Welcome to this week’s Feature Focus, where we highlight a specific aspect of the 911Cellular Solution and find out what makes it so valuable. Today’s topic is multilingual support and the entirety of its reach through various products and services.
Why is offering multilingual support so important? According to the United States Census Bureau, there are over 350 languages spoken within the United States. The graph below shows the number of languages spoken based on major metropolitan areas.
“Knowing the number of languages and how many speak these languages in a particular area provides valuable information to policymakers, planners, and researchers.” – Erik Vickstrom, a Census Bureau statistician
Mr. Vickstrom makes a good point, especially in relation to all aspects of emergency communication. Safety is a universal language that needs to be spoken by all individuals in a community. At no point during the emergency communication cycle should an individual be barred from safety information due to which language they speak. From dispatchers, to mobile safety app users, to international students, everyone needs access to safety tools in the language they are most comfortable using. Which is why 911Cellular has put the utmost care into developing a safety system that can be accessed and utilized by anyone, regardless of language preference. OK, that sounds great… but exactly how is multilingual support integrated into 911Cellular solutions?
Mass Notification System Multilingual Support – Organizations can easily send out mass notifications in multiple languages. If recipients have a preferred language other than English on their device, the relevant language tabs will appear above the title and message field when crafting your message. The message you type will be auto-translated into the other languages by default, but you can simply uncheck the auto-translate box to edit the other languages yourself.
“In order for any of the emergency alerts to be effective and helpful, they must be delivered in a fashion that is understandable by all of the recipients of the alert”. – Federal Communications Commission
Portal User Language – The 911Cellular Portal will automatically display text in the Portal User’s preferred language, according to their browser’s language settings.
![Multilingual Support]images/blog/Portal_Multilingual_Support_911Cellular-1024x539.jpg.webp)
International Phone Number Support – Within the 911Cellular Portal, all phone number fields support international phone numbers and their associated call codes.
Mobile Safety App Multilingual Support – Mobile Safety App users can also see text within the app displayed in their preferred language. The language displayed within the Mobile Safety App is determined according to the app user’s phone settings.
Computer Panic Button Multilingual Support – Computer Panic Button software displays text according to the computer’s language settings.
911Cellular is committed to providing an inclusive safety system where everyone can be protected and receive vital information, regardless of which language they speak. That’s why multilingual support is seamlessly integrated throughout the 911Cellular system. Each product is designed to be accessed and utilized by everyone on your team and within your community. Learn more on our website.