Features
How mobile can be used in the Public Services Sector
Traditionally the public has been able to communicate with public service organisations via post or telephone and more recently via email. Now Dialogue’s Community Text service can offer a simple and cost effective method that allows personalised communication and interaction with the public through two-way SMS messaging. Mobile is an easy way to gauge opinions, gather feedback, send out alerts or reminders and to provide general information.
Mobile is becoming more frequently used by local councils, housing associations, police authorities and emergency services to encourage the public to communicate in various ways. The public can opt in to receive messages, allowing a database of registered numbers to be compiled. The database can then be used to distribute reminders, alerts or information to people who have opted in. The reminders can be used for services such as bin and payment reminders, as well as alerts used for flood warnings.
Text messaging can also be used to provide general information, report incidents both via SMS text messages and MMS picture messages, to contact support lines to discuss problems and gather opinions or views on community issues through mobile surveys or voting campaigns. The public can also text questions that can be directed to a call centre, with the option to either forward the text message to an email address, mobile number or http address.
A number of organisations in the UK and now Australia, are already using community text services with very successful results. Northumbria Police introduced the service to allow the hard of hearing to report emergencies via text. East Riding of Yorkshire Council has used SMS for bin reminders and a successful ‘Text a Fraud’ campaign, East Dunbartonshire Council introduced an ‘infotxt’ service and Warwickshire Police recognised that mobile was the best way to communicate with younger members of the community by introducing a ‘text2talk’ service for young people to report anti-social behaviour.
SMS messaging is becoming the new way to communicate and interact with your audience.