{"id":10020,"date":"2016-07-27T09:52:52","date_gmt":"2016-07-27T16:52:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.intercom.io\/?p=10020"},"modified":"2020-07-30T12:59:18","modified_gmt":"2020-07-30T11:59:18","slug":"behind-messenger-right-kind-disruption","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.intercom.com\/blog\/behind-messenger-right-kind-disruption\/","title":{"rendered":"Behind the messenger: the right kind of disruption"},"content":{"rendered":"

Let\u2019s face it, no one likes to be interrupted.<\/p>\n

But whether it\u2019s on our phones, on websites, or even inside apps, disruptions such as modals and pop-ups have become a painful fact of life. Businesses want us to do something, and it almost never matches what the customer wants to do.<\/p>\n

At least Wait But Why tries to be apologetically funny about being disruptive.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

And let\u2019s be honest here \u2013 Intercom has contributed to this pop-up epidemic. We’ve heard from many users that they found messages intrusive, so it’s something we consciously set out to fix in our new messenger<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The best messaging experience is when the user feels in control<\/h2>\n

Yet disruption has always been far from our intent. Our mission is based in part around helping businesses send relevant messages to targeted customers. But just because a message is relevant doesn\u2019t mean it\u2019s not disruptive. It depends so much on the context of who\u2019s receiving the message \u2013 where you are, what you\u2019re doing, and even your current frame of mind.<\/p>\n

One behavior we\u2019ve seen repeatedly in usability testing is users immediately closing modal pop-up messages, without even scanning them. You probably do it yourself every day. It\u2019s like an automatic Pavlovian<\/a> response. Time and time again we\u2019ve heard users say: \u201cOh, I just close those pop-up windows as soon as they come up<\/em>\u201d.<\/p>\n

The irony here is that businesses think disruptive pop-up messages will give them the best chance of being seen. But by doing so, they actually make their messages less effective. Even if they\u2019re relevant and timely, disruptive messages are more likely to annoy and overwhelm. Customers don\u2019t engage with the message at all, despite being forced to view it.<\/p>\n

After hours of watching user tests on web and mobile, that\u2019s the critical ingredient we observed \u2013 users want to be in control<\/em> of their attention, and ultimately their experience.<\/p>\n

Giving users just enough information<\/h2>\n

So we wanted to design a messaging system that was flexible in how it could ask for attention. Each message type (a post, note, or chat) can be delivered as a snippet notification. Or if you really want to minimize disruption, you can just use a badge notification.<\/p>\n

This flexibility means that customers can read your message when they\u2019re ready<\/em>. They can finish the task they came to your website or app to do. They can even come back tomorrow and read your message if they want. Instead of software bombarding them with messages, they\u2019re in control of the conversation.<\/p>\n

By being less disruptive you actually\u00a0get\u00a0higher engagement.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve seen that when you put users in control, they engage much more deeply with the message. Sometimes they\u2019ll still open it straight away, but because they chose to open it, they\u2019re much more receptive to the message. The irony is that by being less disruptive you actually get higher engagement.<\/p>\n

And just like in the real world, sometimes you have a lot to say, but you don\u2019t need to shout it from the rooftops. You can tell a full, rich story with the post message type, but deliver it as a snippet. It\u2019s like the person at the party who has a funny story to share, but is polite enough to wait for their turn to talk.<\/p>\n

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