions of same promotion
With or without emoji
Formal vs casual tone
Benefit focus vs scarcity

Timing:

Morning vs afternoon
Weekday vs weekend
Specific time (10 AM vs 2 PM)

Frequency:

1 promotional notification per week vs 2
Reminder at 14 days vs 21 days

Metrics that matter

Open rate: How many read the notification?
Redemption rate: How many came to the business?
Response time: How long did they take to act?
Opt-out rate: How many disabled notifications?

Goal: Open rate > 30%, redemption rate > 10%

If your metrics are below this, review frequency and relevance.

Common mistakes to avoid

1. Notification bombardment

Mistake: Sending 3-4 promotions per week plus reminders.

Solution: Respect the limit of 4 promotional notifications per month.

2. Generic notifications

Mistake: “We have special offers today.”

Solution: “Cappuccinos at half price until 2 PM.”

3. Ignoring time zone and schedules

Mistake: Sending notifications at 11 PM or 6 AM.

Solution: Respect recommended times by business type.

4. Not offering category opt-out

Mistake: All or nothing: receive all notifications or none.

Solution: Allow disabling promotional but keeping transactional.

5. Not measuring results

Mistake: Sending notifications without reviewing what works.

Solution: Review metrics weekly and adjust strategy.

6. Repeated false urgency

Mistake: “Last chance” every week.

Solution: Use urgency only when genuine.

7. Text too long

Mistake: 200-character notifications that get cut off.

Solution: Maximum 120 characters, optimal 80-100.

Use cases: complete examples

Coffee shop

Frequent customer (comes 4 times/week):

Monday 7 AM: “Good morning. You have 8 points, 2 more and your coffee is free.”
Thursday 3 PM: “You’ve earned your free coffee. Redeem it whenever you want.”
Sunday: No notifications (rest day)

Regular customer (comes 2 times/month):

After visit: “Thanks for your visit. You have 4 accumulated points.”
15 days later: “We miss you. You have 4 points waiting for you.”
30 days later: “Last chance. Your 4 points expire in 5 days.”

Beauty salon

New customer:

After first appointment: “Thanks for trusting us. Your next appointment has 10% off.”
25 days later: “It’s time for your next appointment. Book today with your discount.”

Loyal customer (comes monthly):

After 5 appointments: “You’ve reached VIP level. Access to priority schedules.”
20 days after last appointment: “Your monthly appointment is coming. Available times this week.”

Gym

Active member:

At 10 visits: “10 workouts completed this month. Keep it up.”
On 3rd day without visiting: “We’re waiting for you today. Your routine won’t complete itself.”

Inactive member:

7 days without visiting: “Your membership is still active. We’re waiting this week.”
14 days without visiting: “Bring a friend and both get free class.”

Implementation checklist

Before launching your push notification strategy:

Necessary tools

To implement a professional push notification strategy you need:

Digital card platform that supports notifications (like Ganafy with Apple Wallet and Google Wallet)
Segmentation system to group customers by behavior
Metrics analysis to measure open and redemption rates
Message scheduling to send at optimal times
A/B testing to optimize content

Conclusion

Push notifications can be your best ally or your worst enemy. The difference is in the strategy: respect the customer, provide value, and measure results.

Key principles to remember:

Less is more: Quality over quantity
Relevance is king: Personalize based on behavior
Timing matters: Respect schedules and frequency
Measure everything: You can’t improve what you don’t measure
Provide value: Each notification should benefit the customer

Start conservative: 1-2 promotional notifications per month in addition to transactional ones. Observe results. Adjust. Repeat.

With a well-executed strategy, push notifications can increase your retention by 65% and convert occasional visitors into loyal customers.

Ready to implement strategic push notifications?

Try Ganafy free and start sending notifications your customers actually want to receive.