SMS vs Push Notifications: Which Brings Customers Back?

SMS vs Push Notifications: Which Brings Customers Back?

SMS reaches anyone with a phone number, and it is the better channel for information a customer must read or keep. Push notifications reach only people who have your app or wallet card with notifications switched on, and they are the better channel for a friendly nudge to come back. For a salon, cafe or shop in the Netherlands that wants repeat visits, the practical answer is usually push for the nudge and SMS for the essentials. Below we explain why, what Dutch consent rules mean for both, and how to time and space your messages.

TL;DR

• SMS is durable and works without data or an app. Push is easy to dismiss but suits nonurgent messages that lead people back to you.
• In the Netherlands, marketing by SMS or app message generally needs prior consent, and every message needs a free, easy way to object.
• Tie messages to behavior (a stamp card nearly full, a birthday, a lapsed visit) rather than sending generic blasts.
• Fewer, better-timed messages beat frequent ones: research on app users links too many notifications to uninstalls.
• A wallet card gives you push-style messages without asking customers to download an app.

Table of Contents

• What each channel actually is
• SMS vs push notifications: the differences that matter
• When to use SMS, when to use push, and when to use both
• Consent and opt-out rules in the Netherlands
• How to schedule push notifications
• How often is too often
• The app problem, and how wallet cards solve it
• Our perspective
• What this looks like with Beepify
• FAQ
• Sources

What each channel actually is

An SMS is a text message that lands in the phone’s native messaging app. It needs a mobile number and nothing else: no app, no internet connection, no account.

A push notification is a short alert sent by an app (or a wallet pass) to the lock screen. The customer must have installed the app or added the pass, and must have allowed notifications. If they turn notifications off, you can no longer reach them this way.

That single difference, who you can reach at all, drives most of the others.

SMS vs push notifications: the differences that matter

The usability research group Nielsen Norman Group draws the same line in its guidance on transactional notifications: SMS is more durable, can carry more information and holds up where data is poor, while push suits nonurgent suggestions that lead users back to the app. It also notes that an SMS stays in the thread until deleted, whereas a push can vanish with a tap, which makes SMS the safer home for anything a customer might need to look up later.

Reach: the point most comparisons skip

SMS reaches everyone you have a number for. Push reaches only the subset who installed something and said yes to alerts. For a small business this matters more than any open-rate statistic you will see quoted. A cafe with 800 regulars and 120 app installs has 120 people to push to, however good the message.

This is the real weakness of classic app-based push for local businesses: customers rarely download an app for a single coffee shop or hairdresser. That is the gap wallet cards fill, which we come back to below.

Delivery and permanence

Take a hairdresser confirming a Saturday appointment. The customer may want to check the time on Friday night, on the train, without data. That belongs in an SMS. Now take a message saying your next stamp earns a free treatment. Nobody needs to look that up; it is a prompt. That belongs in a push.

When to use SMS, when to use push, and when to use both

A simple rule works for most local businesses: if the customer needs to act on or keep the information, send SMS. If you are inviting them to come back, send push.

Use SMS for

• Appointment confirmations and changes.
• Time-sensitive information such as a closed shop or a rescheduled booking.
• Anything a customer may need to refer to later, like an address or an order pickup time.
• Customers who have not installed anything but have given you consent to text them.

Use push for

• Reminders that a reward is close (“one more stamp”).
• Birthday offers and quiet-day offers.
• Location-based prompts when a customer is near your shop.
• A short invitation to come back after a gap since the last visit.

Use both when

A message is important and you cannot be sure it is seen. A salon might push a reminder the day before and send an SMS only for changes. A restaurant might push a weekday offer and keep SMS for reservation details. Using both for the same promotional message doubles the irritation without doubling the visits, so assign each channel a job and keep to it. For a broader look at combining channels with email and automation, see this guide to compliant SMS and email nurture for service businesses.

Consent and opt-out rules in the Netherlands

Both channels fall under the same Dutch rules. According to the Dutch Data Protection Authority, digital direct marketing by SMS or app message generally requires prior consent. The exception: you may offer existing customers your own similar products without consent. Every message must also give a clear, free and easy way to object, and once someone objects you may no longer send them digital marketing.

What this means in practice:

1. Ask at the moment of the sale. A checkbox on a signup form or a simple question at the counter is easier to defend than a purchased list.
2. Record consent. Keep a note of when and how each customer agreed.
3. Put the opt-out in the message or make it one tap away. With wallet push, the customer can also remove the card or turn off alerts at any time.
4. Do not stretch the existing-customer exception. Marketing your own similar products to your own customers is allowed, but an unrelated promotion, or a message to someone who never bought from you, needs consent.

If you run an online shop as well, the way consent is captured and refreshed in your customer accounts matters too. This write-up on consent expiry for EU stores is a helpful starting point for thinking about how long a consent should be relied on. For legal questions about your specific setup, ask a lawyer or the regulator.

How to schedule push notifications

Scheduling is where most businesses lose the benefit of push. The goal is not to pick a magic hour; it is to match the message to the customer’s moment.

Start from the objective

Decide what one action you want, then work back.

The timings in the third column are starting points for your own testing, not proven universal rules.

Respect the clock

Mobile Marketing Nederland, an industry body for the Dutch market, says that push messages should never go out at night and work best when tied to specific user behavior rather than generic promotional blasts. For SMS, a Dutch provider suggests as a courtesy avoiding marketing texts before 08:00 and after 21:00. A sensible default for both: send between those hours, and never during the hours your customers are least likely to act.

