Frequently Asked Questions

Q) How is AMG Alerts different from other messaging systems?

A) We are cloud-based, which means that there is no special hardware or software to install. Setup is turn-key. Your fully functional system may be set up in a matter of hours.

Notification covers Web, E-mail, Text, and Voice modes - and the system includes message disposition reporting!

In addition, in order to provide our clients with the best product at the lowest price, we offer some unique pricing models that all assure that you don't pay for messaging that you don't use or need!

In addition, AMG Alerts has tools available so that the Subscribers (your potential recipients) may input - and maintain - their own information, greatly enhancing the ease of setup and use.

Our Voice mode is text-to-speech, which does not require a separate, cumbersome "recording" step. Voice alerts go out seamlessly with the other modes, all in one process!

Q) What's the idea behind the three versions?

A) Our customers have different needs and budgetary limitations. The Standard version is the gold standard because it includes all the most important features. But institutions who do not need Voice notification, and do not have as critical a need for closed-loop messaging and can forego disposition reporting, can save money by using the Lite version. It is a popular choice for customers who will be using the system for less critical issues and thus may put out more messages and want to lower their messaging costs. The Subscriber-Paid version is extremely flexible. The Subscribers (your recipients) may sign up for free or low-cost e-mail notifications, or for slightly more expensive text or voice messaging. The institution pays nothing.

A simple comparison is shown below:

Q) What is the pricing for the system?

A) There is an annual membership fee depending on the number of Subscribers you have and the amount and type of messaging you plan to do. Our unique pricing model assures that ultimately, you only pay for the messaging you use. Generally, each customer has a pricing plan developed uniquely for their needs.

Q) Is my information private?

A) Yes. For ten years, AMG Teleran has been in the business of securing sensitive customer data, and has done so for hundreds of users. For more information, please review our simple Privacy Policy. It will tell you what you need to know about our operation and our principles.

Q) How do I get my Subscribers' information into the system?

A) The recommended method is to simply publish a link to your supplied portal so that people can sign up themselves! They will receive a Welcome e-mail with a user key that they can use anytime to update their contact profiles. The data will be self-maintaining. Of course, you can add information in traditional ways as well, such as a file upload or through the interface. We poutline further possibilities in an article in our Employee Notification blog.

Q) How do I maintain my Subscriber (user) base within AMG Alerts?

A) The Subscribers will take care of that if you use one of the supplied web portals. Therefore, the data is generally self-maintaining, which is the beauty of a system like AMG Alerts! Alternatively, the application gives you the tools you need to search by name and category, and add or edit Subscriber information as needed. In addition, there are tools to launch “Update Request” e-mails to the Subscriber base, either on a case-by-case basis, or in bulk based on the last update dates for Subscriber records.

And of course we also provide the ability to upload your data, including incremental adds, deletes, or even entire replacement files if needed.

Q) What reporting is available?

A) The beauty of a closed-loop, private system like AMG Alerts is that you know who you are targeting because you know who is in the database. But we even go a step further and offer you disposition reporting in near real-time so you know who RECEIVED your alert! This means that we have a report that will, for example, tell you which numbers have received your text alert and which have encountered a problem. Our system flags those users on the report, showing their name with a link so that you may immediately visit their record and correct the issue, even if it is as simple as launching an Update Request to that user via e-mail so they can click a link and confirm their information.

Q) Who in my organization may have access to the system?

A) There is one primary Administrator, and that information is defined at setup. This user has access to several optional system settings after the simple setup process. Among these rights is the definition of additional Administrators. These additional users have lower permission levels and may either: a) launch alerts and administer the Subscriber base, or b) administer the Subscriber base only.

Q) Why do I need Voice capability?

A) You don't. But your recipients DO. Not everybody has a text messaging plan, or text capability, so sometimes you will want to launch notifications in voice mode if you want maximum reach. Even within the population likely to be most "text oriented", a certain percentage of Subscribers choose voice mode. We know this from our own analysis of alerting preferences.

Q) What are the best mass notification modes?

A) We discuss that in demos of course and it is dependent upon the situation. As many as possible is a good start! But we also cover some nuances in the Employee Messaging Mass Notification blog. Here is one of those articles: Mass Notification System Modes

Q) Can a Subscriber change their information anytime they wish or only when there is an update request?

A) Once a Subscriber is in the system, they will have their own User Key. After they get an Update Request or an alert via e-mail , they will be able to use that key, a simple Web URL that they can save in their Favorites, to update their Subscriber profile anytime they wish. (Your administrator has the ability to disallow such remote updates at any time). Additionally, an Administrator can have the system issue a key via e-mail upon entry of a new Subscriber via published link(s).

Q) What is in a Subscriber profile?

A) Only the information needed to launch alerts and maintain the data: The Subscriber’s name, and numbers for land-line and mobile phone, text phone (if different from mobile) and e-mail address. The Subscriber also chooses whether they want Voice alerts set to their mobile or landline phone, and also their "Preferred" mode – Text, E-mail, or Voice. Subscriber category information is available to the Administrator. Optionally, there are additional information fields that can be defined by the administrator to assist in making alerts more selective. For example, while a Category of Subscriber may be "Assembly Plant Employees", the Administrator may define an additional information field called "Shift" so that, for example, alerts to Assembly Plant Employees may be further filtered by Shift. Or a school system may have a field to define the actual facility.

Q) How do I get started?

A) You can sign up right on our site and establish an account immediately! Just contact us for a Promo Code (which sets your pricing and Subscriber level) and visit our "Get Started" page. Or contact us for a demo, and we can even walk you through the account setup. That makes the process a little quicker, and we will provide a Promo Code that reflects your specific pricing needs.

Q) What other materials are available?

A) After login, you will have access to various manuals and guides. However, we are happy to furnish those prior to your signing up. We can even provide an example of how a web-based rollout might read and be implemented. Corporate users and others should check out our new Employee Messaging blog. Additionally, school administrators are encouraged to read our popular white paper entitled "Calling All Campuses: Getting Started with Mass Notification"