Why schools need an SMS alert system

One of the biggest challenges of managing a school is communicating effectively with students and their families. When you have hundreds or even thousands of students that attend your institution, you need a way to get information out quickly, especially in an emergency.

An efficient way to do this is by using text messages. SMS messaging keeps everyone involved in the loop with a 98% open rate on all texts sent across any mobile device. In the US alone, 97 percent of Americans today have a cell phone, including over 50 percent of Americans under 18. 97 percent of text messages are opened within 15 minutes of receipt, so you can feel confident knowing that your students and their families are likely to open them shortly after you send.

Here are some of the ways that your school can use a text message alert system, as well as how to implement it.

School Holidays

Even when school is closed, it’s still important to stay in touch with your students over break. Text messaging is an easy and non-intrusive way to reach your students during the holiday season. You can use these text messages to remind them when school is going to be closed and when it will reopen. You can also use text messages to let students know when grades have been finalized and other important end-of-semester information.

Weather-Related Closures

Many schools experience closures and delays throughout the year due to the weather. Heavy storms are some of the most common causes of schedule changes.

In the past, school administrators would have to get up early and call parents to inform them of any weather-related schedule changes. Now, you can use text message alerts to tell them about extreme weather days as soon as they are announced.

Other Emergencies and Closures

Although you hope that the school year will go off without a hitch, there are times when your school might have to close for reasons besides the weather. These could include safety or medical reasons - for example, text messages have been a very effective way to communicate with parents during shutdowns. During the pandemic, schools can also use text messages to send links to online learning tools, local health resources, and more.

School Events

Even small schools tend to have a busy event calendar throughout the year. Using a text messaging system is a very effective way to keep students and families up-to-date about the events going on and increase attendance. Examples of events where you could use a text messaging system include parent-teacher conferences, sports games, live performances, and more. For events that require tickets or RSVPs, you can also use your text message alert system to manage them. You can even use text messaging for important school fundraising events and allow recipients to donate directly from their phone.

Parent Communication

Most parents these days are very busy, so it can be difficult to keep them updated with what’s going on with their child at school. SMSGlobal offers individual application-to-person text messaging in addition to mass text messaging. You can use this feature to let parents know when their child has an important assignment or event or even when they’ve missed a class.

Implementing A School Text Alert System

There are so many benefits to investing in a text alert system for your school. The biggest benefit is that it helps both students and their families stay more informed about what’s going on in school. Not only is this very convenient for them, but it can also help with attendance rates and general community engagement. Many people today prefer text messages to phone calls, because they are easy to read and don’t feel intrusive.

Additionally, text alert systems are much more efficient than communicating with your school’s community in other ways. They will save your staff a huge amount of time and effort, as you can send messages in just a few minutes. SMSGlobal also offers integrations with apps you might already be using, which helps you streamline your communications even further.

SMSGlobal offers all the tools you need to set up a school text alert system as well as school and education SMS templates for you to use. Contact us today to learn more about all of our mass text messaging options.