What this template solves

  • Prevents notification overload when popular content receives dozens or hundreds of comments.
  • Improves engagement by sending thoughtful summaries instead of noise.
  • Reduces email/notification fatigue that leads to users disabling all notifications.
  • Ensures users stay informed about discussions without constant interruptions.

When to use this template

Use this template when:

  • Your platform supports commenting on posts, documents, or other shared content.
  • Users can receive many comments in short time periods (viral posts, popular discussions).
  • You want to balance real-time engagement with notification sanity.
  • Your product has both casual users and power contributors with different notification needs.
  • You need to support asynchronous collaboration where immediate response isn't required.

How it works (step-by-step)

  1. Trigger. New comment is posted on user's content.
  2. Check batching window. Determine if other comments are already queued for this content.
  3. Send to low-attention channel. Send an in-app message to maximize visibility if the users is still active.
  4. Apply delay. Wait for configured time period (e.g., 60 minutes) before escalating.
  5. Escalate channels. If in-app notification hasn't been read, escalate to out-of-app channel like email.

Best practices

  • Smart batching thresholds. Send first comment immediately, then batch subsequent ones. This maintains engagement momentum while preventing overload.
  • Context-aware summaries. Show comment count, unique commenters, and preview of most relevant comments rather than just "You have 17 new comments."
  • Respect discussion velocity. Use shorter batch windows (5-15 min) for fast-moving discussions and longer ones (1-4 hours) for slower content.
  • Mobile-optimized summaries. Since many users triage notifications on mobile, ensure comment previews are scannable and actionable.

Common mistakes to avoid

  • Batching the first comment. The first comment on content should notify immediately to maintain engagement momentum. Only batch subsequent comments using a leading debounce option.
  • Losing comment context. Always include which post/content received comments. "17 new comments" is useless without knowing where.
  • Ignoring comment importance. Comments from teammates, mentions, or VIP users might warrant immediate notification even during batching.
  • Setting batch windows too long. Waiting 24 hours to notify about comments kills discussion momentum. Find the sweet spot between too many and too late.

FAQ

When should comments bypass batching?
First comment on new content, comments from specified VIP users, comments that @mention the user, and comments on time-sensitive content should send immediately.

How do I handle comments across multiple posts?
Batch per post, not globally. Users need to know which discussions are active. Consider a daily digest for users with many active discussions.

What's the ideal batch window for comments?
Depends on your product. Social platforms: 15-30 minutes. Collaboration tools: 1-2 hours. Professional platforms: 2-4 hours. Test and measure engagement.

Should I show all comments or just a preview in batched notifications?
Show count and 2-3 comment previews in the notification. Include a clear CTA to "View all comments" that takes users directly to the discussion.