Xtremepush adds Web Push to make your website act like an app

Brands have a number of choices when engaging with their customers, especially if they want to roll out push notifications.

One obvious option is to build an app that drives notifications to the user at the right time and preferably, as we discussed in a recent webinar (available on demand) in the right place. But in a world where 500 apps a day are hitting both the Apple and Google app stores, it can be a costly exercise getting the app installed on even your most ardent fans’ devices.

Today, Xtremepush has announced what the company believes is a first in Europe — a web push notification solution that allows websites, on desktop and mobile, to act more like apps, driving notifications that bring the consumer back to the site at just the right time.

Founded in 2013 and headquartered in Dublin, with offices in Mexico and the U.S., Xtremepush is known for its mobile marketing automation suite (MMA), which provides everything from analytics to attribution, smart beacon data to in-app messaging, all underlined with CRM integration and user segmentation solutions.

Its new Web Push solution enables brands to implement real-time communications, such as live updates, breaking news, contextually relevant notifications, and more. Push notifications can be created, and delivered to each user at the ideal time of day, bringing them back to the brand’s website.

I asked how Web Push augments the existing Xtremepush MMA functionality.

“Up until the rollout of Web Push, Xtremepush provided analysis and engagement functionality (including push notifications) to brands with mobile apps, as push notifications were restricted to mobile apps,” the company’s chief executive, Tommy Kearns, told me. “With the introduction of Web Push, brands can now use their mobile or desktop website the same way they use their app to send push notifications to their users. This enables them to combine the engagement of a mobile app and the reach of a website.”

And that extends the functionality of Xtremepush’s MMA solution beyond the requirement for an app, although the company is quick to point at that both scenarios are now supported by this new addition to its suite.

“For brands who do not have a mobile app, we can now provide them with an engagement solution enabling them to send personalized, real-time notifications to their subscribers’ browsers even when they are not on their site,” Kearns said. “For brands who do have a mobile app, this presents them with a unique opportunity to engage with their users not only after the install through their app, but also through their mobile and desktop website. By combining both sets of data, we can now engage with the users on their most relevant channel at the most relevant time based on their in-app and website browsing behavior.”

As with all push notification solutions, the user has to opt in to accept notifications. So how does Xtremepush handle cross-device messages?

“The user will need to accept Push notifications on their desktop and mobile devices separately,” Kearns said.

So while that could present a small barrier to entry, it also allows users to have control over where they prefer to receive notifications powered by Web Push.

So how does this solution compare to existing in-app and web notifications products?

“Web Push offers a frictionless way to communicate directly with users, without them having to give up any personal data, such as a phone number or an email address,” Kearns said. “Users can also be targeted directly to their browser even when they are not on the brand website.”

That is markedly different from a number of in-app messaging systems that require registration, and reduces the barrier to entry.

Web Push is available from today to Xtremepush customers, and supports notifications in Chrome and Safari, with Firefox expected to roll out in the near future.