How do I send push notifications to players?
Push notifications let you send messages directly to all players who have joined your event. Use them to share announcements, highlight new challenges, or keep players engaged throughout the event.
Sending a Push Notification
Step 1: Open the Notifications Tab
In Thrillify Backstage, open your event and select the Notifications tab.
You’ll see a table of all previously sent or scheduled notifications and a New Notification button.
Step 2: Write Your Notification
Click New Notification to open the notification form. Fill in the following fields:
- Title: A short headline for the notification (up to 50 characters). This is the bold text players see first.
- Message: The body of the notification (up to 200 characters). Keep it concise since longer messages may be truncated on some devices.
- Link to Challenge (optional): Select a challenge from the dropdown. When a player taps the notification, the app will open directly to that challenge.
- Send At (optional): Pick a future date and time to schedule the notification. Leave this empty to send it immediately.
TIP
Players automatically receive in-app reminders and notifications about scheduled challenges, so you don’t need to send push notifications for those. Push notifications are best used for custom announcements and updates that go beyond the regular challenge schedule.
Step 3: Send
Click Send Notification to queue the notification. It will be delivered to all players in the event within a few minutes.
INFO
Notifications are sent to players who have the Thrillify app installed and have granted push notification permissions. Players who have turned off push notifications in their device settings will not receive them. Players also need to have an active internet connection at the time the push notification is sent in order to receive it.
Scheduling Notifications
You can schedule a notification to be sent at a specific date and time instead of sending it right away. This is useful when you want to plan communications ahead of time, like sending a reminder the morning of a big challenge window.
To schedule a notification, use the Send At field in the notification form and pick your desired date and time. The time is based on the event’s configured timezone.
Scheduled notifications appear in the notifications table with a “Scheduled For” column so you can see when each one will go out.
INFO
If you change your event’s timezone after scheduling a notification, the scheduled time will automatically adjust so it still fires at the same wall-clock time in the new timezone.
Linking to a Challenge
Linking a notification to a challenge is useful when you want to draw attention to a specific activity, like a newly added challenge, a time-limited opportunity, or a challenge that needs more submissions.
When a player taps a notification linked to a challenge, the app navigates directly to that challenge’s page.
If no challenge is selected, tapping the notification simply opens the app.
Tips for Effective Notifications
- Be timely. Send notifications when players are most likely to engage, like during event hours or right before a key challenge window opens.
- Schedule ahead. If you know when key moments in your event will happen, schedule notifications in advance so you don’t have to remember to send them manually.
- Keep it short. Notification titles and messages are most effective when they are brief and to the point.
- Don’t over-send. Too many notifications can lead players to turn them off entirely. Save push notifications for important moments.
- Use challenge links. Linking to a specific challenge increases the chance that players will engage with it immediately.
Viewing Past Notifications
The Notifications tab shows a history of all notifications including the title, message, linked challenge, scheduled time, and when each was actually sent. Use this to keep track of what you’ve already communicated to your players and what’s still queued up.