What are pop-up messages?

As the name suggests, these notifications “pop up” to show the user important information, app features, offers, updates, or calls to action. Pop-up messages, or pop-ups, are designed to capture user attention and drive immediate action. 

They’re commonly used to deliver important announcements, and time-sensitive updates and prompt users to use valuable in-app functionalities that help predict engagement and retention.

Benefits of pop-up messages

• Functionality awareness: Pop-ups are essential to guiding users through the app interface, ensuring that users know the steps required to execute critical functions as they navigate the app.

• Attention-grabbing: Pop-up Messages appear prominently on the screen so that users always notice when new information is presented.

• Increased user engagement: Pop-ups are often used to help users explore key areas of the app, and play a critical role in onboarding.

• Timely information: Pop-ups call attention to critical and time-sensitive information such as security alerts, announcements, live streams, upcoming events, and more.

Use cases for pop-up messages

• Onboarding: An important element of onboarding flows, pop-ups guide users through key features, functionalities, or areas of the mobile app.

• Opt-in requests: Pop-ups enable push notification strategies and email strategies, helping to gather user consent to receive notifications or communications from a business.

• Feedback and surveys: Pop-ups help to gather insights and user-generated content by prompting users to participate in polls or surveys following events or product success.

• Marketing: Pop-ups can collect user information, showcase special offers, or feature calls to action to drive leads and conversions.

How industries use pop-up messages

• Healthcare: Providers can use pop-ups to send reminders about upcoming appointments, prescription refills, signup or coverage cutoff dates, and share health tips.

• On-demand services: Ride sharing, food delivery, and other on-demand service apps use pop-ups to showcase limited-time offers, highlight new services or partners, and provide delivery updates.

• Financial services: Pop-ups are an effective way to notify users of account alerts like suspicious activity, to prompt document uploads for account verification, or to remind users of upcoming bill payments.

• Social and community apps: Online communities and apps use pop-ups to convey information about upcoming events, live streams, policy changes, and community guidelines.

• Education: Learning platforms and educational institutions use pop-up messages to prompt in-app course enrollment, inform users of progress, or invite users to upcoming learning modules or events.

• Marketplaces: Pop-ups are used in eCommerce to remind users of abandoned carts, flash sales, and recommend complementary or related products for purchase.

Key features of pop-up messages

• Customization: Look for user interface (UI) kits that make it easy to customize the appearance of pop-up messages to your brand, including layout, color, fonts, and more.

• Mobile responsiveness: Pop-ups must be optimized to the various screen sizes and orientation of mobile devices. Responsive design is included with mobile software development kits (SDKs) and their accompanying UI kits.

• Integrations: Typically, developers can integrate pop-up messages using an API from the communication platform provider. No-code tools may also be available in the platform’s user dashboard to help non-technical users with implementation.

Pop-up messages convey important information that alerts users effectively, but it’s important to use them judiciously. Too many pop-ups can overwhelm users and diminish engagement, so balance your pop-ups' timing, frequency, and relevance to maintain a positive app experience.