Floating Notifications — Is It Time You Integrate Them Into Your App?

Wondering if it is time you integrate floating notifications into your app? This is an important question that we intend to answer in this article.

In this article

1. The role of notifications in the success of an app
2. Floating notifications: What they are?
3. Should you integrate floating notifications into your app?
4. Integrating floating messages into your app
5. Frequently Asked Questions on integrating floating notifications

The role of notifications in the success of an app

Why do messages or notifications matter in an app? Well, app engagement through a well-designed user interface is important, and app notifications can help considerably to improve audience engagement and site statistics.

A mobile app can incorporate two kinds of notifications, namely, “push notifications”, and “in-app messages”.

Why should you use “push notifications” in your app? “Push notifications” bring people back to your app, therefore, you can re-engage with them.

“Push notifications” can deliver many advantages, e.g.:

• They can increase the users’ engagement with your app.
• Users are more likely to return to an app that has “push notifications”.
• Such notifications can increase the user retention rate, moreover, they can increase conversion.

Read more about these advantages in “The growing importance of mobile app push notifications [Infographic]”.

On the other hand, in-app messages play a key part in enhancing the user experience of users that are already engaged with your app. You need to think carefully before incorporating such messages into your app since you don’t want to disrupt users when they use the app.

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In-app messages offer several advantages, e.g.:

• They help businesses grow their subscriber base.
• You can customize messages for each customer segment.

Check out “Why In-App Messaging Is Important” to understand these advantages in greater detail.

Floating notifications: What they are?

Why are we talking about a floating notification in the first place? Let’s assume that you are using your mobile phone to consume content or carry out a task, and a message arrives in your notification panel. If you want to read the message or act on it, you need to move away from what you were doing earlier.

Floating notifications are different, though. Such messages pop up on your screen in a floating bubble, which shows a preview of the message depending on your settings. What if you don’t interact with the notification at that time? Well, the bubble fades away.

However, if you choose to interact with it, then you can expand the bubble. That way, you get a window that shows all the features in the app. Facebook messenger uses this feature, and Google is testing it for its “Google Messages” app.

Read more about this in “Google Messages app testing floating bubbles for a conversation on Android 10”.

Should you integrate floating notifications into your app?

Now you know what floating notifications are. Should you incorporate them into your app? The answer to this question isn’t a straightforward one.

Facebook Messenger is indeed very popular and it incorporates floating messages. However, Google has decided to test this feature thoroughly before integrating it into the “Google Messages” app.

When Google had announced the launch of Android 10, the company had also announced “Bubbles”, an API that enables apps to put messaging in a floating bubble. However, it decided to not include it in Android 10.

Google expected developers to create an improved version of it, and then offered “Bubbles” as part of Android 11. Read more about this in “Google Messages starts testing floating conversations w/ Android Bubbles”.

According to the latest data, Google may let any app use floating “Bubbles” in future versions of Android.

We recommend that you keep an eye on what Google is doing about “Bubbles”, which will help you to understand whether floating messages have a wider demand. At the same time, we recommend that you take a hard look at your customer base and determine whether this feature will help them.

You could use tools such as market surveys to understand how your customers might receive it if you offer floating messages in your app. Also, start a thorough conversation with your business stakeholders to understand whether floating messages will end up disrupting your users.

You have likely developed a detailed understanding of your customers using tools and techniques I have explained in “5 tips to create a sleek MVP”. Use this insight to determine whether floating messages in your app will help your users.

Integrating floating messages into your app

Have you decided to integrate floating messages into your app? Well, the next step is to implement it in your UI and code.

You need to incorporate floating messages in a way that maintains consistency in the UI design. As I had discussed in “Mobile navigation menu examples”, consistency in UI design is a key factor that drives the success of an app.

You need competent developers to code this feature effectively, however, finding them can be hard. If you are undertaking native Android and iOS development, then you need multiple skills.

You need Java/Kotlin skills for native Android development and Swift/Objective-C skills for native iOS development. Check out our guide “How to find a good software developer”, which can help you to find high-quality developers for these platforms.

Floating notifications: Plan carefully before integrating them into your app

As you can see, floating messages are relatively new. Will they help your users, and will your app benefit from floating messages? You need to think through these questions carefully. If you choose to implement this feature, then plan your project meticulously.

Adding novel features like this can make your project a complex one. I recommend that you work with a trusted software development company for such projects, and read our guide “How to find the best software development company?” to find one.

If you are still on the hunt for an experienced software development partner, why not leave your initial app project details with DevTeam.Space via this quick form.

DevTeam.Space has a field-expert community of software developers and project managers with experience in building innovative software solutions using cutting-edge technologies. One of our account managers will respond to you instantly for further discussion on your mobile application development project.

Frequently Asked Questions on integrating floating notifications