How to create Mobile Notifications?

Mobile notifications are brief messages delivered to smartphones or tablets, alerting users about important updates, messages, or events from apps or services. They serve to keep users informed and engaged with timely information on their devices.

Mobile notifications are built using a combination of server-side infrastructure (GetResponse is using Firebase Cloud Message Servers) and client-side software development kits (SDKs). The server-side component manages the sending of notifications, while the client-side SDK handles the display and interaction with notifications on the device.

Getting token/consent and notification delivery flow:

When a user opens the mobile application, a token is requested from Firebase Cloud Messaging (FCM). That token is passed on to Getresponse via connected SDK as consent, allowing GetResponse to send mobile push notifications to this user’s device.
After the notification is delivered (or failed to deliver) and displayed, information about those actions is automatically passed as events to GetResponse via SDK.

The token/consent becomes invalid when:

• The user uninstalls/reinstalls the app.
• The user clears the app data.
• The user disables notifications for that app in settings.
• The user doesn’t open the app for 4 weeks.

To receive a new token, the user must open the app.

Adding mobile app

To add your mobile app to GetResponse:

1. Go to Push notifications >> Mobile apps.
   
   
   
2. Click Add mobile app.
3. Enter the name for your mobile app (up to 255 characters).
4. (Optional ) In Add your app icon upload a picture you want to display in your notification preview module. In the notification delivered to your phone, we will use the native icon of your application.
5. In Enable Firebase in GetResponse section upload the previously prepared JSON private key and enter your Firebase project ID (the value entered must match the value in the private key JSON file).
   If you don’t have the private key, check here how to obtain it.
6. Click Save to add the app.
   
   
   
   
7. You can immediately download SDK after saving using the Get SDK button. It is also possible to do it anytime at a later stage.
   
   
   

Managing apps

To manage your mobile app:

1. Go to Push notifications >> Mobile apps.
2. Hover over the actions menu (vertical ellipsis).
   There you can:
   • Edit your mobile app – to change its name, add or change the icon and/or change the Firebase data
   • Create notification – to create a notification
   • Get SDK – to prepare and download Software Development Kit (SDK) for your mobile app
   • Delete (it’s only possible if there are no sent notifications).
     
     

On that screen, you will also see how many people are subscribed to notifications in your mobile app.

Creating notifications

Mobile app notifications are brief messages sent directly to users’ mobile devices, offering real-time updates, reminders, or information. These notifications serve as a direct communication channel, allowing businesses to engage with their audience instantly. For example, they can be used to announce promotional offers, deliver breaking news, or provide personalized recommendations. By leveraging mobile app notifications effectively, businesses can enhance user engagement, drive conversions, and improve overall customer satisfaction.

Note: Depending on the operating system (Android or iOS) and device type, there may be different character limits. If you want the notification to display fine for all the subscribers, it’s best not to create too long notifications, as they might not be displayed fully.

You can create notifications manually or using AI.

To create a notification:

1. Go to Push notifications >> Mobile apps.
2. Hover over the actions menu (vertical ellipsis) and click on Create notification. Click Create notification button.
   
   
   
3. Enter an internal name for your notification (up to 150 characters).
   At this stage, you can decide if you want to use AI (table below) or create one manually (skip to point 4.).

4. In the Content section enter the notification Title (up to 250 characters). Use a catchy phrase or your brand name.
5. (Optional) Add the Notification text (up to 250 characters). Use it to share more details about the thing you’re promoting, inform your notification subscribers about changes, or notify them about running sales or new products.
6. Select On-tap action:
   • Open the app – to open your app
   • Open a link in a browser – to open a URL you provide below
   • Open a deep link – to redirect the user to a selected place in your app. This option requires development on your side. In mobile notifications, we will pass the parameters you provide that you will be able to use in your app code. More details on how to implement it are described here.
7. (Optional) Upload an Image to the notification. You can use: JPEG, .JPG or PNG file, no bigger than 10 MB. We recommend using an image with a width-to-height ratio of 2:1.
8. On the right, you will be able to see the preview of your notification and see how they look on Android and iOS phones. It is purely informational, as there will be visual differences on particular devices.
   
   
   
9. In Scheduling section, you can decide if you want to Send the notification immediately or Schedule for later. When scheduling the notification, you can change the time zone to other than the default one in your account.
   You also Set notification lifespan to define how long Firebase will try to deliver your notifications to recipients.
   
   
   
10. (Optional) Channel and custom data contains the following elements:
    • Android notification key (channel ID) – lets you enter the channel through which you want to reach your Android app users. If no channel ID is given, the notification will go through your default channel. You will find more info on how to use it in our Dev Guide.
    • Custom data key (up to 150 characters) and Custom data value (up to 150 characters) – to each notification you can add up to 10 custom data as key-value pairs. This data will be passed directly to your app with a notification and you can add some custom behaviour based on it – this step will require your development.
      
      
      
      
11. You can click Cancel, Save draft to use the notification later on, Send notification to send it right away, or Schedule notification to send it based on the data selected in the scheduling section.
    Note: to send the notification immediately, you need at least one permission to send notifications (one notification subscriber), but you don’t need one at this time to schedule notification for later.

Managing notifications

To manage your notifications:

1. Go to Web push notifications >> Mobile apps.
2. Click on your app name.
3. On the Notifications tab, hover over the actions menu (vertical ellipsis) where you can:
   • View to see the notification preview
   • Cancel (if scheduled) to change its status to draft
   • Duplicate your notification
   • Edit it (if it wasn’t sent or scheduled)
   • Delete it (if it wasn’t sent or scheduled)

To change the scheduled date and time of your notification you need to cancel it and schedule again.

Notification statistics 

To see your notification statistics:

1. Go to Push notifications >> Mobile apps.
2. Click on your app name.
3. You will see the list of all your notifications. Statistics are divided into columns:
   • Name – internal name of your notification
   • Status (Draft, Scheduled, Sent, Sent manually)
   • Created on – date and time of notification creation
   • Sent on – date and time of when the notification was sent
   • Sent – total number of sent notifications, followed by the number of GetResponse contacts the notification was sent to and other contacts
   • Delivered – total number of succesfully delivered notifications, followed by the number of GetResponse contacts who received it and other receivers
   • Clicked – total number of receivers who clicked on the notification link, followed by the number of GetResponse contacts who clicked it and other contacts