2024 Instant Connect vs. PowerSchool Communication System Comparison
As a school or school district, you have many options for automated mass notification to send alerts to parents, students, and staff. We asked a consultant to research the options and compile a comparison chart. Information was gathered from the respective vendor’s websites, brochures, recorded demos, and in some cases from their customers. BrightArrow strives to provide you up-to-date and accurate information so you consider all your options as objectively as possible. If you see inaccurate information, please notify us, including a link, image, or video supporting the claim, and we’ll update to keep you informed in a precise manner.
| Features | Instant Connect | PowerSchool SchoolMessenger |  |
Reason for partial flag: | ||||||||
| Mass Notification | ||||||||||||
| System has the ability to send notifications via: | ||||||||||||
| Phone (land-line, mobile) |  |
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| SMS Text Messages | |
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| App Push Notifications | |
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| Social Media (Twitter, Facebook, etc.) | |
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| Email Link to Voice Message | |
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| Two-Way Instant Messaging | |
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| Text Messaging | ||||||||||||
| Unlimited length text messages | |
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| Automatic translation of text message to contacts' languages, over 100 languages | |
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| Work across all major wireless carriers and wireless phone models in North America | |
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| Ability to send messages in an expedited fashion during emergencies | |
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| Entirely automated opt-in procedure for text messages to new phones | |
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| Intelligent handling of reply texts based on customer's preferences | |
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| Automated opt-in/opt-out | |
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| Uses short code true texting (SMPP) in U.S. and long-code true texting (SMPP) in Canada | |
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| Mail Merge fields: Display data from SIS or other databases (transportation, meal, etc.) |  |
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| Optional feature that can require a designated person review and approve messages before they go out | |
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| Ability to schedule messages into the future | |
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| Text based surveys | |
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| Voice Calls | ||||||||||||
| Able to record a message from receiving or initiating a call, play back, preview, and re-record the message | |
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Only offers one or the other option for recording a message | ||||||||
| Automatic translation of text-to-speech voice calls, over 20 languages | |
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Do not support 20 languages | ||||||||
| Ability to dial-in, enter a code, and launch a voice message without using the web or app | |
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| Have the ability to customize the telephone number display (caller ID) | |
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| Mail Merge fields: Display data from SIS or other databases (transportation, meal, etc.) | |
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Supports a limited number of database fields for mail merge | ||||||||
| Automated opt-out | |
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| Phone survey functionality | |
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| Multipart messaging | |
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| Deduping voice calls | |
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| Toll-free caller ID number to allow message play-back upon call back | |
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| Accurate detection of live answer vs voice-mail to ensure delivery of phone message | |
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Detection problems with voice mails with pauses in the middle causing partial messages to be delivered | ||||||||
| Emails | ||||||||||||
| Limitations on SPF, Reply-To, DKIM, and other mechanisms that are important to ensure emails are not blocked by SPAM filters | |
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Limitations on SPF, Reply-To, DKIM, and other mechanisms to minimize SPAM detection | ||||||||
| Can add CC, BCC, and "reply to" in email description | |
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| Ability to create emails using a full HTML editor for inserting graphics, attachments, links, and other features |  |
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| Automatic translation of email to contacts' languages, over 100 languages | |
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| Report emailing, such as report cards, customer specific financial reports, at no extra charge | |
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| CAN-SPAM and CASL compliant | |
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| Automated unsubscribe | |
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| Mail Merge fields: Display data from SIS or other databases (transportation, meal, etc.), including subject line | |
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Supports a limited number of database fields for mail merge | ||||||||
| HTML templates: Users can create customized email templates and use them as branded emails |  |
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| Email preview | |
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| Intelligently deduping emails across lists | |
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| Image management with uploading, preview, and searches | |
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Constraints/limitations in the image management | ||||||||
| List and Contact Management | ||||||||||||
| Ability to create lists via an import from a spreadsheet, with auto-detection of fields and matching stored contact records | |
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Rigid requirement regarding the columns and column headers; no auto-detection | ||||||||
| Ability to create copies, list subsets, superset lists, all of which can be linked or unlinked | |
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List can be derived from other lists, but the linking mechanisms have some limitations | ||||||||
| Unlimited self-updating groups/lists (dynamically change based on source data) | |
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| Have the ability to export existing recipient and contact information to Excel or a CSV file | |
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| Ability to build a list based on specific fields | |
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| Real-time filter for granular selection of contacts | |
