Browser Push Notifications

Originally posted: May 11th, 2020

Browser Alerts are similar to our Dashboard Alerts (clicking the bell icon), but they have two primary benefits! The first is that they are more apparent and will be shown to you right as an action has happened, once these notifications are enabled. This message will slide in from the upper right corner and alert you without ou having to click on the bell icon or check your email.

The second benefit is that these can alert you even when you are not on a Dubsado page. Since these are set up on a browser, these alerts can be sent at any time you are using your computer. This feature is great for users who want to be made aware of everything that happens within their business right as it happens!

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Set-Up

To set up the Browser alerts, go to the Notifications page (Settings>>Notifications). There, you will see a new notification type: Push notifications. In the description of this type, you will see a Subscribe button.

Clicking this button will prompt a message from your web browser to give Dubsado permission to send out these notifications. You MUST allow these notifications on their browser in order to receive our new Browser Alerts. Here is an example message on Google Chrome.

NOTE: If you decline permission for Dubsado to send notifications, you still have the option to set up Browser Alerts at a later time. In order to give that permission, you will need to go into the settings of whatever browser you are using and enable notifications for Dubsado. For Chrome, you can click on the "Lock" icon in the URL bar and update the notification preference from there.

Once that permission is granted, you will be set up to receive Browser Alerts from Dubsado. Like our other Notifications, you will have the ability to customize what actions trigger these Browser Alerts. After you make your selections click Save Changes at the top of the page and you're set!

The Notification

While similar to other notifications, there are some details about the Browser alerts that should be noted.

When an alert comes in you will be shown three pieces of information. Different web browsers may show the information differently but the same info will all be there.

• Brand Name (Andy's Toychest) - The first piece will be the name of the brand in which an action took place. This is especially useful for users with multiple brands as to provide immediate context for the alert.
• URL (hello.dubsado.com) - The second part of the alert is the website that the alert came from. If an alert comes from us, it will always show as hello.dubsado.com. This will NOT be affected by Custom Domain names.
• Alert Body (Mr. Potatohead has...) - The main message in the notification will tell the user the action that occurred and the name of the client that performed the action. The text of these alerts are the same as the text we set up for Dashboard Alerts.

Like our Dashboard Alerts, clicking on a Browser Alert will take you to the corresponding Dubsado page. This will open up in a new tab of your web browser IF they are logged into Dubsado. If you are not logged in, you will be taken to the login page. Upon logging in, you will be taken to the Dashboard, not the page for the alert.

*****Browser alerts for scheduler appointments (confirmed, rescheduled, and canceled) will NOT redirect to the appointment. This is in line with the dashboard bell alert functionality

Compatibility

Not all web browsers currently support these Browser Alerts. The primary browsers where these will not work right now are Internet Explorer and Safari. Most other commonly used browsers allow for these alerts. The full list can be found here: https://caniuse.com/#feat=push-api

This can be used to set up mobile alerts if a user uses one of the supported browsers on their phone. That you will need to run through the set-up the alerts for each device separately.

*This will not work on iOS devices, even if the user is using mobile Chrome.

Set up browser alerts, but are not receiving them?

1. Confirm that Notifications were allowed in the browser. In Chrome and Firefox, this can easily be done by clicking on the Lock icon next to the URL when on a “hello.dubsado.com” page. If the Notification section shows blocked, you will need to adjust this and allow the alerts.
2. Check if your computer is on “Do not Disturb” or “Focus Assist Mode”. These modes will prevent ALL notifications on your computer when active. In order to receive the Dubsado Alerts, these settings will need to be turned off on your device.
3. If you are receiving notifications from other applications, it may be that your device is preventing notifications from your chosen web browser.
   
   For macOS. Head to System Preferences>>Notifications to be shown a list of all your apps. Locate and click on your web browser on the list on the left side of this window to see the Notification settings for that app. Make sure the app is allowed to send notifications to your computer. You will also need to set the Alert Style to either “Banners” or “Alerts” in order to view the notification.
   
   For Windows 10: On your computer, if you head to Settings>>System>> Notifications and Actions you should see a section labeled "Show Notifications from these apps". On that list you will be able to see all of the apps that have permission to send Notifications to your computer. You will need to make sure the web browser you are using is enabled to send notifications on this list. *If Testing for yourself, make sure that you are logged out of your Dubsado account before testing.