"Install the app" walls might be super effective at destroying reengagement, though.
I gave in and installed the Reddit app, but it simply doesn't work well enough or transition well enough from a Google search into the app. Would definitely engage a lot more with Reddit if only the app pushing nonsense were gone, and that's as a user who does have the app installed.
When Reddit first tried pushing their mobile app I gave it a try, but it was so horrible I decided to stay on web. But they kept degrading the web experience, so I quit Reddit on mobile until discovering Apollo. At this point I don’t browse on desktop, and with Apollo being shut down, I don’t think I’ll be back.
I asked the marketing team about it when I used to work at a restaurant reservation company 5+ years ago and the numbers were clear, marketing notifications work, way more engagement.
The comparison to children playing with blocks makes me wonder: If you spent long enough playing with these 4D toys, would you develop a deeper intuition for the 4th dimensional shape of the objects?
I've played with some programs I made to explore 4D objects, and, yes, you do gain some intuition.
Interestingly, I was told one of George Boole's daughters got lessons from a guy on 4D objects by using colored wooden blocks. She really picked it up, and later in life mathematicians would consult her about intersections of 4D polytopes.
