Pros and Cons of a Text Message Alert System for Business

Sending text alerts can help you to improve your internal and external communication and reach people no matter where they are or what they are doing. Your business may benefit from investing in a text messaging alert system to help you achieve this.

Table of contents

What are text alert systems and how do they work?

How to use a text alert system in your business

Text messages for emergency alerts

Pros and cons of using a text alert system

What are text alert systems and how do they work?

A text alert system is a software system that lets you send text messages to multiple telephone numbers simultaneously. They work by sending messages through your telecommunications provider directly to phones that you have in a list – for example subscribers or lists of employees. Most text alert systems don’t require you to use a phone to send the alerts – you simply log on to a web interface and send the messages from there.

How to use a text alert system in your business

There are many different uses for a text alert system within a business. These include both internal and external communications:

• Communicate important information to employees outside of hours (closures, roster changes etc.)
• Communicate with employees in an emergency
• Use as part of your overall employee communications strategy, for example when using DeskAlerts tools also use the SMS alert system
• Send information to specific groups of employees
• Industry-based uses such as in healthcare alerting staff to a specific hospital code
• Sending information to staff about freight and logistics
• Sending information about stock levels when low
• Messaging clients about promotions and offers
• Messaging stakeholders about closures and changed operating hours.

Text messages for emergency alerts

When an emergency situation is unfolding within your organization, it’s critical that you take every step possible to let your employees know so they can be safe. Using text messages as part of your emergency response will help to ensure that employees get a message straight to their phones – so if the power goes out or they aren’t at their desks they will know that there is an emergency, so long as they have their phone with them. This also helps employees who may not be in the office to understand that they should stay away from the danger and not attempt to re-enter the premises.

Emergency alert text messages can be used alongside all your other emergency notifications such as sirens, public address systems and desktop notifications. The more channels you use, the more likely it is people will notice and take appropriate action.

Pros and cons of using a text alert system

Before determining if a text alert system is right for your business, there are several pros and cons that you should weigh up:

Pros:

• Easy to access and implement
• Most people these days have cell phones (estimated to be around 98% of people in the USA). And while not everyone has a smart phone, all cell phones are capable of receiving text messages.
• Many employees would prefer to be communicated with via text.
• Relatively inexpensive to use.
• Can send information to many people very quickly.
• Doesn’t rely on people being connected to the internet to receive information.

Cons:

• Messages are text only and not visual.
• Many SMS platforms have a character limit (around 160 characters).
• Can be delayed in an emergency if there is cell phone tower congestion.
• Increasing instances of SMS spam can mean that your message may not be seen or ignored.

***

If you’re looking for a quick and easy way to reach people, even if there’s no internet connection, an text notification system may be the right choice for your business. Get in touch with us today to find out how DeskAlerts can be used to provide this service, and a whole lot more in terms of employee communications, so you get bang for your buck.

FAQs

How do text alerts work?

A text alert is an automatic message that is delivered to a cell phone. They are designed to remind the recipient about important events, alert them to something important or even just entertain them.

How do text alert systems work?

A text alert system works by accessing a web portal or desktop API to type in information and send to a defined group of recipients.

How much does a text alert system cost?

There are lots of different price points for a text alert system. These factors will include:

• How many messages you plan on sending per month
• How many subscribers you have
• Any costs from your telecommunications provider
• Your geographic location.

How to set up a text alerts system for business?

To get text alerts for your business you will need to find a provider/service that offers a text alerts system, create an account and then follow the instructions provided.