Introduction

The Notification application is used to configure how and when SMS messages and/or emails should be sent to Customers and Staff members. For more information, see “Configuration” .

Prerequisite:

• Make sure that you are using an email / sms provider that can handle a heavy load, where the system frequently checks for newly registered Appointments. For example (depending on the configuration), the system will check for new Appointments every 5 minutes and then send out sms messages for all of the Appointments that were booked during those 5 minutes, in a rapid succession.

As sms provider, we recommend Beepsend. For more information, see “Beepsend” .

• Make sure that you have added the Notification unit type to your configuration and configured it correctly. For more information about the unit type, see the Standard Unit Type’s Guide, found on Qmatic World.

If you are running an upgraded system, the unit type can be found here, after central upgrade: <Orchestra install dir>/conf/unittemplates/R61.

Preferred Notification Method

There is a possibility for the Customer to select a preferred notification method, at the time of creating a booking, via the public API. Any such setting will override the default settings in the Notification application.

This functionality is handled via REST calls, using a custom object called notificationType. Please see the Orchestra SDK documentation for more information.

Appointments

The Appointments functionality is only available if you have installed the Calendar application.

1. When the Appointment is booked - settings are done in the Appointment Confirmation sub tab.

2. A defined number of hours, and/or minutes (it’s possible to set two reminders) before the actual Appointment start time - settings are done in the Appointment Reminder sub tab.

3. To cancel one or several Appointments, due to for example a Branch being closed, or a staff member being ill - settings are done in the Appointment Cancellation sub tab.

Visits

Visit Call

If a phone number is added to the Visit, or a Customer with a phone number is related to the Visit, the Customer will get an SMS once his/her Visit is called.i

The field where to find the phone number is defined in the Notifications unit type. For more information about the Notifications unit type, please see the Standard Unit Types Guide, found on Qmatic World.

Visit Create

If a phone number or email address is added to the Visit, or a Customer with a phone number/email address is related to the Visit, an SMS or email is sent to the Customer, just after the Visit is created.

The field where to find the phone number is defined in the Notifications unit type.

Visit End

If a phone number or email address is added to the Visit, or a Customer with a phone number/email address is related to the Visit, an SMS or email can be sent to the Customer, just after the Visit is ended. This can be used, for example, for sending out Customer Feedback surveys.

The field where to find the phone number is defined in the Notifications unit type.

Visit Positions

When the Visit reaches certain positions in the Queue, the Customer will get an SMS, if a phone number has been registered for that Customer. The position(s) in the Queue is defined in the Notifications unit type.

The field where to find the phone number is also defined in the Notifications unit type. For more information about the Notifications unit type, please see the Standard Unit Types Guide, found on Qmatic World.

Staff Alerts

SLA Alerts

SLA alerts are sent to Staff members, once the defined Service Level Agreement (SLA) has been reached. The alerts are sent to Users with a specific Role.

The parameter Enable SLA Alerts has to be checked in the Notifications unit type, in order for SLA alerts to be sent.

Arrival Alerts

If enabled, Arrival Alerts are sent to Staff members, once a Customer arrives to a specified Queue or Service. The alerts can be sent to Users with a specific Role.

The parameter Enable Arrival Events has to be checked in the Notifications unit type, in order for Arrival Alerts to be sent.