Location-Based Alerts – Hyper-Target Messages for Relevancy and Clarity

October 25, 2022 Posted by Pocketstop in Crisis Communications, Location-Based Alerts, Business Continuity Social Share

No matter what kind of communication, sending it to the right people is important – especially considering their location for location-based alerts. For a mass notification, segmenting is critical to reaching employees and other stakeholders at just the right time with the precise message.

What is segmenting?

Segmenting is a way to group your recipients based on certain criteria. This is important because not every contact needs to get every communication. For example, if a tornado watch has been issued that applies to two of your four locations, you only need to contact those in the affected areas.

By grouping or segmenting your contacts, you can send relevant messages to the right audiences for clarity and action. Even the best crafted messages are wasted if they are not directly applicable to the recipient, and segmenting reduces unnecessary communications to encourage readability and response.

Benefits of segmenting:

• Increase the likelihood of reaching the exact right people with the exact right message
• Customize the alert for better relevancy and clarity depending on criteria, like location
• Save time by having groups already determined when you go to send a message
• Avoid alert fatigue caused by getting irrelevant messages
• Boost open rates and therefore action

Ways to Segment

Segmenting can be as simple or as complex as your organization or situation requires. Planning ahead for common use cases is always a good idea, and you can add more sophistication as needed.

Possible ways to segment contacts:

• Role/Title
• Department
• Address/location on file
• Activity (logins, training dates, etc.)
• GPS location via a smartphone – location-based

What are location-based alerts? Segmenting with Geolocation and Geofencing

In an emergency, where someone is located determines their level of risk and danger. As more employees work away from office locations, it is critical to have ways to message them based on where they currently are so you can send relevant messages in seconds. With geo-location, you can track your people and communications all relative to an incident.

Building Emergency Examples with GPS Location

Imagine the fire alarm goes off – how do you know who is in the building and direct them to the safest exit?

Possible Scenarios:	Without GPS location	With GPS location-based alerts
Aircraft Crash Chemical/Biological/Radiological (CBR) Emergencies Civil unrest Earthquake Fire Flood (Weather related or burst pipe) Hazardous Materials Accident Major maintenance issues  National Emergency (War, Terrorism) Power Outage Severe Weather (Tornadoes, Thunderstorms, Hail) Workplace Violence/Active Shooter	Alerting people in other buildings, causing panic Failing to alert people who are in the building, risking safety Losing valuable time to get people to safety Increases in danger, damage, and possible injury or loss of life Possible litigation	Send messages based on recipient GPS location when an event occurs Contact only recipients in the geo-fenced area, ensuring accuracy Send separate, more relevant messages to recipients at differing locations, depending on the incident Alert recipients before they enter a danger zone Saving precious minutes to allow for evacuation Promoting safety and peace of mind for all stakeholders

 

Location-Based Severe Weather Examples

A tornado has been spotted near one of your offices – how do you immediately communicate with people in the area?

Possible Scenarios	Without GPS location	With GPS location-based alerts
Blizzard Earthquake Hail Heat Wave Heavy rain High winds Hurricane Ice storm Local Traffic/Events Thunderstorm Tornado Wildfire	Send blast alert including unaffected recipients, potentially causing panic and confusion Send message not based on location, and miss people that are in the location Waste precious time creating lists of potential contacts, missing the critical window for messaging	Send hyper-targeted alerts with specific details and instructions for that location/event- within the path of the tornado for example Send separate messages to others outside of the location with more relevant information – those within the “Tornado Watch” area, for example  Ensure people in the area get the messages quickly Save time and lives

 

 

Segmenting with a Mass Notification System

With a robust Mass Notification System like RedFlag that has custom segmenting and location-based targeting, you now have a powerful tool to personalize messages based on the location of your employees, vendors, and stakeholders without disrupting the routines of individuals not affected. Read more about how RedFlag can help you simplify and strengthen your emergency preparedness communication plans. Click here. 

 

 

 

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