Notify or Pester?

David J. Danto

Travel thoughts in my own, personal opinion

eMail: ddanto@IMCCA.org Follow Industry News: @NJDavidD on

Notify or Pester? – October 2025

I don’t like admitting it, – but if I’m being honest, I’m a slave to my mobile device. I bet most of you are too. It’s where we keep our calendar entries, our contacts, our reminders, our airplane tickets, our hotel reservations, our family’s birthdays, and just about everything else that stands between us and chaos.

In order for our smart device to remind us of important things – like our flight or our anniversary – we have to let it notify us. Fair enough. That’s how it’s supposed to work.

Unfortunately, some companies have figured that out and have taken advantage of it in completely inappropriate ways.

I first noticed it when I let news organizations like The New York Times or CNN send me “breaking news” updates. Of course, I wanted to know if a volcano was erupting somewhere, or if a product I use had been recalled. That’s the kind of alert you actually want. But once I flipped the switch, the floodgates opened.

When a push alert tells me “Study says millennials prefer red wine to white” I have to assume the editors have completely forgotten what the words breaking news mean. Suddenly, this supposedly urgent notification channel has become just another ad slot with a blinking red light.

And it didn’t stop there. I have apps for hotel chains, rideshares, airlines, and every other organization that helps keep me moving. Those notifications matter – your gate’s changed, your car’s here, your room’s ready. However, lately, the notifications have moved past the simply stupid to the blatant advertising.

Which ones are “simply stupid?” I’m glad you asked. There’s nothing quite like the absurd moment when you’re already boarding a flight with your boarding pass on the screen and your phone vibrates to tell you – you guessed it – that your flight is now boarding. So there you are, stuck in the jet bridge traffic jam, trying to balance your carry-on, your coffee, and your phone for the scanner – when suddenly you have to stop and clear the notification from the screen telling you what you already know because the gate agent is already shouting it. If these systems were truly “smart,” they’d know you’re physically in line with the boarding pass showing, and just realize the correct action is “never mind, you’re good.”

But then we have to move past simply stupid, and onto the ads that are completely inappropriate for this process. None of us need an “urgent” push alert telling us we can “save 15% if we book a weekend getaway right now,” or we can “reconnect with our soul at an all-inclusive beach resort.” Lately, in fact, it’s gotten ridiculous – with some like these:

“Unlock your inner traveler with our fall spa retreat.”
“You deserve sushi on the Amalfi Coast.”
“Your favorite airline is thinking of you – upgrade to Premium Select before someone else does!”
“Enjoy three months of DashPass free if you schedule your airport rides now – terms, conditions, and probably your soul apply.”

It’s like being stuck on a group chat with a desperate marketing intern.

The problem is that our phones don’t know the difference between vital information and advertising fluff. I can’t let my hotel app notify me when my room is ready but block it from pinging me about seasonal rates. Notifications are binary – on or off.

So now I’m faced with the choice of either enduring a barrage of irrelevant ads or silencing the very alerts I actually need. Clearly there’s no winning option.

As frequent travelers, I think we need to push back on this nonsense. Travel providers should pledge not to abuse the notification channel. Ads belong in the inboxes we already ignore – email, text messages, loyalty newsletters – not in the notification stream that’s supposed to wake us up when a flight’s delayed or a gate changes.

Your phone shouldn’t be the equivalent of the hotel TV channel that starts playing a looped ad the moment you turn it on.

So should we start a “Make Notifications Important Again” movement, or is there already an app for that (which when enabled probably tells you some feature is on sale, for a limited time only)? What do you think? Feel free to email me and let me know, but if I don't respond right away it's probably because my hotel chain is sending me an urgent notification because it wants me to book a holiday before it’s too late.

This article was written by David Danto and contains solely his own, personal opinions.

All image and links provided above as reference under prevailing fair use statutes.

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