Employee Text Messaging System: Getting Started [2024]

Emails unanswered. (Been there!)

Slack messages missed. (Done that!)

Phone calls going to voicemail. (...almost always…)

Workplace communication can be hit-or-miss—and sometimes more miss than hit.

So… what can you do? How can you make sure people actually see and pay attention to important workplace messages?

There’s one simple solution that’s staring everyone straight in the face—literally.

Yet for some reason, this solution is little discussed.

It’s good ol’ text messaging.

So if you were searching for more info on an employee text messaging system, kudos to you! You’re already one step ahead of many.

Here we’ll go over the in’s and out’s of an employee text messaging system, so you can explore if it would be a good option for you.

Try an Employee Text Messaging System

Don’t need all the rigamarole? Just ready to jump in and give an employee text messaging system a try to see how it could work for you?

That’s no problem at all—it’s actually fantastic.

Give employee texting a try here.

If you’re not quite ready to try it out, keep reading for more info…

How Does an Employee Text Messaging System Work?

Being able to coordinate and send text messages to your employees sounds great in theory.

But how does it actually work?

After all, you don’t want to spend all day on your iPhone (or Android, we don’t judge around here). You don't want to just sit around sending out important notices to employees all day.

And no, you don’t have to do that.

Using our SMS platform Mobile Text Alerts as an example, the steps look like this…

1. Get a Text Messaging System

You’ll first need to select and set up a text messaging system.

You’ll want to select one that’s easy to use and whose budget fits your needs.

Or, if you have developer resources, you’ll want to find a text messaging system that has a good API you can connect with, so that you can set up your processes the way you’d like them to be.

Make sure your service…

• Has the features you’re looking for (automated messaging options? grouping/segmenting capabilities? the ability to set up different users to send messages?)
• Isn’t a headache to work with
• Has a support team that’s ready and willing to help

You can test out a free trial before going all in with a service.

2. Get Your Employee Contact Database Loaded in

Once you have a service picked out (or are ready to test a service), you can start figuring out how you’re going to load your employee contact database into it.

You could simply import a spreadsheet of your existing contacts.

You can also use tools such as “text-to-join” keywords and customizable web sign-up forms to get employees to sign themselves up for receiving texts.

If you want a more scalable solution, you can set up automated integrations with your HR software, either through Zapier or via an API offered by your SMS provider.

Setting up an integration is the best option (if it’s possible). That's because an integration could allow you to automatically update your texting database whenever your HR database gets updated—such as if you add or lose an employee, or if an employee changes their contact info.

3. (Optional) Segment Your Employees into Relevant Groups

You can not only load in your list of employees but you can separate them out into relevant groups.

For example, you could have a group for “Day Shift,” another group for “Night Shift,” and a third group for “Management.”

Why?

Because then you can make sure the messages you send are actually relevant to the recipients.

No use annoying day shift folks with messages only pertaining to the night shift.

Making sure your messages are relevant actually helps make sure that people continue to pay attention to your messages—that they don’t start training themselves to ignore you.

If you send irrelevant messages, people won’t be bothered to pay attention to your actually important messages when they do come in.

4. Set Up and Send Your Messages

There are a few different options for setting up your messages within an employee text messaging system's online dashboard.

For example, you can send out the message immediately after entering the message content.

Or you can schedule messages for a particular date/time.

Or you can set up a series of messages to “drip” out over a period of time—this could be especially useful for a series of training messages, for example.

If you prefer to go a programming route (to help keep manual entry at a minimum), you can set up and send your messages via an API, per the SMS system’s API documentation.

You may also be able to send messages via a mobile app if you want an option that’s even more convenient.

Once your message content is ready to go and you’ve decided how you want to send the message, you’re ready to send.

5. (Optional) Monitor

You get to decide whether or not you want to monitor the results of (and responses to) the messages you send to your employees.

You can view reporting to see analytics on data points such as message delivery and link click tracking.

Many SMS systems, including Mobile Text Alerts, will also allow you to see responses to your messages via an online inbox.

However, if you don’t have the bandwidth to monitor responses, from within your online dashboard you can set up an “auto-response” message to be automatically triggered whenever someone replies to your messages. This auto-response could let people know that responses aren’t monitored, and could give them an alternative means to contact you.

How Can You Use an Employee Text Messaging System?

There is really almost no limit to the number of different ways you can use an employee text messaging system.

Here are some examples…

Reminders

A text message reminder is one of the easiest ways to make sure someone is aware of something they need to know or of somewhere they need to be.

• Remind employees about meetings
• Remind employees about deadlines
• Remind employees about important dates (such as holidays)
• Remind employees about safety procedures

Some specific examples:

“

Reminder: Our monthly all-hands meeting is today at 3pm in the main conference room. Please review the attached agenda and be prepared to discuss quarterly goals.

