New Tool: Multilingual Mass Text Messaging
What you need to know: text messaging is the preferred communication method.
Foreign-born workers and residents in the Bow Valley are less likely to check their emails.
Many foreign-born workers face digital access barriers.
Text messaging is often the preferred method of communication - but many employers are not equipped to contact employees this way.
Make it easy for yourself with mass text messaging:
Newcomer.info is a mass text messaging platform developed for the settlement sector that makes it easy and affordable to message groups of people in different languages.
Although the app does not translate messages, you can segment your employee contact list by primary language, translate your important messages, then send targeted (translated) messages to each group of language speakers in your workplace. It’s easy!
It’s free and easy to get started:
Register for free. You’ll receive 250 free messages when you sign up, and you do not need to provide credit card information. It took our team about 1 minute to sign up. After your 250 free messages, rates range from $0.10 to $0.30 per message (of up to 1600 characters or 250-300 words), depending on how many credits you purchase.
Choose Groups from the main menu, then create groups representing the most common languages in your organization (ex. you might call the groups “English speakers”, “French speakers”)
Import your contact list:
Select Clients from the main menu then Import.
Download the sample import file (Excel format)
To easily segment by language, create and save a different file for each language group you want to target.
Add contact information. You only need to provide a name and cell phone number. Cell phone numbers should be formatted like this: 4034310705. You do not need to include the country code (1).
Upload each file and select the corresponding language group from the Groups drop down menu
You can also manually add contacts:
Select Clients from the main menu then Add Client
Fill in a minimum of cell phone number, employee (client) name, and group (language group)
Start sending translated messages:
Write your message in English
Translate your message.
For short and simple messages, Google Translate or an informal translator is a good start, but if your message is important, we recommend using a certified translator.
Workplace Inclusion Champion Newsletter subscribers can receive a 10% discount on translations from Languages in Motion (Quote the discount code BVWIC2020). For a directory of additional certified translators in Alberta, please click here.
Select Messages and Send from the main menu.
Select the language group you would like to target, paste your message into the message box (max 1600 characters per message) and select send!
About newcomer.info
It's a mass text-messaging tool purpose built for rapid, real-time and relevant information sharing with refugee and immigrant newcomers.
Newcomer.info was developed by the non-profit ISP, Vancouver Community Network for Immigrant Services Society of BC. It’s a very new application that we’ve just learned about and have only conducted limited testing with. We are not security experts and cannot guarantee the security of information uploaded to this platform, however:
Data collected is stored on Canadian servers.
The messaging is powered by Twilio, the same service used by BC Centre for Disease Control.
Twilio supports encryption to protect communication between the web application and Twilio.
Get started: https://newcomer.info/how_it_works
BVIP is not affiliated with newcomer.info.