The rise of on-the-go mobile communication – mobile email, text messages, and social media apps accessible anytime, anywhere – is dramatically changing the face of communication in today's business environment. The Pew Research Center reports that 90% of Americans now have cellphones and 58% of them have smart phones.
Mobile email usage has become so popular that many cell phone subscribers use mobile devices more often for checking email than making calls. The DMA reports that 79% of smartphone owners and 72% of tablet users access email on their devices.
Since Neil Papworth wished his colleague Richard Jarvis "Merry Christmas" in the first text message 22 years ago, texting has changed the way millions of people communicate each day. Text messages are interesting because they offer a quick way to share information quickly without forcing the recipient to redirect his or her attention immediately.
The growth of social media is exploding for both personal and business communications. And mobile access is driving much of that growth. Adobe reports that 71% of smart phone users access social media via their mobile devices. The most popular are Facebook (75%) followed by Twitter (28%) and Google+ (26%).
Clearly mobile communication is having a profound effect on the ways we interact today. Just as email transformed in-office communications, mobile is changing how we communicate everywhere else.
So what does this mean for emergency notification systems? Mobile has become essential to an effective critical communication strategy. Multi-channel communication is not only useful, it's essential for making sure that everyone who could be potentially involved in an emergency situation is notified. Extending alerts and urgent messages beyond desktops, on-site signage and other location specific media to mobile-friendly email formats, text messages, and popular social media networks is a powerful way to ensure that your emergency notification reaches the right people at the right time anywhere they happen to be.
