PushOwl is an app that lets you run push notification marketing on your Shopify store. Push notifications offer benefits and use cases that differ from the common marketing method of email marketing.
"What benefits can I get from PushOwl's push notifications? What are some use cases?"
"Please tell me exactly how to use PushOwl."
Reading this article will answer questions and needs like these.
PushOwl is a feature-rich app that's easy for even beginners to use, and it's likely to spark new marketing ideas. Please use this article as a reference and consider giving it a try.
What Is PushOwl, Shopify's Popular Marketing App?
Image source: PushOwl/Brevo | Shopify App Store
PushOwl is a marketing app for Shopify that enables push notifications and email marketing, helping you communicate effectively with customers. It can also display an on-screen popup to collect customer addresses and phone numbers.
By using this app, you can deliver sale information and new product announcements to more customers at the right time. It also enables measures that directly boost sales, such as preventing cart abandonment and sending stock notifications.
PushOwl's Key Features and Capabilities
PushOwl is a feature-rich marketing app. Here are its main features.
Web Push Notifications
Push notifications are small messages that appear on a smartphone or computer screen. Examples include the notification that pops up at the top of the screen when you receive a new message on LINE, or the notification you get when someone likes your post on Instagram. A web push notification is a push notification delivered through a web browser (such as Google Chrome or Safari).
Example of a push notification
The biggest feature of web push notifications is that they let you notify customers of the latest information without collecting their email addresses. Even when a customer doesn't have your store page open, the latest updates can still appear on their smartphone screen.
Email Marketing
PushOwl lets you run email marketing to the list of customers whose addresses you've collected. A variety of design templates are available for marketing emails, so you can create them intuitively.
You can check the open rate and bounce rate (the rate of emails that failed to reach the recipient and bounced back) of the emails you send. Since email marketing also supports A/B testing, you can improve your campaigns efficiently.
The blog article below explains email marketing in more detail. Please use it as a reference.
Popups
Web push notifications require the recipient's permission, and delivering email marketing requires collecting addresses. The popup feature is designed to handle these tasks effectively.
Based on how long a user has been on your site and their behavior, you can display a popup on screen to get permission for notifications or to collect email addresses. Popup designs can be customized based on templates.
There are also other features such as SMS marketing and segmentation, enabling advanced marketing.
The blog article below introduces apps recommended for displaying popups. Please use it as a reference.
Points to Note About PushOwl
PushOwl is a feature-rich marketing tool, but there are two points to keep in mind when using it.
Note 1. Push Notifications Require the User's Permission
To deliver push notifications to a user's device, the customer must have granted permission for notifications. There are two aspects to this permission.
- 1. The user allows notifications from the Shopify site.
- 2. The user has allowed notifications from their device's web browser.
Let's look at each in detail.
1. The User Allows Notifications from the Shopify Site
The first is the permission given in response to the prompt asking "Is it okay to send notifications from this site?" shown to users who visit your Shopify store. Once a user grants "permission" here, PushOwl can deliver push notification campaigns to them.
2. The User Has Allowed Notifications from Their Device's Web Browser
Notifications from PushOwl are delivered to users through a browser (such as Google Chrome or Safari). For this to work, the user must have allowed notifications from the browser in their smartphone or computer's system settings. This is the second permission.
Example of a web browser notification settings screen on Mac
In other words, even if a customer has granted notification permission for the store (the first permission), notifications won't be delivered if the user has turned off browser notifications on their device (the second permission).
Note 2. Japanese Language Support Is Incomplete
PushOwl is a tool made in the United States. Japanese is available as a language setting, but not all content has been translated.
In particular, the operation help screens and the marketing email creation screen are English only. If you're not comfortable with English, it's a good idea to use your browser's translation feature.
Benefits and Use Cases of Adding PushOwl to Shopify
There are many other apps that enable email marketing and SMS marketing on Shopify. However, there aren't many apps that enable push notifications. Here we introduce the benefits and use cases of web push, which PushOwl makes possible.
Boost Sales by Preventing Cart Abandonment
You can automatically send reminder push notifications to customers who added items to their cart but didn't complete a purchase. This can encourage customers to resume their purchase.
For example, you could set the first notification to be sent 3 hours after an item is added to the cart, with a second notification sent 24 hours later. Including a discount coupon in the second notification can also help push the customer toward completing the purchase.
The blog article below explains cart abandonment countermeasures you can implement on Shopify in detail. Please use it as a reference.
Timely Delivery of Sale Information
Push notifications can be scheduled for a specific period or time. This lets you quickly deliver information about limited-time sales or flash sales to customers and encourage them to respond.
For example, you could send a notification one hour before a weekend-only sale begins, and send another notification the moment the sale starts, to drive highly motivated customers to your store.
Notifications by Customer Segment
You can segment customers based on purchase history and browsing behavior, and send notifications optimized for each segment. Segments can be based on various criteria, such as how often or when a customer clicks notifications, or their location (country or city).
For example, prioritizing notifications about new arrivals or sales for customers who frequently browse your store can help you achieve a higher conversion rate.
