How to learn Lessons from NBC Sports’ Mobile Retention Strategy

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The sports activities world had a bumpy experience in 2021. In consequence, NBC Sports activities needed to dramatically recalculate their technique. They’ve come out on the opposite finish with an much more refined method to partaking their prospects of their app that higher leverages information—and helps preserve customers coming again.

Table of Content

We sat down with Scott Dargis, NBC Sports activities’ Supervisor of Cellular Notifications, at our Elevate occasion. He revealed how NBC Sports activities has been in a position to preserve individuals engaged throughout a wild 12 months.

Listed below are three classes from NBC Sports activities’ technique.

Check Your Notifications as A lot as Attainable

If you ship notifications, you need them to really feel natural. Importantly, you don’t need customers to really feel like one thing’s being pushed on them. To discover a wholesome steadiness between the 2, NBC Sports activities A/B examined all kinds of notifications.

The outcome: NBC discovered that “tease” kind notifications—messages that present customers with a nugget of the content material inside, however not the entire story—carried out the most effective. These cliffhanger-style notifications have helped NBC Sports activities preserve their direct open charges sturdy.

In testing, the NBC staff discovered that notifications with emojis within the topic line outperformed these with out. One or two emojis was the candy spot for engagement. Icons, graphics, and different wealthy notification parts inspired higher engagement as effectively.

NBC Sports activities additionally gave their writers extra management over the voice and tone of messages, significantly for particular person staff content material. Personalizing staff content material on this method helps NBC Sports activities preserve their notifications related and relatable.

Perception: Experiment with notification approaches and perceive that your customers need to see one thing attention-grabbing. Personalize at any time when you’ll be able to, and at all times give customers a cause to interact.

Rethink How Many Notifications You’re Sending

If individuals really feel bombarded with notifications that they don’t discover attention-grabbing, they’ll tune out. NBC Sports activities realized this when the pandemic hit. As a result of dwell sports activities had been largely shut down, their quantity of notifications decreased — and so did their app uninstalls and opt-outs.

Now, NBC Sports activities makes use of a cautious, analytics-backed method to notifications. They section their customers with lists and groupings in response to league divisions, widespread fanbases, and extra. This manner, NBC is ready to ship fewer notifications —and those that they do ship really feel extra private.

Perception: Deal with what you’re sending, not what number of notifications you’re sending. If yow will discover a method to ship fewer notifications and achieve the identical targets, do this.

Timing Is Necessary

NBC Sports activities realized that when they ship their notifications may be practically as essential as what they’re sending. Individuals need to obtain notifications at instances once they’re all for interacting with that content material. NBC discovered that, for his or her app, lunch and dinner instances (early afternoon and mid-evening) labored greatest.

It is sensible: Individuals need to watch sports activities once they’ve received free time. As sports activities followers are scrolling by way of their telephone at lunch or after dinner, they’re usually on the lookout for one thing to observe. NBC Sports activities capitalizes on this by sending well timed messages through the durations when their customers are most energetic.

Perception: Have a look at the analytics and work out when your customers need to obtain notifications. Attempt to ship your essential notifications throughout that timeframe.

The Backside Line

2021 compelled NBC Sports activities to reevaluate their technique. They’ve emerged on the opposite facet with an much more efficient framework for sending prospects notifications that they really need to see. If you wish to be taught extra about how Airship’s Push Notification platform might help your enterprise, click on the button beneath to get in contact.

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