Push notifications are one of the cheapest and most accessible sources of traffic, which continues to work in 2025. Especially in nutra, where mass demand and wide targeting make push notifications an excellent tool.

But cheap traffic does not equal effective. Today, together with experts Alex and Diana from Push House, we will discuss how to increase CTR and tell you about the most important points.

Let’s do this!

Why are push notification ads still relevant in 2025?

–   Cheapness. The cost per click starts at $0.001.

–   Flexibility. The ability to quickly test and launch a campaign.

–   Wide coverage. Especially if you have an age target audience or a mass-market product.

–   Nice nutra fit. Familiar images, triggers, pain points that work for years.

Push notifications live as long as they are clicked. And they are clicked if they are presented correctly. It’s simple.

Key factors affecting CTR

The CTR of a push notification ad is formed at the intersection of visuals, text, and display time.

The most important thing is the title. It is what catches the eye, evokes emotion or intrigue. Short phrases (up to 7 words) that reflect user pain, sense of urgency, or a promise of benefit work best.

The description should be concise, reinforce the title, and lead to a click — without unnecessary information, but with a clear call-to-action.

Good visuals are no less important. Photos of faces, emotions, older people, recognizable images of pain (for example, a scene where a person is holding their back) give the best results.

Don’t forget about the display time: morning and evening are peak hours when users actually read notifications. Plus, don’t overuse the frequency — if a push notification is boring, it won’t be clicked on anymore.

What methods don’t work in 2025

Clickbaits of the 2017-2019 era no longer produce results. Headlines like “DOCTORS ARE SHOCKED!” or “You won’t believe what happened…” are perceived as spam, reduce trust and CTR. Such techniques are simply outdated — the audience has learned to recognize them.

Faceless, lifeless pictures from photo stocks do not work either. Pictures should evoke emotions and be understandable at first glance. Universal creatives that do not take into account the GEO, age, and pain of the audience are also ineffective.

Using the same push notification ad to all GEOs is a way to drain the budget. And most importantly: ignoring the rules of sources leads to an immediate ban. Today, platforms strictly moderate your creatives, especially when it comes to the niche of nutra.

So, what approaches do work then?

In 2025, effective push notification advertising creatives are built on a combination of relevance, emotional involvement, and accurate hitting of the audience’s pain. It is not loud phrases that work, but an image that reflects the pain and context to a specific target audience. Especially with nutra, where decisions are often emotional, not rational.

1. Realistic and truthful headlines

The headline should be as close to natural speech as possible. For example: “Does your knee hurt in the evenings? This may help.” People click when they see something similar to their situation — without aggression, without pressure, but with a hint of a solution.

2. Photos of faces with emotions

Older people experiencing pain, relief or surprise. Close-up, without distracting details. This approach works especially well: a woman of 50–70 years of age, with a kind face expression, in a calm home environment. The photo should not sell, but inspire confidence.

3. News format or local news hook

Push notifications designed as mini news bits, “German doctors named the best remedy for maintaining blood pressure” or “A natural drug for joints has got into Frankfurt pharmacies.” The main thing is a convincing presentation and staying in compliance with the GEO.

4. Using social triggers

For example: “Thousands of Germans have already tried this solution” or “93% of women over 50 suffer from this — but there is a way out.” Such phrases create a FOMO effect and increase click-through rates.

5. Simplified but emotional descriptions

Minimum words, maximum benefit. For example: “Relieves pain in 10 minutes. Natural ingredients.” The user should quickly understand what they will get if they click.

6. Adapting to GEO and mentality

What works in Germany will not work in Romania. In German creatives, credibility and moderation are important, in France — emotions and staying light, in Italy — visuals and a sense of care. Always adapt your ads to the local cultural code.

7. Moderate animation or movement

Slight blinking, a “new message” effect — this can increase CTR, but only if used carefully and does not cause irritation.

Top 7 tips on how to increase CTR

1. Use personalization: add a mention of the city, country or age — it catches the eye.

2. Focus on emotion — pain, anxiety, surprise work better than dry information.

3. Test different faces. Photos of elderly people with a pronounced emotion of pain or relief are the best visuals for nutra.

4. Write headlines as if you are addressing them personally, “Have you tried this product yet?” works better than impersonal text.

5. Avoid information overload: the simpler and faster the notification is to read, the higher the chance of a click.

6. Update creatives regularly: a worn-out banner is a dead banner.

7. Compare ad campaign approaches by the full funnel, not just by CTR: a cheap click does not mean profitable leads.

Expert view

Alex, Senior Account Manager at Push House

The push notification advertising format has a low CTR, and 0.04-0.06% are considered successful. However, creativity is always important, as this is your first contact with the audience. Here are some recommendations:

1. High CTR is good, but abnormally high (more than 1%) can be a problem. In such cases, it is worth contacting the manager. At Push House, we always conduct additional checks of publishers if we see anomalies in the metrics of their sites.

2. Get inspired by spying services, but do not copy. A common mistake among beginners is to copy outdated creatives there. Also, do not take pictures from photo stocks — they look fake. Take an idea from a spying service and design it in some free and simple editor like Figma.

3. Consider geographic, cultural and religious characteristics, as well as the income level of the population: for tier-1 countries, quality and trust are important, for tier 3 — price and speed.

4. Use 3-5 creatives in campaign tests to compare not only CTR, but also CR. But don’t just change the picture, play with accents: creative A provides a solution to some pain, creative B shows how much you are losing by not using the product, creative C talks about the benefits of the product and the need to buy right now.

But even if you follow all these recommendations, it is always better to consult with the manager when launching a campaign. At Push House, we take these and many other features into account when working with creatives to guarantee the best result.

Diana, Account Manager at Push House

1) CTR of a push notification ad begins even before the launch — with a precise understanding of the audience. At Push.House, we always say, “A push notification ad is not just a message, it is a micro dialogue.” Who is reading it? How old is this person? What worries them, makes them happy, hooks them? If you clearly know who you are talking to, the headlines and visuals are configured almost intuitively. The more personal and close the tone, the higher the engagement

2) One of the most frequently asked questions is why did the CTR drop? And almost always the reason is burned out creatives. The user gets tired of seeing the same picture, getting that old news. In our tests, regularly changing the visuals, headlines and even call-to-action wording increases the CTR by 30-50%. And you don’t need a picture perfect creative here — you need a recognizable creative that speaks to a person in their language. Simplicity, honesty and an emotional message — that’s what really works

3) CTR is not only about clicks, but also about context. The same push can “fire” in the morning and “fail” in the afternoon. We recommend testing not only creatives, but also the time of display, frequency and even the weather in the user’s region. Yes, this sounds like a trifle, but on a large scale – such details give an increase. And most importantly: even a push that worked yesterday can “get tired” tomorrow. Don’t be afraid to change — be afraid not to track

4) We often see the same mistake: creatives are tested based on the “pretty/ugly” principle, and not on the numbers in the statistics. A high CTR is good, but it should lead to conversions, not just clicks. If the CTR has grown, but there are fewer leads, this is not a reason to rejoice, but to dig deeper.

In conclusion,

Increasing CTR means learning to speak to the audience in their language, evoke emotions, hit the pain point and at the same time maintain trust. The era of cliched shocking headlines is a thing of the past — today the winner is the one who can combine realism, personalization and honest presentation.

A strong push notification advertising is not just a clickable headline, but a whole micro-dialogue with the user, where every stroke is important: from the visual to the time of display. Constant testing, adapting to your GEOs and keen observation are the key to growth. Keep an eye not only on your CTR, but on the entire sales funnel – and don’t be afraid to change your approach, even if it seems “fine as is.”