Social media, in forms such as texting, twitter and Facebook, has become a widely used platform for communication on a personal level as well as the corporate level. Through mass communication software and systems, members of corporations are able to quickly reach each other with critical information that needs to be shared immediately. Typically, 90% of text messages are opened and read within three minutes of being sent. Social media is an excellent emergency alert system with the ability to reach as many people as possible in the shortest amount of time. Crisis management applications are available that provide two way communications between members of organizations during a situation when they need to reach people in order to try to offset a crisis from becoming a catastrophe. The most important feature of a two way communication system is being able to connect even when email and other forms of conversation have failed.
Taking advantage of social media to use as an emergency alert system has enabled corporations, as well as people in the private sector, to send a text message alert when a dangerous situation is eminent. Surveys show that more than 80% of business people use texting for business, at least 15% claiming that most of their text messages are business related. Incorporating text messaging into business crisis notifications is a brilliant way to take advantage of a system that most people are using all the time anyway.
Mass text messaging takes employee communications far beyond where they were even a few years ago. It is used for communicating equipment breakdowns, issues with safety, necessary data in the field, any suspicious activity taking place, and, not least of all, updates on any crisis situations. Text messaging as a mass notification system is used on college and university campuses as a means of alerting security staff of safety issues, such as a shooter spotted on the property. An emergency alert system such as this carries with it everything necessary to save countless lives as time goes on.
Because text messages are usually read within the first five seconds they are received, more and more corporations have chosen to go this route with their safety procedures. Modern technology is moving ahead by leaps and bounds.
