Overview

This article details the process of creating and sending push notifications from the BiznessApps CMS. It describes how you can send a message but also outlines the options you have so you can make your push notifications as tailored as possible to the app users' needs.  

Solution 

 1. Access the Push Notification Message Center 

You can open the Push Notification Message Center from the CMS, by navigating to Manage > Push Notifications.

2. Compose a Push Notification Message

a. Enter a Message Title, if you wish. This will be slightly larger and bold to signify the title or subject of the message.

b. Enter the text of the message. Apple limits push notifications to be less than 2KB in size, so we have built-in restrictions. The message should not be longer than 2029 Characters.

3. Select the Target Audience

If you wish to send a message to all users of your mobile apps, simply select the type of app for your target audience. You will not need to apply any additional filters, and the message will be sent to everyone.

However, if you wish to send your push notification to specific users or groups, select the relevant Subscriptions and Users/Groups (This will affect applications on Orange or newer source code).

Subscriptions (not yet available on PWA)

When Subscriptions are enabled, you can send push notifications assigned to one or multiple subscriptions. For users who have a selected subscription turned off on their device, they will not receive the push note alert; however, they will still see the message in their Messages tab.

If you choose not to select any subscriptions, the push notification will go out to ALL users, even if they have all subscriptions turned off (This, of course, does not override the device targets or user groups selections).

User Groups

When Groups are enabled, you can send push notes to specific groups or users in a group. When selecting one or multiple groups from the group drop-down, you will see that the users in those groups are auto-selected in the user selection. You can either leave the selection as is or further modify which users will receive your message by adding/removing users.

4. (Optional) Select the Target Location (Not Available on PWA)

You can further filter who sees your push notification by clicking the Apply Location Filters toggle. You can then select one of the following options:

• In an Area at Send (Point) allows you to set a radius around the location you select. You can input the latitude and longitude, enter the address bar to look up a spot, or drag the pin on the map. You can also adjust the size of the zone with the radius field or by dragging the anchor points on the circle, and use the unit drop-down to select kilometers or miles.

  

• Entering an Area after Send (Geofencing) allows you to set up a monitored area. When a user enters this area during the active period, they will receive the push notification. Just like with the Point option, you can input the latitude and longitude, enter the address bar to look up a spot, or just drag the pin on the map. Adjust the size of the zone with the radius field or by dragging the anchor points on the circle, and use the unit drop-down to select kilometers or miles.

  Important: Users who are still within the geofenced area should be able to receive the push notification provided their location services and the connection is enabled, and the geofenced push notification message has not yet expired. If the users have a poor connection to locations services, their location may not be broadcasted. In this case, the push notification would not be received.

  You will notice that the Geo-Fence has an expiration date and time for you to select. This allows you to configure how long you wish to monitor this location. For example, set up month-long specials for those driving by the configured location.

  

5. (Optional and applicable to native apps and not PWA) Link the messages

You can also add different abilities to your push notification with the Setup Link section.

• Link to a website URL lets you link your push notification to a site. When a user clicks the push notification, they will be directed to that URL.

  

• Link to a specific feature allows you to link your push notification to a specific feature. You can choose a tab within your app from the drop-down, and even specific items within those tabs (like an event in the Events feature), when applicable. When a user clicks the push notification, they will be taken to that specific feature within your app.

  

• Link to an offer adds a template-based message to your push notification. You must have a Messages tab active within your app to use this feature. Select an industry from the Category column, a specific template from the Offers column, and customize the design from the Style section. You can then change the Offer Title, Picture (recommended size is 1000x650 ~ 1000x750), and content. When a user clicks the push notification, the template will be launched within the Messages tab.

  

  Notes: 

  • If you delete a previously used offer image from this window, the image will no longer be hosted on our servers. This will prevent it from loading when users click and view the old push notification from their Messages tab. For this reason, we do not recommend deleting images that you have used in a prior push notification. 
  • When receiving the push notification, the URL link for the 'Author's Website' field is not a clickable link by design.

  6. (Optional) Post to Social Media

  If you wish to send your message to either your Facebook or Twitter account, you can connect and select them here.

  

  7. Send and Schedule

  This is your final step, where you determine when your push notification will be sent out to users. Click Send Now to deliver your message immediately, or Schedule For Later to deliver your message at a scheduled time.

  Schedule For Later allows you to schedule your message based on the applicable time zone. Select the time zone from the drop-down menu and the desired date and time to schedule it.

  Once you are ready to go, click Send Message.

  If you wish to save your work to revisit later, much like an email draft, you can click Save as Draft, and we will store this push notification under the Drafts section in your Push Notifications Message Center. At any time, you can come back to this message to continue work or to finally schedule and send.

  

   

  Note: You can also check this interactive tutorial that lets you compose a Push Notification message for an Android app. The steps involve setting up a Push Notification message with a location filter, setup link, and scheduled time. Thes steps for the iOS app are the same as for the Android app.

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  Testing

  • Users will start receiving the notifications you sent at the time you have scheduled

    Note: Users will only receive the push notification if they have accepted/allowed push notifications during the initial app launch. If the user has bypassed this option, you may guide them by following the Android and Google links outlined in the 'Introduction Section' of the Introduction to Push Notifications KB article.

  • You can also check on the CMS side.

    Navigate to Manage > Push Notifications > Sent or Scheduled to check the notifications.

    • If you have selected the Send Right Now option, the message will be displayed under the Sent tab.
    • If you have selected the Schedule option, the message will be displayed under the Scheduled tab.
      
      

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  Related Articles 

  • Creating Crafty Push Notifications
  • Sending Single-User Push Notifications from the Customers Page
  • Sending Multi-User Push Notifications from the Customers Page
  • Introduction to Push Notifications
  • Push Notifications Do Not Show on Device
  • Push Notifications Are Not Working On Android
  • Setting up the Groups Add-on
  • Messages Features and Subscriptions