Time to Activate: Why Push Notifications Should Be Part of Your Marketing Playbook

Push notifications cut through the noise, hitting the lock screen in real time with urgency and impact like no other channel can deliver.

More than just a one-off reminder before kickoff, push campaigns can and should be structured as evergreen automations. Push gets the message in front of fans the moment it matters. Combined with email, it builds a cross-channel approach that turns communication into action from mobile ticket downloads, to renewal reminders and promotions that drive revenue.

Curious to learn more? We’ve got you covered with the best practices we’ve seen across the community. Let’s break down the different goals using real examples from Kansas State, Michigan, Minnesota, and others.

Kansas State: Converting Awareness Into App Adoption and Action

Kansas State began their engagement efforts with a dedicated email campaign promoting the athletics app, complete with instructions on how to download the app and enable push notifications. This initial email drove 3,783 new app downloads.

Once the app was on fans’ devices, Eloqua-powered push notifications took over to drive critical calls to action.

KSU grew to over 15,000 push-enabled accounts, and a push notification targeted at season ticket holders drove nearly half of recipients to engage. A follow-up SeatGeek resale push kept the momentum, generating additional fan activity and incremental ticket and fund revenue alongside related email efforts.

To support ongoing awareness and adoption, Kansas State also built a shared content block in Eloqua promoting their app with a direct link to the app store. This reusable asset is dropped into nearly every outbound email, reinforcing the value of the app and making it easy for fans to download it at any stage of the season.

University of Minnesota: Timely Push Reminders Improve Mobile Ticket Downloads

Minnesota paired push with email to streamline ticket delivery. Their mobile ticket reminder push, sent the day of games to fans who had not yet downloaded their tickets, reached more than 5,000 fans and drove strong engagement, with nearly 20% responding directly or indirectly. A follow-up email reinforced the message and added over $1,000 in attributed ticket revenue within 60 minutes of the email send.

Other Use Cases That Scale

Several schools have extended the use of push notifications beyond mobile ticket reminders to cover renewals, donation deadlines, and game promotions.

University of Michigan: Drive last-minute ticket sales.

With more than 46,000 push-enabled accounts, Michigan has the scale to make push a powerful channel. To promote an upcoming basketball game, they sent a targeted message just hours before tipoff, and nearly 1 in 5 fans engaged with it. By reaching the right audience at the right time, Michigan turned immediacy into action and showed how push can directly influence ticket sales.

University of Illinois: Drive donor urgency. 

Illinois used push to reinforce reseat appointments and donor deadlines, timing reminders for maximum effect. One campaign saw engagement from nearly 10% of recipients, while another pushed that number closer to 20%. Paired with email, these efforts helped secure nearly $20,000 in ticket revenue and additional fund contributions showing how deadline-driven messages can drive real action when paired with timely pushes.

University of Alabama: Drive renewals. 

Alabama paired push with email to drive season ticket renewals. More than a third of recipients engaged with the push notification, showing how highly responsive this renewal segment was when prompted. Email extended that impact at scale, generating $7.88M in ticket sales and $10.22M in fund revenue within 60 minutes of clicks. Together, push and email delivered both urgency and scale at a critical renewal moment.

These examples show that Eloqua-powered push notifications aren’t just another channel but that they’re a proven driver of engagement and revenue. From renewals to donor deadlines to last-minute sales, push keeps fans connected and your brand top of mind.

The real opportunity now is building beyond one-off campaigns into evergreen adoption. Automated journeys that run all season long. Done right, push not only drives immediate results but also builds stronger connections with fans over time.

Ready to take the next step? Connect with your Marketing Automation representative to launch an evergreen push strategy that makes this channel a reliable, revenue-driving part of your digital playbook.

Note: Push requires the SIDEARM NextGen app with the Paciolan SDK integration. Reach out to your Marketing Automation representative or Client Partner if you need to confirm your setup.