U-M Mass Notification Service Customer Tool — Quick Start Guide (Non‑Emergency Use)

Do NOT use "U-M Mass Notification Service customer tool for emergency communications or to request emergency help.
If there is an imminent threat to life/safety or an urgent crime in progress, instruct recipients to call 911 (or campus/public safety per your local procedure).

Why this matters (regulatory context):

• Clery Act (Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act): requires institutions to issue timely warnings and emergency notifications using established emergency communication processes. A customer/bulk texting tool is not a substitute for institution-controlled emergency notification workflows.
• Kari’s Law (47 U.S.C. § 623): reinforces the expectation that people can directly contact emergency services (e.g., dialing 911) and that emergency calling is treated as a priority function—not routed through ad hoc messaging channels.

Bottom line: This tool supports outreach and operations. Emergency alerts and urgent life-safety messaging must go through DPSS' official emergency notification systems and procedures.

1. Click on Alert > Alert Templates from the left navigation
2. Under the ACTION column, click the SELECT button next to the SMS template you would like to use.
3. Leave the Name field as is for your group
4. Choose SnapSend from the Type drop-down
5. Type your desired Short Message into the box (limit of 160 characters)
6. Under the Alert Methods section, click the minus (-) icon above Email to remove that destination.
7. Click the EDIT button next to Delivery Targets
8. Select the appropriate list from the box in the upper left
9. Click Save
10. Click Continue
11. Click Send this alert to XX recipients
12. OPTIONAL: Instead of clicking Continue at Step 10, you may choose Schedule to select a future date/time
    • You may cancelled a previously scheduled message by returning to the Alert Templates section from the left navigation and expanding the One-time Scheduled Alerts section.  Then, click the red X.

1. Keep messages short, clear, and actionable. Include:
   • who it’s from,
   • what it’s about,
   • what the recipient should do next,
   • and where to get help (non-emergency contact).
2. Examples:
   • “From [Unit]: Reminder—we will be conducting a fire drill at [INSERT BUILDING] tomorrow at 2:00 PM. Reply STOP to opt out. Questions: [phone/email].”
   • “From [Unit]: We apologize but all restrooms on the first floor are out of service.  Updates: [link].”
3. Avoid
   • Any language implying emergency response (“Active threat,” “Shelter now,” “Evacuate,” etc.)
   • Sending sensitive personal data in SMS (SMS is generally not a secure channel).