6.17.0 Notification Enhancements

6.17.0 - Notification Enhancements

What’s New? 

Notification options in Aspire enhance the ability to deliver prompt service and communicate instantly upon job completion. The latest release includes several improvements specifically for Absentee Notifications, such as grace period flexibility and the capacity to dispatch absentee notifications triggered by crew leaders and members. Additionally, improvements for other notification types are also included in this release. 

Notable updates that have been added to this release: 

• Absentee Notifications 
  • 💭 Expanded Grace Period Limitations 
  •  💭 Property Tags for Absentee Notifications
  • Crew member Absentee Notifications 
• SMS Notifications 
  • Placeholder text 
  • Contact SMS notification status
• All Notifications 
  • Notification Log Updates 

Absentee Notifications 

The absentee notifications updates in this release are designed to increase flexibility by ensuring: 

• You can define when an absentee notification is sent for a specific property before or after other absentee notifications by adding property tags to absentee notification templates as a filter. 
• 💭 Set a Grace Period of your choosing within 5 - 240 minutes in minutes or hours. 
• 💭  Ensure that crew members, in addition to crew leaders, will trigger the notification to get sent out to a recipient (branch manager, account manager, sales rep, etc..) if they are not clocked in by the end of the grace period. 
  

💭 Adding Property Tags to Absentee Notification Template

Adding property tags to an absentee notification template ensures that other absentee notifications are overridden by the absentee notification containing the property tag. 

 Use this feature by taking these steps: 

1. Create a property tag(s). 
2. Add the same property tag to the absentee notification that should be applied to the property. 
3. Add the same property tag(s) to a new or existing property. 
   1. Double-check the grace period to ensure that the message is triggered correctly. 

Creating New Property Tags 

To create tags, follow these steps:

1. Go to Settings > Administration. 
2. Select  Application. 
3. Click Lists 
4. Select Tag
5. Select NEW from the search list screen.  
6.  Create a Name and select Property Tag from the Type dropdown. 
7. Save. 

Adding Property Tags - Absentee Notification Template  

Once you have created the property tags, you can add them to the new Property Tag field that appears after Absentee Notification (Internal) is the chosen Notification Type. You can add multiple property tags to one template.

Keep in mind 

• Absentee notifications are only compatible with time-based routes. 
• Set the Grace Period based on whether you want the notification sent before or after other absentee notifications without a property filter are sent. 

• Now, you can set a grace period of your choice instead of being limited to specific options. You can add a number in minutes or hours ranging between 5 to 240 minutes of your choice. 

Adding Property Tags - Property details screen 

Once you have added and saved the property tag(s) and added them to the Absentee Notification template, go to the Property details screen and add the same tag(s) to the property that was added to the notification template by taking these steps: 

1. Go to Main Menu > Property. 
2.  Select a Property. 
3. Go to the More Actions menu > Edit Property. 
4.  Add the tag(s) used in the absentee notification template(s) to the Tags field.  
5. Save. 

Crew Member - Absentee Notification 

Absentee notifications will now be triggered by crew members and leaders assigned to the same time-based route to ensure all crew members are clocked in by the end of a grace period. Only the member(s) or crew leader not clocked in by the grace period will not trigger the notification. 

Keep in mind: 

• The crew leader and member(s) must be assigned to the same time-based route to receive an absentee notification. 
• New tokens for the message body of an absentee notification template have been added specifically for crew members. 
  • [Person_Full_ Name] 
  • [Person_ Mobile_ Phone]. 
    

Additional Absentee Notification Update

Crew leaders and members working overnight visits will only trigger a single absentee notification based on the visit start time and the set Grace Period within the Absentee Notification template. So, no additional notifications will be sent for the following day that the visit spans when you have already clocked in. 

SMS Notifications 

Placeholder Text 

Formulate SMS messages faster when creating a notification template using the placeholder text that will now exist in the message body of all SMS message templates. 

Keep in Mind  

• Suppose you change the Notification Type and have not changed the default placeholder text. In that case, the placeholder text will update to align with the new notification type you have chosen. 
• Suppose you have changed the Notification Type and the placeholder text. In that case, your changes will be retained, and the message body will not reflect the placeholder text of the updated Notification Type.
• Use the following steps to navigate to the SMS message template: Settings > Administration > Notifications > Manage Notifications > New > Add SMS Notification.

Contact SMS Notification Status

Instead of sending an opt-in invite for contacts under a specific property by going to the properties details screen, quickly view whether a contact (regardless of contact type) has SMS notifications enabled via the SMS Notification Status field now on the Contact screen. 

 💭 You can select the new Send Invite button for any contact on the contact screen located beneath the field if the contact does not enable SMS Notifications.

Once the Invite is successfully sent, the field will update to a read-only status of Opt-in SMS Sent along with a date stamp. 

 Once the user has opted in, a new status will state SMS enabled with a date stamp, and you will have the option to disable SMS. 

Keep in mind 

• You can only view the Send Invite button for a contact type with a phone number saved to their record. Otherwise, you will not see the option. 
• Use the following steps to navigate to the Contact screen to view the SMS status of an individual contact: Main Menu > Contacts > Select a contact. 
  

Contact Advanced Search List - SMS Notification Updates 

• The contact advanced search screen SMS Opt In Status field now uses a symbol to reflect the opt-in status of a contact and will no longer contain text detailing whether it is for internal or external SMS notification. 
  • A caution triangle indicates the intent to opt in was sent, and a green checkmark indicates the contact has opted in. 
  • Click the symbol to open the contact screen to view more information. 

• You can send an invite to opt-in contacts for SMS notifications from the contacts advanced search screen via the Bulk Actions menu. Previously, there was only the option to Opt-In Internal SMS Notifications.

• Two new fields have been added to the Contacts advanced search list screen so that you can quickly identify the properties associated with contacts receiving email and SMS notifications using the SMS Notification Properties and Email Notification Properties fields. These are not default fields and can be filtered, sorted, displayed, and grouped.

Notifications 

Contacts

• Swiftly enable or disable notifications from the contact screen from the Bulk Actions menu in the Properties section of the contact screen. This new option is beneficial because you can ensure that contacts, e.g., customers associated with your properties, can have notifications enabled from your contact screen at one time. Conveniently, when you select the option to Enable SMS Notifications, any contact that has not opted in will receive an invite.  

Notification Log 

• You can see whether an SMS or email notification was successfully sent or failed to send using the Status field that will be available to display, sort, filter, or group in the Notification Log section of the contact and property detail screens. As an admin, you can go to the Notification Log subsection of the Administration menu and use the status field to gather if a notification was delivered to a recipient or failed to be sent. 
• View all email and SMS notifications sent internally and externally (to your customers) instead of only SMS notifications for a contact via the notification log on the contact screen. See both internal and external notifications related to a property on the property details screen.
   Additional Information
• Manage Notifications Screen
• SMS Absentee Notifications  

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  💭- denotes new and improved functionality implemented in response to client portal feedback.