Creating Desktop Alerts

OVERVIEW

Desktop Alerts allow a Content Administrator to publish important information directly to employee desktops and mobile devices that have the SnapComms App installed. The message is displayed in a pop-up window on a desktop or within the SnapComms App on mobile.

Employees can receive a notification on all devices to notify them an Alert is available for them to read. 

TUTORIAL VIDEO

TO CREATE A DESKTOP ALERT

1. On your Dashboard click Create Content
2. Select Build your Own and choose Desktop Alert

You will be provided with two template options:
Desktop Alert (new) – Enhanced template with uplifted design.
Desktop Alert Classic – A true Build your Own blank template

3. Select a Theme to use with the Desktop Alert

Logos, colors and fonts used in your message are derived from the selected theme.

4. Select a folder to save your content in, give the Desktop Alert a name and click on Start
   4.b Or using the Start drop-down, select Start as Organization Template

DESKTOP ALERT EDITOR

This section covers the Desktop Alert Settings and Editors. Refer to the numbers on the image below for locations.

1. Content Editor
Navigate through the different views of your Content using the tabs at the top: Content, Pop-up and Feed View.

• Content: view and edit your main content in this view.
• Pop-up: view and edit the Pop-up notification in this view.
• Feed View: view and edit the App feed content summary in this view (All or Unread).

Note: Pop-up is only available if the notification type is set to Pop-up notification (default)


2. Designer Mode
Access the Designer mode by clicking on the Design icon:

In this mode, you can drag & drop content modules such as Image, Text boxes and Separators onto your Desktop Alert's Header, Body or Footer.

3. Content Settings
Those settings are available from the Content Editor. If you are in the Designer mode, exit this mode first:

Set the parameters for publishing your content. They are the following:

• Targets: select who will receive this content.
• Date and time: choose when this content will be visible by recipients.
• Notification: set how, how long and how often this content will appear to recipients.
• Delivery: specify the mediums used to deliver your content.

4. Display Settings
In Display settings, you can control how the Desktop Alert looks and displays to users.

There are 4 tabs in Display settings:

1. Size and location: control the size of your Content and Pop-up (if notification type = Pop-up). There are two sub-tabs available, Content and Pop-up. This is where you can change the position and display mode of your message.
2. Background: control the background type (color or image) and border style of your Content. Control the background and border color and border size of your Pop-up.
3. Style: change and customize the Theme for this content.
4. Settings: rename, select a different language for content-related messages and change your Content display animation.

5. Reactions
Reactions can be used in your Desktop Alerts to allow employees receiving your messages to "like" them. They appear as a Thumb Up icon. You can also choose to show how many "likes" a message has got.



Reactions are disabled by default, to enable them on your Desktop Alert, access the Reactions menu and toggle on Enable reactions for this content. Once ON, a second toggle becomes available: Show reactions count.

DIMENSIONS

The Desktop Alert consists of 3 pre-defined areas for content: Header, Body and Footer. Within each pre-defined area, an additional 6px padding is applied to the left and right sides of any content modules added such as text or images. 

The Header and Footer areas are pre-defined to always show at the top/bottom of the message and are ideal for fixed content that should appear at all times, such as your Company Logo. The Body is nestled between the Header and Footer. When the body is too long, a scroll bar is added to assist the user with navigating through its content.

Note: The Header will expand to accommodate added content to a maximum of 200 pixels. If the content is greater than 200 pixels scroll bars will show within the Alert.

HOW-TO

This section covers the How-tos of the Desktop Alert.
Use the table below for quick navigation:

• How to design my Desktop Alert
• How to update my Desktop Alert branding
• How to Preview my Desktop Alert
• How to Publish my Desktop Alert
• How to view my Desktop Alert usage stats

Design my Desktop Alert

If you have opted to create from the Desktop Alert, part of the design effort is already taken care of in the Header and Footer areas. If you are starting from the Desktop Alert - Classic, all areas of the Content are blank but for some placeholder text in the Header and Body. 



For both, enter the Designer mode to start designing. Doing so reveals the modules available to drag & drop onto your Desktop Alert in the right sidebar: Image, Text, Separator.

At the top, navigate to what view of your message you wish to edit: Content, Pop-up or Feed View (read more).

Note: 

• You can only drag & drop modules onto the Content (Header, Body, Footer) and the Pop-up, not the Feed View.
• For Desktop Alerts, dropping a module onto the Content or Pop-up will place it within a grid. You can then move your module around (1), resize it vertically (2) or change its width (3).

• For Desktop Alert Classic, dropping a module onto the Pop-up will place it freely within the available space. You can then move it around and resize it. The Content follows a grid.

Update my Desktop Alert branding  

  You can change your Theme or customize your applied Theme by going to Display Settings > Style:

• Change your Theme: change your Theme using the Content theme drop-down.
• Edit your applied Theme: toggle ON Customize theme for this content to change parts or all of your applied theme for this message only.

Preview my Desktop Alert  

Preview your Desktop Alert to review your overall design, test your links, how images display etc. before publishing. The Preview shows the content, Pop-up and as it would display on employees’ screens and mobiles.

To preview, click on the eye icon next to the Designer Mode or the Preview button next to Publish (or Submit for moderation if you have limited administrator permissions).

In Preview, use the sharing options to send this preview to someone who does not have access to the SnapComms Content Manager. You can share a link or send an email from the Preview page.

Publish my Desktop Alert  

Once happy with your settings (Targets, Date and time, Notification, Delivery) and design click on Publish.

Your Desktop Alert will be published either immediately or scheduled as per Date and time.

Note: If you do not see the Publish button, you have limited administrator permissions. Submit your Desktop Alert for moderation by clicking on Submit for moderation. This content will join the moderation queue and be published by an administrator with moderation and publishing permissions.

View my Desktop Alert results

Once published you will be able to see how users are engaging with your message by clicking on the reports icon and selecting Success Report. Under this menu, you will also find more message-related reports to explore.