Notification Strategy
Framework
IRON LAW: Every Notification Must Earn Its Send
Each notification interrupts the user. If it doesn't deliver clear value
to the RECIPIENT (not to your business), it erodes trust and drives
opt-outs. Before sending: "Would the user thank me for this notification?"
If no → don't send.
Channel Comparison
| Channel | Open Rate | Speed | Cost | Best For | Limitations |
|---|
| Push notification | 5-15% | Instant | Free | Time-sensitive, action-needed | Easy to opt out, limited text |
| Email | 15-25% | Minutes | Low | Detailed content, receipts, newsletters | Spam filters, slow |
| SMS | 90%+ open | Instant | $$$ | Critical alerts, OTP, urgent | Expensive, intrusive, regulatory |
| In-app | 25-40% | Next session | Free | Feature announcements, tips | Only reaches active users |
| LINE/Messenger | 40-60% | Instant | Free-$ | Conversational, Taiwan/Asia | Platform dependency |
Timing Optimization
| Audience | Best Time | Worst Time |
|---|
| B2C general | 10-12 AM, 7-9 PM | 12-6 AM, during commute |
| B2B | Tue-Thu 9-11 AM | Weekends, Friday PM |
| E-commerce | Thu-Sat (pre-weekend shopping) | Monday AM |
| Breaking/urgent | Immediately | N/A |
Timezone rule: Send in the RECIPIENT's timezone, not yours.
Personalization Tiers
| Tier | What | Example | Lift vs Generic |
|---|
| None | Same message to all | "Check out our sale!" | Baseline |
| Segment | By user group | "As a premium member, you get early access" | +20-30% |
| Behavioral | Based on past actions | "The item in your cart is almost sold out" | +40-60% |
| Individual | 1:1 personalized | "Hi [Name], your favorite [Product] is back in stock" | +60-80% |
Fatigue Management
| Signal | What It Means | Action |
|---|
| Open rate declining | Content losing relevance | Improve targeting/content |
| Opt-out rate > 0.5%/send | Sending too much or wrong content | Reduce frequency, segment better |
| Uninstall spike after push | Notifications are driving users away | Immediately reduce volume |
| Click rate declining but open rate stable | Subject lines good, content disappointing | Improve content/offer quality |
Frequency caps: Set maximum notifications per user per time period:
- Push: max 3-5/week
- Email: max 2-3/week (marketing), unlimited for transactional
- SMS: max 2-4/month
A/B Testing for Notifications
| Element | What to Test | Example |
|---|
| Subject/title | Length, tone, emoji, personalization | "Your order shipped 📦" vs "Order #1234 is on its way" |
| Timing | Hour of day, day of week | 10 AM vs 7 PM |
| Content | Short vs detailed, image vs text-only | 20 words vs 50 words |
| CTA | Button text, action type | "View" vs "Track Now" |
| Channel | Push vs email vs in-app for same message | Same content, different channel |
Output Format
# Notification Strategy: {Product/Campaign}
## Channel Mix
| Message Type | Primary Channel | Fallback | Frequency |
|-------------|----------------|----------|-----------|
| {type} | {channel} | {backup} | {max/period} |
## Segmentation
| Segment | Notification | Personalization Tier |
|---------|-------------|---------------------|
| {segment} | {content} | None/Segment/Behavioral/Individual |
## Timing
| Segment | Send Time | Day | Timezone |
|---------|----------|-----|---------|
| {segment} | {HH:MM} | {day(s)} | {user's TZ} |
## Fatigue Rules
- Max push: {N}/week
- Max email: {N}/week
- Opt-out threshold: {%} → action: {reduce/pause}
## A/B Test Plan
| Test | Variant A | Variant B | Metric | Sample |
|------|----------|----------|--------|--------|
| {test} | {A} | {B} | {open rate / CTR} | {N users} |
Gotchas
- Permission is a privilege: iOS requires explicit opt-in for push. Ask at the RIGHT moment (after the user sees value), not at first launch. First-launch permission requests get 40-60% opt-in; contextual requests get 70-80%.
- Transactional vs marketing: Order confirmations, shipping updates, and security alerts are transactional (expected, high open rate). Marketing promotions are interruptive (optional, lower open rate). Never mix them in user perception.
- LINE in Taiwan is unique: LINE has 95% penetration in Taiwan. LINE Official Account messages have 60%+ open rates — significantly higher than email or push. Prioritize LINE for Taiwan audiences.
- Rich push is underused: Push notifications can include images, action buttons, and deep links. A rich push with "View Order" button converts 3-5x better than a text-only push.
References
- For LINE notification setup, see
references/line-notification.md - For email deliverability optimization, see
references/email-deliverability.md
