Mobile Messaging Strategy: Where Should I Direct My Audience?

We know mobile messaging can be tough. The ramifications of the wrong message can be high, and making sure you’re providing utility to your recipients can be challenging. What you feel is important enough to share may not be important in your user’s eyes. And with the ever-present fear of app deletion at play, you want to get it right. We are here to help, so we’re sharing a few things to consider when deciding where to direct your audience.

Directing the Audience

One of the messaging strategy-related questions we get most often is, “Where should I direct my audience?” The answer points back to utility. What do you want them to do, see or act on? Send them there! The more directive you can be, the better. A push notification, in-app message or message center content can have a deep-link that takes your customer anywhere within the app itself or to a specific website.

We recommend avoiding sending your message recipient to the home screen of your app, although this is a common default practice. Getting app opens may be an important metric, but if users don’t act or don’t utilize it, doing so turns what could have been an effortless experience into a frustrating one. Users then have to hunt for the particular item or topic that gained their interest in the first place.

We do recommend using deep links to ensure each message takes your audience to the content that drove them to act. Adding deep links can be accomplished without a developer’s assistance by using our web-based interface (get started with Urban Airship Engage for free to test it out).

Deep Link for Utility & Personalization

Layer on what you know about your customers for an even more personalized experience. For example, a push notification about a sale could take the customer directly to their favorite department or even a page featuring the clothing size they prefer based on past behavior or order history.

When you select a deep link destination, consider whether your message has been deployed via a push notification, in-app message or via your app’s message center. Push notifications and in-app messages should link to a destination where the customer can immediately take action or access content in a short burst — in just a few seconds or a few clicks.

Message center content is typically consumed at the customer’s convenience, so they are likely to be more tolerant of links to destinations where they are asked to spend more time browsing or viewing, or input more of their information.

Your Top 10 Questions Answered

Want more of your top questions answered? We’ve compiled the most common questions our Strategic Services team receives in a free download, 10 Mobile Engagement Best Practices Explained. Check it out to learn more about mobile messaging best practices.

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To learn more about how our Strategic Services team can answer your pressing mobile messaging strategy questions — and more! — request a consultation today.