SMS alerts let you send critical, time-sensitive communications directly to employees' mobile phones, even if they haven't downloaded the Blink app. The feature is built for urgent updates where you need to reach your entire workforce quickly. Common use cases include:
Weather and service disruptions: alert staff about facility closures, utility outages, or severe weather conditions.
Safety recalls: communicate urgent product recalls or safety equipment issues that need immediate attention.
Shift changes and scheduling: send time-sensitive updates about last-minute shift changes or urgent scheduling needs.
Critical operational updates: reach employees who may not have Blink installed but need important company information
❗ SMS alerts are not intended as a dedicated emergency communication solution. SMS has delivery and other technical limitations, so it should always be part of a multi-channel strategy for emergency situations.
In this article:
Requirements
In order to use this feature, your organization will need to have their own active Twilio account and will require coverage for all sending charges billed there.
Before we can configure the micro-app, you'll need:
An active Twilio account.
One or more Twilio phone numbers configured for SMS messaging.
Confirmation that these numbers are registered for Application-to-Person (A2P) messaging, or otherwise comply with the relevant regulatory frameworks.
You'll also need the following Twilio account credentials:
Account SID: your primary Twilio account identifier.
API Key SID: a unique identifier for your API key (starts with "SK").
API Key Secret: the secret token for this specific API key
Configuration
The SMS alerts micro-app is configured by Blink's technical support team. Gather the information below, then submit a setup request through your Customer Success Manager or the support portal.
What to provide
Twilio account credentials: the Twilio account SID, plus the API key SID and secret.
A complete list of sender phone numbers, each with a label and region: Phone number in E.164 format (for example, +15555551234), and a label or name that describes it (for example, "US Main" or "UK Emergency Alerts").
Confirmation of A2P registration status for all numbers.
How to create a Twilio API Key
How to create a Twilio API Key
Log in to your Twilio Console at console.twilio.com.
Navigate to Account fi API Keys & Tokens, then click Create API Key. API keys & tokens: click Create API key to start.
Configure your key: set the friendly name to "Blink SMS Integration - Production", choose Restricted or Standard as the key type (not "Main"), and optionally select a region based on your data residency requirements.
Click Create API Key
If you chose a restricted API key, configure its permissions. Enable the Messages permissions so the key can send SMS.
Immediately save the credentials. The API Key SID starts with "SK" and can't be retrieved later. The API Key Secret is shown only once, so store it in a secure password manager straight away.
Once the API key is set up, open the General Settings section of the account and copy the Account SID.
When configuration is complete, provide Blink with the API key SID, the API key secret, the Twilio account SID, and the sender numbers you'll use.
🔒 Share these credentials securely, for example through encrypted email or a password manager. Plain text email is not secure for sharing credentials
User Access Controls
After configuration is complete, organization administrators can control which users can see and access the SMS alerts micro-app:
Navigate to Hub fi SMS alerts micro-app in your Blink admin panel.
Click Edit and update the Shared with field.
Assign it to the teams who should be able to send SMS communications. Because of the cost and potential impact of SMS communications, we recommend limiting access to authorized employees only.
Using the SMS alerts micro-app
Navigate to the SMS alerts micro-app in your Blink Hub.
Compose your message in the text field (up to 160 characters).
Choose the appropriate sender phone number from the dropdown.
Select your recipients by choosing users or teams from your directory.
Review the recipient count and delivery preview.
Click Send to deliver your message.
As you type, you'll see the remaining character count. Messages over 160 characters are sent as multiple SMS segments, and some special characters or emoji may count as more than one character.
The preview screen shows:
The number the SMS will be sent from.
The message recipients will receive.
How many recipients the SMS will reach, which depends on the phone numbers available in users' profiles.
Only active and invited users are sent SMS messages. This makes sure that only users who have accepted Blink's terms and conditions are eligible to receive them.
The message author sees a progress bar as messages are sent. You can leave the micro-app while messages send in the background. For now, there's no way to return and view progress once you've left.
SMS costs are billed directly by Twilio and vary by destination country and message volume. Each number owner is responsible for compliance with local rules and regulations. Blink provides the alert messaging interface for sending SMS from your Twilio account