Why users ignore notifications (and how to fix it)

How many times have you hit the “Clear All” button on your phone’s notifications without even looking at them? Maybe not every day, but I’m guessing it happens from time to time. When you do that, you’re skipping over much of the hard work companies have invested in crafting those notifications — messages designed to enhance your experience or sell you something.

While some notifications you’d likely skip anyway, others might actually be helpful. But we all know the feeling when we just don’t care about that, and all we want is a clear screen, empty of all of that mess. If certain notifications are too annoying, you might even delete the app even if you use it occasionally, because clearing them every day isn’t worth the trouble. “I’ll just download it again when I need it,” we think.

This quick picture of a regular morning, sipping coffee while clearing a messy notifications screen, sums up countless customer interviews on notification blindness. I found that the more effort we put into tailoring notifications, the more frustrating it felt when the results weren’t what we expected. Over time, users tend to ignore or swipe away notifications without reading them, turn off app notifications altogether, and uninstall or disengage from apps that feel noisy, spammy, or irrelevant.

For any company aiming to make a profit, figuring out how to communicate effectively and overcome notification blindness is crucial.

Personal experience

While developing a service, we had to deal with multiple types of notifications: order status, send promotions, remind them about left-out orders, and more. After conducting interviews, A/B testing, and constant data analysis, we found that most customers will do anything to minimize notifications, including not using the service again.

What we thought was important — such as announcing new features or running targeted promo campaigns — actually drove people to opt out or stop using the service altogether. So, we decided to minimize notifications instead.

We implemented delayed notifications for new users, especially those still learning how to place orders, since many created multiple new orders that triggered too many alerts. We set a “1 notification per person” rule for newcomers, tracking their activity and sending a single notification after a set time following their last action. We also introduced a “no more than once per week” rule for promo campaigns. Despite pushback from sales representatives, this approach proved more profitable in the long run.

While opting out was always available, we focused on sending only the most important information, especially regarding order delivery, to minimize distractions. It took years to find the perfect balance.

At the time, there was no AI to help analyze user behavior and optimize notifications. Now, AI can be a game-changer, enabling more personalized and timely messages. Still, even with AI, companies must constantly monitor their notification strategy, since notifications remain a powerful sales tool and a key way to connect customers with support when needed.

Examples of how big corporations dealt with notification blindness

1. Google (Android OS and Gmail)

Initiative: “Notification channels” and AI prioritization

To increase user engagement in Google apps, they introduced notification categories (channels) in Android 8.0 and later so users could choose which types of alerts they want (e.g., promotions or important updates). Gmail also uses AI-based “Smart Notifications” to notify users only for high-priority emails based on their behavior (e.g., emails from people you usually respond to). This helps prevent Gmail from feeling spammy, especially for corporate workers who receive hundreds of emails daily:

Result:

• Reduced churn and increased satisfaction in the Gmail mobile app
• Behavioral signals reduce unnecessary interruptions

2. LinkedIn

Initiative: “Daily Digest” + Notification consolidation

LinkedIn realized that users were ignoring constant pings (likes, new job updates, profile views). Many turned off notifications entirely or deleted the app. To fix this, they introduced digest-style notifications, grouped alerts like “5 people viewed your profile today” instead of sending five separate alerts.

They also reduced push frequency based on prior user interaction patterns. The idea was that if a person stopped using an app for any reason (they stopped engaging with it or had already found a job), continuing to send push notifications would likely lead users to delete the app or turn off notifications.

Result:

• Improved engagement with notifications, as they are actually seen, and fewer opt-outs
• They’ve published insights on behavioral changes from bundling alerts

3. Facebook / Meta

Initiative: Machine learning-driven relevance filters

At one point, Facebook sent dozens of daily notifications for friend updates, page invites, memories, etc. The problem arose when the number of apps people installed on their phones became overwhelming, as even restaurants and grocery stores now introduce their apps. The number of notifications became unbearable, and users started to handpick the apps that were sending too many notifications.

So, Facebook overhauled the system to personalize notifications based on the likelihood of interaction. The solution that was deemed most suitable was to reduce alerts that don’t lead to click-throughs or user action.

Result:

• A/B testing showed higher retention when low-relevance notifications were reduced, not increased
• Even notifications about “likes” were reduced if the user didn’t typically respond to them when they realized that “more doesn’t necessarily mean better”

4. Slack

Initiative: Smart mute and priority control

Enterprise users suffered from alert fatigue in group chats and channels. As I mentioned before, corporate workers might receive hundreds of emails daily, depending on the occupation. So, Slack introduced:

• Do Not Disturb scheduling
• Custom notification rules per channel
• Mentions-only mode
• Grouped mobile notifications

Additionally, some organizations use Slack bots to delay or batch low-priority messages to enhance the corporate user experience further.

Result:

• Measured reduction in employee distraction and better focus in hybrid teams
• Companies reported improved productivity when employees were trained in notification hygiene

5. Uber

Initiative: Trip-relevant notifications only

Early versions of Uber sent too many generic promos and reminders, leading to uninstalls. They shifted to just-in-time notifications, e.g., “Your driver is 2 min away” or “Time to leave for your scheduled ride” and reduced general marketing pings unless highly personalized.

Result:

• Reduced app uninstalls
• Higher open rates for transactional notifications

6. Apple (iOS)

Initiative: Focus modes + Notification summary

In iOS 15+, Apple introduced Scheduled Notification Summaries, bundling non-urgent alerts into twice-daily digests while letting urgent messages bypass the filter. Focus Mode lets users suppress certain notifications based on time, location, or activity (work, sleep, fitness, etc.).

Result:

• Massive adoption
• Apple reported users were less likely to disable notifications entirely when summaries were enabled

Takeaways

From both personal experience and corporate case studies, companies that successfully address notification blindness tend to:

• Reduced frequency of low-value or redundant messages
• Used personalization to increase perceived relevance
• Bundled notifications to create digestible summaries
• Let users customize which types of alerts they receive
• Analyzed engagement metrics to prune alerts that weren’t being acted on

As AI becomes more common, it may be essential for large corporations to use it to fine-tune notification strategies. But even small startups can benefit from these lessons, customizing their notification approach manually to scale effectively.