PushOwl Pricing Plans
PushOwl offers three pricing plans. Here's an overview of the pricing and main features supported by each.
| Plan Name | Basic Bundle | Plus Bundle | Power Bundle |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly Fee | Free | From $19 | From $79 |
| Web Push | Up to 500/month |
10,000-30,000/month Usage-based pricing |
25,000-Unlimited/month Usage-based pricing |
| Up to 500/month | Unlimited | Unlimited | |
| SMS | Usage-based pricing | Usage-based pricing | Usage-based pricing |
| Welcome Notification | ◯ | ◯ | ◯ |
| Back-in-Stock Notification | ◯ | ◯ | ◯ |
| Price Drop Notification | ◯ | ◯ | ◯ |
| Cart Abandonment Recovery | × | ◯ | ◯ |
| Browser Abandonment | × | × | ◯ |
| Automation | × | × | ◯ |
| Flash Sale | × | × | ◯ |
| Segmentation | × | × | ◯ |
| Email A/B Testing | ◯ | ◯ | ◯ |
| Custom Popup | × | ◯ | ◯ |
As of February 2025
Paying annually gives you a 10% discount. You can easily check usage-based pricing for message volume on the official pricing page.
Basic Usage of the PushOwl Shopify App
Here's how to use PushOwl. In this section, we'll cover how to acquire subscribers and how to send web push campaigns.
Acquiring Subscribers with a Popup
The first thing to do is set up a popup to acquire subscribers (customers who will receive push notifications or marketing emails).
Select "Opt-in Forms" from the home screen. An opt-in is when you get a customer's permission to send them advertising and marketing.
Click "New Opt-in," then "Popup," in that order.
Image source: PushOwl admin screen
A list of templates will appear. The opt-in target (Web Push, Email, SMS) varies by template, so choose the one that fits your purpose.
Clicking a template takes you to the customization screen.
In the opt-in flow, you can choose "how many seconds until the popup appears" and "which opt-in popup to show."
Clicking "Settings" lets you show the popup based on scroll amount, and set the target audience and frequency.
On the customization screen, you can set the content's wording, colors, and placement.
For Web Push, switching to "Custom Prompt" lets you display a logo and change the wording.
Once you've finished configuring it, click "Publish" in the upper right.
This displays the popup on your Shopify store, letting you gain notification permission from customers and collect their addresses.
Sending a Web Push Campaign
You can send web push campaigns to customers who have allowed notifications from their browser.
From the left sidebar menu on the home screen, click "Web Push," then "Campaigns," in that order. Click "Create Campaign."
Set the campaign details.
- Sending option: Choose "Send Now" or "Schedule" (schedule for later)
- Campaign type: Choose "Regular Campaign" or "Flash Sale" (Power Bundle plan only)
- Segment: Choose "All Subscribers" (default) or a segment you've created (Power Bundle plan only)
- Advanced campaign settings: Choose whether to use smart delivery (Power Bundle plan only)
After configuring it, click "Continue."
Create your campaign. You can also customize a template using "Create from Template."
Set the following items.
- Title
- Message
- Primary link
- Discount code
- Hero image
- Button (if you want to add one)
The primary link is where you set a shareable discount link (a feature that automatically applies a coupon code at checkout). Once you've finished configuring it, click "Continue."
A sending confirmation will appear. If everything looks good, click "Send" to complete delivery.
The push notification is delivered to users who have allowed notifications. If you haven't scheduled it for later, it's sent immediately.
If delivery doesn't work well, one possible cause, besides the opt-in notification permission, is that the customer hasn't allowed notifications from their browser. (See "Points to Note About PushOwl.")
How to Add PushOwl to Shopify and Set It Up
Here's how to add PushOwl and complete its initial setup.
How to Add PushOwl
PushOwl's settings and operations are handled not in the Shopify admin, but in PushOwl's own admin screen on an external site. To connect your Shopify store with PushOwl, you first need to add the Shopify app.
Install PushOwl/Brevo from the Shopify App Store.
Image source: PushOwl/Brevo | Shopify App Store
Your Shopify store will show an installation confirmation again, so click "Install."
Image source: Shopify admin screen
Next, create an account while checking the information shown on screen. Along the way, you'll enter the following information.
- What is your industry?
- What do you sell?
- Choose your preferred language (Note: Japanese is not selectable here.)
The Shopify theme customizer will appear, so enable PushOwl.
Next, you'll be taken to PushOwl's admin screen, where you choose a plan and create an account. PushOwl offers a 14-day free trial. Click "Start my Free Trial."
Image source: PushOwl admin screen
Approve the subscription. No charge occurs at this step.
This completes account creation.
Next, as part of the initial setup, let's configure the language setting and the logo. Click "Settings" in the left sidebar menu on the home screen.
Click the Language dropdown and select "Japanese." This switches the interface to Japanese. Note that some parts are not translated into Japanese. Use your browser's translation feature as needed. From here on, on-screen labels in this article will be written in Japanese.
Next, set your logo under "Store Details," located below the language setting. The recommended size is 200px x 200px. Larger images are automatically resized, but if the aspect ratio isn't 1:1 (square), the image won't display cleanly.
That's all for the initial setup.
Use Web Push Notifications to Boost Your Shopify Sales!
This article explained the features, benefits, and usage of PushOwl, a marketing app for Shopify.
By using web push notifications, you can direct customers to your site in a timely way without collecting their addresses, and bring back customers who abandoned their cart or left the page.
If you're facing marketing challenges, use this article as a reference to add PushOwl and aim to boost sales at your Shopify store!