“

Hi team, just a reminder that performance review self-evaluations are due by end of day Friday. You should have received a link to complete the form via text yesterday. Let me know if you need it re-sent.

“

SAFETY ALERT: Heavy snowstorm expected tonight into tomorrow morning. Please review the severe weather policy attached, and prioritize taking these precautions when traveling to/from work sites. Safety is our #1 priority!

Operational Updates

What better way than text messages to send out time-sensitive communications related to scheduling, job assignments, status updates, emergency alerts, and day-to-day workforce activities?

• Send out updates, job assignments and ETAs to your employees
• Receive real-time status updates from mobile/remote workers
• Coordinate scheduling, shift changes and time-sensitive announcements
• Initiate emergency alerts and safety notifications instantly

Some specific examples:

“

Field team, new job order: HVAC repair at 123 Main St. What's your ETA to job site?

“

Steve, your delivery is 30 mins behind schedule. Please update the client.

“

All crews: High wind advisory until 8pm tonight. Secure any loose equipment and materials.

Employee Engagement

Texting can be a way to keep employees informed and connected, and to foster a positive work culture.

• Share company news, policy updates and organizational announcements
• Facilitate back-and-forth Q&A sessions over text
• Send quick polls, surveys and feedback requests
• Share kudos, celebrate successes as a team

Some specific examples:

“

Company update: We hit our Q1 sales goals! Celebrating with an office happy hour this Friday.

“

Quick poll: Who is interested in forming a company kickball team this summer?

“

Shoutout to the Denver team for the successful event launch last night! Nice work.

HR & Training

HR can use texting to communicate important policy updates or share training material.

• Push learning resources and training materials
• Conduct quizzes and assessments
• Disseminate policy updates and documentation
• Send new hire orientation and employee onboarding notices

Some specific examples:

“

New hire orientation at 9am Monday. Please review the employee handbook section I'm texting over.

“

Q: What are the 3 steps in our customer support process?

“

Performance review cycle is open. You'll receive a text with a link to complete your self-evaluation.

Why Should You Use an Employee Text Messaging System?

People are flooded with communication from all sides—from emails to Slack messages to social media updates to app notifications.

And, truth be told, many of us have conditioned ourselves to ignore most of this.

But there’s one communication channel people still pay attention to…

Their text messages.

55% of text messages are read and 100% are at least viewed.

That means if you have an update that you really want people to see, your best option is to send the message as a text message.

Continuity

We are glued to our mobile devices almost 24/7—constantly texting friends and family or checking notifications or listening to podcasts.

But then we step into the office and that same intuitive, instantaneous communication method gets thrown out the window.

As mentioned, email inboxes overfloweth and "Did you get my Slack message from 3 days ago?" can become a common refrain.

Why not keep open the line of communication that people are used to?

Easy Reference

It’s easy to recall and refer back to information that was communicated via text messages.

People can just pull up the text thread and scroll up.

Or they can search the key terms and the correct convo will show up.

While you can conduct similar searches with email and Slack, the messaging can be a lot more cluttered.

Ubiquitousness (In Other Words, It’s Everywhere!)

Maybe I live under a rock, because I only recently discovered what “ubiquitous” meant. But it’s a good word to describe texting!

(For those who are like me, ubiquitous means “present everywhere.”)

Particularly in the United States, texting is used just about everywhere by just about everyone—from 10-year-olds to 90-year-olds.

So texting therefore becomes a way in which you can communicate with all kinds of people across age groups, cultural backgrounds, and income levels.

The Underlying Benefits (and Objections) to an Employee Text Messaging System

We’ve been over some of the more obvious benefits of texting employees, such as the higher read rate and the major prominence of texting in our everyday lives.

But now let’s dig a little deeper and get into some of the more subtle benefits (as well as objections) to using an employee text messaging system.

Personableness

A text message on your phone feels more personal than an email or even a Slack notification.

Your text message inbox is the same place where you hold conversations with your spouse, your parents, your grandparents, your kids, and your closest friends.

So texting employees can be a more personable way to communicate with them and make them feel connected to the workplace.

It’s a real human connection.

On the other hand, since texting is much more personal, you don’t want to be an intruder into your employees’ personal space.

So go ahead and use the personableness of texting—but don’t abuse it.

Psychology

Texting may trigger a dopamine loop and invoke curiosity, making people want to open that text message and see what it’s all about.

This psychological boost is a part of what makes texting so effective and why there can be such a draw for people to check their phones constantly.

Of course, a pushback to this could be that sending texts for work has the potential to actually make people want to avoid checking their texts—in other words, it may be difficult for work-related messages to tap into the psychological benefits of texting.

However, work-related messaging doesn’t have to be something that would make people want to avoid it. You can go about your texting efforts in a way in which people are still genuinely interested in opening and reading your texts.

