Nothing can delay, complicate, or even ruin activities and plans quite like extreme weather can. From road closures to hazardous conditions, the consequences of inclement weather often impact dozens, if not hundreds, of people at once.
If you run a business, school, or other organization, sending text alerts for inclement weather is often the most efficient way to provide as many people as possible with the information they need to stay safe and in-the-know.
When inclement weather strikes, time will be of the essence. You’ll need a quick way to communicate with large groups of employees, students, or clients, and you won’t want to waste time by importing contacts, collecting new phone numbers, or testing your alert system.
In cases of inclement weather, organizations need to communicate quickly with their students, employees, or other stakeholders to make sure everyone is safe and aware of what’s happening. That means it’s extremely important that your audience not only sees but actually reads each alert or update.
Sending text alerts for inclement weather is preferable to other methods for a few key reasons, including:
Extreme weather text alerts are a delicate balance of clarity, comfort, and counsel. Their content can be essential and even life-saving, but the format in which that content is delivered is equally important.
The benefits of using texts for inclement weather alerts are clear. But to truly make the most out of your notifications, it’s important to follow a few best practices.
In emergency situations, getting your message across quickly and clearly is critical to ensuring safety. Here’s how to do it:
In other words, if you need to announce a closure, don’t waste time discussing the storm that caused it. Hoping to get the word out about emergency relief services? Mention them right off the bat.
Just as it’s important not to bog down in the nitty-gritty details, it’s also necessary to include all relevant information.
Basically, emergency text alerts must include all the essential information — and nothing extraneous.
Not all inclement weather demands the same types of adjustments or reactions. Different members of an affected population may need to know different information. In the case of campus closures or “shelter in place” announcements, for example, facilities staff will have different questions than students living on campus.
Segmenting audiences for emergency text alerts will ensure the most relevant possible updates are provided to the right individuals.
Sending extreme weather text alerts is as much about timing as it is about providing information. For instance, evacuation warnings for a hurricane won’t keep people safe if they arrive too late. To that end, it’s important that alerts containing actionable advice are sent early enough for people to prepare and strategize.
Additionally, make sure to provide continuous updates as inclement weather develops or intensifies. When conditions change, text alerts can provide real-time information and guidance.
Ultimately, inclement weather texts need to get a lot done in relatively little space. Text-Em-All’s tools and features—from user-friendly automation to app integrations and on-demand analytics—streamline the process and make it easier to share evacuation notices, shelter instructions, all-clear updates, and more.
Each extreme weather text alert will need to be tailored to its specific situation and audience. Property managers communicating with tenants, for example, will have very different needs from college deans announcing campus closures.
However, it’s a good idea to craft several basic templates that you can apply in a wide range of future situations. Here are a few succinct and clear messages to start with:
Emergency text alerts announcing closures of offices, campuses, or other facilities during extreme winter weather should make sure to note the first date of closure, as well as information on how to stay updated. Here’s an example:
“Due to snow, [Business/School Name] will be closed on [Date]. Stay safe and check [link] for updates.”
If your organization needs to announce a delayed opening due to inclement weather, a well-timed message such as the following can get the job done:
“[Business/School Name] will open at [Time] on [Date] due to icy conditions. Please drive carefully.”
In more severe situations, notifying as many people as possible of where they can find shelter and emergency assistance is of paramount importance. Take a look at the following example:
“Emergency shelters are open at [Location]. For assistance, call [Phone Number]. Stay safe during the storm.”
As with delayed openings messages, text alerts that provide specific employee instructions must be sent early and give clear guidance to those who need additional information:
“All employees: Please work remotely on [Date] due to hazardous weather conditions. Contact [Manager Name] for questions.”
In certain instances, sending text alerts for inclement weather is more about providing basic tips than it is about urgent advice. In these cases, you can keep it short and sweet:
“Winter Safety Tip: Avoid unnecessary travel during icy conditions and keep an emergency kit in your car.”
Sending text alerts for inclement weather is crucial to ensuring the safety of your employees, students, clients, or other stakeholders. Fortunately, Text-Em-All makes it simple. Easily import your contacts, broadcast your message, and engage with your audience in moments. And with our detailed analytics and reporting, tracking results and responses has never been easier.
Don’t wait until extreme weather throws a wrench into your plans. Sign up for Text-Em-All today and send better, more valuable emergency text alerts.