Match timing to your business

• Cafes: A message before the morning commute or just before lunch is closer to the decision than one sent at 15:00. Batch messages if volume spikes, so your team is not hit by a rush at once; the same Dutch guidance advises sending in batches to manage kitchen load and segmenting guests by what they ordered.
• Salons: Work from the booking cycle. If your clients typically return every six weeks, a nudge at week five beats a fixed monthly blast. Our guide to customer retention for hairdressers goes deeper on this.
• Retail: Impulse purchases respond to timely prompts: new arrivals, a short-run offer, a nearby-shop alert. See our piece on retail customer retention and purchase frequency.

Test, then fix a rhythm

Pick two send times for the same type of message, run them for a few weeks to similar customers, and compare how many come in. Keep the winner. Do this per message type, because a birthday message and a quiet-day offer will not behave alike.

How often is too often

The evidence points one way: restraint wins.

A 2021 study of 17,500 retail app users in Germany found that higher frequencies of non-personalized push notifications correlated with more uninstalls and fewer direct opens. A 2024 paper on app targeting reports that about three notifications a week tends to give the best retention, while one per day often leads to attrition. The same research estimates that one message more or fewer per week than the optimum can cost up to 4.8% (one extra) or 5.9% (one fewer) of active app customers within five weeks.

Those studies cover large apps, not a single cafe, so treat three a week as an upper bound for a local business, not a target. A hairdresser whose clients visit every six weeks does not need three messages a week. A better rule: send when you have something relevant to say, and let the customer’s behavior set the pace. Mobile Marketing Nederland also stresses that the threshold for opting out of push is low, and a single badly timed message can lead someone to disable all notifications for an app.

A practical starting cadence for local businesses:

• One or two promotional messages a month per customer.
• Event-triggered messages (birthday, reward close) on top, since they feel personal.
• A pause for anyone who has just visited.

Watch your opt-out rate. If it climbs after a change, you have your answer.

The app problem, and how wallet cards solve it

The usual objection to push for local business is simple: nobody will download your app. A wallet card changes that. The customer scans a QR code, the card is added to Apple Wallet or Google Wallet, and no app store visit is needed. Notifications arrive on the lock screen like any other push.

This is how Beepify works. Customers collect stamps by QR scan, and you can send push notifications to people holding the card, including location-based and birthday messages. If you want to understand how iOS permission prompts affect opt-in, our post on push opt-in moves covers it, and the seven-step push marketing guide for Dutch wallet loyalty walks through campaign setup.

Our perspective

We built Beepify because most small businesses face the same trade-off: SMS reaches everyone but feels like an intrusion, and app push feels welcome but nobody installs the app. In our experience a wallet card sits in the middle. It is something the customer chose to keep, it holds a reward they care about, and a short message about it feels like a reminder rather than an ad.

Our view is that the channel matters less than the reason for the message. A well-timed note about a reward that is one stamp away will outperform a generic offer on any channel. We therefore recommend three habits: ask for permission clearly, tie messages to behavior, and send less than you think you should. Keep SMS for what customers must read or keep, such as bookings, and use wallet push for the invitation to return.

— erenmette

What this looks like with Beepify

Beepify gives salons, cafes and shops a customizable stamp card in Apple and Google Wallet, QR code stamping, push notifications, location-based and birthday messages, automated review requests and an analytics dashboard. You can see everything on the features page and the customer engagement tools.

Plans on the pricing page start with Starter at €45 per month (€540 per year). Professional is €86.67 per month (€1,040 per year), and Multi-Location is €207.50 per month (€2,490 per year). Enterprise has no published price. Extra scanners cost €5 per month each and extra locations €25 per month each. We also offer a results guarantee that refunds you if retention does not measurably increase.

FAQ

Is SMS or push better for retention?

Neither wins on its own. Push is better for friendly, nonurgent prompts that bring customers back, and SMS is better for information they must read or keep. Most local businesses do best by giving each channel a separate job.

Do I need consent to send SMS or push notifications in the Netherlands?

Generally yes. The Dutch Data Protection Authority says prior consent is required for digital direct marketing by SMS or app, with an exception for offering existing customers your own similar products. Every message must give a free and easy way to object.

What is the best time to send a push notification?

There is no single best hour. Avoid nights, send when the message is relevant to the customer’s behavior, and test two time slots per message type. For restaurants, a Dutch provider suggests keeping marketing texts between 08:00 and 21:00.

How many push notifications per week is too many?

Research on large apps links frequent, non-personalized notifications with uninstalls, and one study points to about three a week as the most effective rate. For a local business with occasional visits, fewer is usually right. Watch your opt-out rate and adjust.

Can I send push notifications without an app?

Yes, through a wallet card. Customers add a loyalty card to Apple Wallet or Google Wallet via a QR code, and you can send notifications to that card without any app download.

Sources

• Transactional Notifications: Their Characteristics and When to Use Them, Nielsen Norman Group
• Digitale direct marketing, Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens
• Apps en pushberichten, Mobile Marketing Nederland
• SMS marketing for restaurants: rules and practice, Portano
• Mobile apps in retail: Effect of push notification frequency, Wohllebe (2021)
• Walking a Fine Line: Customer Retention in Mobile App, SSRN (2024)

Recommended

• Push Notification Marketing: 7 Steps to Dutch Wallet Loyalty
• Retail customer retention: increase purchase frequency
• Beat iOS One Shot: 5 Push Opt-In Moves for Marketers & Devs
• Customer retention tips: 10 quick wins for your business