Immediacy

Generally speaking, people are much more likely to check their text messages before they check their emails or other forms of communication.

While people can leave some of their emails unopened for days, they usually get an immediate notice when a text message comes in.

That level of immediacy is especially important for time-sensitive messages (obviously). One common use case is for filling shift needs, for example. (“We need 2 night shift fill-in’s tomorrow night. Reply AVAILABLE if interested.”)

Of course, if you send too many messages or present too many messages as urgent when they really aren’t, this could lose the sense of immediacy in your text communication and could make SMS less effective for you.

Ability to Reach Anytime, Anywhere

Many, if not most, people have their phones nearby at all times.

What this means is that by using text messaging, you can reach your employees anytime, anywhere—whether they’re sitting in the office, out in the field, on a work trip across the country, or even at home.

This ability to reach people no matter where they are or what time it is obviously can be a huge benefit that sets texting apart from most other communication channels.

But with this power comes great responsibility. It would be easy to abuse this and disrupt your employees’ work-home life balance.

Best Practices for Employee Texting

In light of all the benefits and potential objections listed above, you’ll want to make sure you go about texting employees in a way that uses texting to its fullest potential yet doesn’t abuse it.

Here are some guidelines to keep in mind…

Don’t Oversend

Texting can be an effective way to reach people but it loses its effectiveness if it’s overused.

If people receive too many text messages, they’ll start to ignore them just like they do other communication channels.

You know your own circumstances best, but a good rule of thumb is that less is more with texting. Save texting for your most important updates and try to keep it at just 2–4 messages per month.

Don’t Text After Work Hours

In order to help your employees maintain a good work-life balance, refrain from texting outside of working hours unless necessary (or unless your unique circumstance warrants it for one reason or another).

Most updates are not so urgent that they must be sent out immediately, potentially disrupting someone’s personal time with their friends and family.

In most cases, no one will get injured if a message isn’t seen until the morning. So you can respect people’s private time and keep your text messaging within business hours.

Communicate Expectations Clearly

Make sure everyone is fully aware of what to expect, so that your messaging admins know when they should be sending text messages and when they should use other communication channels.

I’d recommend just taking a little bit of time to write out the protocol you’d like people to follow for what situations warrant text message communication vs. other types of communication—as well as who will actually be the one(s) in charge of sending messages.

Make Sure Messages Are Relevant

You’ll want to make sure that the text messages you send are as relevant as possible to the employees you’re sending them to.

If you’re sending people messages that don’t pertain to them, they’re going to start ignoring your messages, or they at least won’t necessarily be pleased when they see your message come in.

You want people to feel positively about the messages you’re sending, so that they keep paying attention to what you have to say.

How to Get Started with an Employee Text Messaging System

Getting started with employee text messaging doesn’t have to be difficult. There are a few steps you can following:

1. Select an SMS service that you’d like to try. (Most services will offer you a free trial period so you can test things out without shelling out any cash.)
2. Load your contacts into the SMS platform (or via the SMS API), or set up an integration between your SMS platform and your HR database.
3. Set up your desired message in the online SMS dashboard or API.

And that’s the gist of it!

Employee Text Messaging System FAQ

What Is an Employee Text Messaging System?

An employee text messaging system is a text messaging platform, API, and/or mobile app that allows you to send text messages to employees.

This messaging is all managed through the service’s offerings rather than through a sender’s personal phone, so you don’t have to manage everything for yourself.

Instead, you can use the text messaging service to:

• Manage your employee database and group them into messaging segments (or you can sync up with your HR management service so that you don’t have to keep up with multiple databases)
• Schedule messages to send out to your employees at the exact right times
• Automate messaging flows if you have different series of messages you want to go out to employees
• Manage individual 1-on-1 conversations in case people have questions or comments

On other words, a text messaging system equips you with the tools you need to make communicating with your employees via text messaging as easy as possible.

When Should Text Messages Be Used in the Workplace?

Text messages can be used in the workplace for virtually any communication need.

However, you’ll want to make sure that you limit the number of text messages you send, so that you’re not sending too many to the point that people stop paying attention to them.

Some different ways you can use text messages in the workplace would include (but would not be limited to):

• Meeting reminders
• Deadline notices
• Safety reminders
• General updates
• Job assignments
• ETAs
• Status updates from mobile/remote workers
• Scheduling coordination
• Shift change communication
• Time-sensitive announcements
• Emergency alerts and safety notifications
• Company news
• Policy updates and organizational announcements
• Facilitate back-and-forth Q&A sessions over text
• Polls, surveys and feedback requests
• Sharing kudos, and celebrating successes as a team

Try an Employee Text Messaging System Now

As you can see, SMS is not just a solution for marketing.

It’s a highly effective tool that you can use to really reach your employees as well.

Go ahead and try an employee text messaging system now to see how it would work for you.