Push Communications FAQ

 

Do we need to set up a login?  Would like to avoid another username/password 

The first-time users onboard to the Push Extension, they do go through an activation process.  Depending upon which login configurations are enabled, you could use either username (email usually)/password, Microsoft 365 login, Google, or other authentication providers that your users may already have.  Again, the message will always come through “in channel”, with email always receiving the full message, whereas Teams, SMS, or other concise channels will have limitations to the initial content received.  The benefit is being able to connect with people on preferred channels and based on your channel strategy, all from a single place, not having to manually send an email, then texts, then Teams message, and so on. 

How do these users get in here?  

If you’re connected to Source, it will pass that information through that chain.  Alternatively, if you are Microsoft 365 is current and has the information needed, you can connect directly there and at the same time enable Teams as a communication channel for those active there.  In the end, it depends on which employee info directory has the most accurate and complete information and is an effective part of your onboarding/offboarding processes.   

Can I give you my cell phone number and see how it comes through SMS? 

Yup, we just add manually to your profile for the demo.  Then we can manage your channel preferences and based on channel strategy and message priority you will receive it there or on the appropriate channel. 

So what would appear in the SMS? 

You can customize per channel the content that comes through “in channel”.  For SMS, you have up to 1000 characters, which will include the title and a link always back to the full message to a web page.   

Currently, we have a Corporate Teams channel we send announcements too… can we direct the Teams messages there? 

When you deploy the Push Extensions Teams app from the marketplace, you can choose a channel to configure, which is used to understand the membership of which users you want to enable Teams channel communication.  So, yes.  We can confirm the details more fully with our product team and think also have a setup article to send you. 

Will this be able to connect to our “on-prem” Source intranet? 

Yes, it can and it enables you to bring in your users and audiences (based on groups departments, locations) to build off your existing employee information and lists that exist within “In Touch” (your intranet). 

Does this pull employee information from Active Directory and the intranet (the Hub) like departments, locations, etc? 

Yes, with the integration of the Push Extension with Source, you configure this once, and daily it will pull in users and audiences including those based on those fields.  This is ideal to avoid extra admin and be integrated into existing processes. 

Can you add custom colors to the content area? 

Not currently, but we could work to bring a custom color coding and even brand settings to have as default available and set once (and easily reusable). 

Can we add a general email/name user as the send from? 

Yes, we have another customer doing similar to send on behalf of a group (eg. the HR team) or more general name. 

What determines if they have converted to the message? 

This will depend. If there is no linked call-to-action, only message content, and sent over email then the user will count as converted as they will get the full content.  If your intention is for them to click through and set up a link, conversions are considered when the user does just that. 

Does it come from an internal or external email? 

It will come from notifications@icreach.app by default.  A recommended practice when you start out is to send an awareness email over existing channels with instructions and to give heads up.  You could also ask IT to whitelist emails in your mail provider for emails from @icreach.app 

Assume once they onboard the first time, they’re set up for future use? 

Yes, correct, they just have to activate their user account once.  And, we’ll provide you some onboarding tips based on experience! 

Is this like the intranet where they need to be on a work computer or VPN? 

No, not for the Push Extension content, it’s fully cloud-based and available as long as they have internet.  Also, all content is entirely mobile-responsive to display well across devices. 

If we were to copy that URL and link it from our intranet?  Eg. view the latest PPP news, would it bring this message up and track users? 

Yes, it could be used in that way.  Particularly for targeting specific audiences from different places you can get in front of them.  This could be a way to track that.   

What does it look like in terms of setting up for the employee?  Is it something they opt into? 

Yes, the employee can update their profile at any time, and opt-in with their mobile # 

In the textbox in the builder, the last thing to the right?  Is there only a place for one link? 

No, within the message content you can set up multiple sections/paragraphs of content and style it with the editor, and create as many links as you like. 

Can it send out a phone call as well?  We have all sorts of generations, devices, etc.

Not currently, the user will get an SMS message for mobile with the subject, some content, and a link for more info to a web page.  There they can respond with binary feedback or more qualitative information if you like. 

Can you export out the responses, conversion, and feedback activity? 

Yes, absolutely, you can download to CSV and manage in Excel 

 

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