Notifications can be used to draw users' attention to new content in the app. They can also link to external pages. The notifications are displayed in the notification stream in the app. The notification stream can be displayed via the bell in the top right-hand corner.
Creation of a notification
Click on the tab Communicate and click then on Notifications.
Select Create notification in the top right-hand corner and the creation screen will open.
A notification has a header and a body (=description text). The header is required.
All users who allow push notifications on their device will be informed of the new message by a push notification.
Add media
You can add media to notifications. You will find an upload field for an image or a video.
Each notification can contain an image and also a video. Click on the upload fields and select your file or drag and drop your files into the fields. Under Video type you will also find the option to embed videos via YouTube or Vimeo. (How do I integrate videos into ovos play?)
Recommendations for images in notifications:
400*300 pixels (4:3 ratio)
smaller than 200kb
.jpg (for detailed images)
.png for illustration graphics and transparent backgrounds
Recommendations for videos:
We generally recommend the use of external platforms for embedding videos within ovos play.
For uploaded videos we recommend:
Recommended format: 4:3 or 16:9
Recommended file size: 10 MB
Recommended resolution: 1280px x 720px
File format: mp4
Add an action
Each notification must contain an action. You can use this action to link to content in your app or to external websites. You can choose between 5 different options:
No action
Open article
Open deck
Open topic
Open external page
No action
Hereby you send purely informative notifications without a button that refers to further content. They can be closed by users at any time after receipt.
Open article
If you use the Posts module, you can also use notifications to point out new posts. Users only see notifications for posts that they are allowed to see based on their group assignment. (Groups)
Open deck
This selection links the user to a deck in your library when the notification is opened. The deck must be visible to users based on their content package assignment. (Content packages)
Open topic
This selection links the user to a topic in your library when the notification is opened. The topic must be visible to users. (Content packages)
Open external page
This selection links the user to an external page when the news is opened. The user then leaves the app or application.
Restricting the visibility of a notification
By selecting groups, you can determine which group of users receives the notification. You can select the groups under the "Action" field.
In the group selection, you can choose from all the groups visible to you. You can also select several groups. If you select a superordinate group, all users in subordinate groups will also be notified.
Note: If library items are selected as an action, users will only see the notification if they are part of the selected groups and have access to the library item by assigning content packages.
When will a notification be published?
A notification can either appear within a certain time or be activated when users fulfill a certain condition.
Time
This condition allows you to activate your notification based on a start and end date. This notification is therefore time-bound.
Start date
The start date of the display + notification is selected here. The notifications appear on the selected day at 9 a.m. European time.End date
The end date of the notification is selected here. After this date, the notification is no longer visible to users. We recommend not leaving a notification active for longer than 30 days.
Tip: When setting the date, pay attention to which time zone is used. You can see the time zone at the top right next to the selected language. The time zone is automatically adopted from your browser setting.
Unlock notifications
Activation
This condition differentiates between actions after which your notification appears
First login
First login: Notifications appear at the top of the home screen when users register. This condition is very useful for tutorial decks to show users how the app works and how to proceed.