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| Configurable list view to allow intelligence, searching, sorting, favorites and subfolders for organization of lists | |
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| Message Management | ||||||||||||
| Message templates to quickly find and send pre-configured messages | |
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| Able to create automated messages launch at a specific time each week without user interaction | |
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| System allows user to pre-create messages for future purposes | |
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| Message and list pair can be pre-configured to send messages with two clicks | |
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| Messages can be locked into lists to ensure consistency | |
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| System | ||||||||||||
| Ability to deliver notifications 24/7 with 99.99% availability | |
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| No hardware needed beyond PC stations | |
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| Service provided through web-login and mobile app | |
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| No data is sold or given to telemarketers or other solicitors | |
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| Ability to secure database, only allow users with appropriate credentials to access given information | |
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| Single sign-on integration using LDAP, ADFS, Azure, Google, PowerSchool, Blackboard and others | |
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Only supports some of the lists SSO mechanisms | ||||||||
| Includes usage of expansive API to allow embedding of communications feature anywhere in work (no additional charge) | |
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| Fully Compliant with FCC TCPA | |
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| Less than 0.67% of capacity used on average for voice calls (even less for email/text) | |
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| Includes parent-facing app to receive/retrieve messages, push notifications, and adjust settings (no additional charge) | |
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| Multiple redundant SAS 70 type 2 certified | |
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| No single point of failure | |
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| Reports of Sent Messages | ||||||||||||
| Generates transmission reports, available immediately, that show details for each message type: live answer, voicemail, busy, unreachable, no answer | |
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| Ability to to automatically send the report to any administrator via email, or exported as a file | |
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| User Accounts | ||||||||||||
| Includes user licenses for all staff/teachers (no additional charge) | |
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| Allows an unlimited number of phone numbers and email addresses for each student, parent, or faculty member | |
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| System administrator can create an unlimited number of users to separate and control access to different groups, lists, and reports | |
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| System allows shared lists and groups for different users, and groups of users, including read-only access links | |
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Sharing of lists and groups have limitations both with licensing and read-only functionality | ||||||||
| Parent Portal | ||||||||||||
| Mobile App Parent Portal to subscribe, manage preferences and prior message vault | |
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| Web based community recipient portal: Subscribe, unsubscribe, manage preferences and prior message vault | |
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| Parent Portal allows parents to add phones/emails outside of SIS contact data for temporary usage | |
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| Two-way community communication portal organized by department and school | |
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| Automated Notification | ||||||||||||
| Automated absence notification individualized per campus, including auto-translation | |
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| Other automated notifications (e.g. low lunch balance alerts) added any time |  |
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| Emergency Alert Features | ||||||||||||
| SafeCast | |
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| Anti-Bullying Hotline | |
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| Designate messages as emergency to ensure they are sent out in front of all other messages (no additional charge) | |
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| Weblink and call/text anonymous (no additional charge) | |
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| Anonymous tip reporting via web/mobile app | |
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| Support | ||||||||||||
| 24/7 unlimited phone and email support | |
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| Unlimited training through remote web sessions | |
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| Rapid implementation to minimize effort of district staff | |
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| Customer resource site with tips, tricks and videos | |
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| Direct Integration | ||||||||||||
| Synergy |  |
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| Michigan Data Hub | |
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| DASL | |
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| Infinite Campus | |
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| Blackbaud EMS | |
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| Illuminate | |
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| PowerSchool | |
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| Wen-GAGE | |
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| Aeries | |
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| TxEIS | |
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| Edsembli | |
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| Aspen | |
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| Genius SIS for Virtual Schools | |
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| eSchoolPlus | |
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| Mindex | |
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| Chalkable | |
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| Q (Aequitas Solutions) | |
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| Senior Systems | |
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| Rediker | |
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| JMC | |
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| SchoolWise | |
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| Sycamore | |
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| Salesforce | |
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| Google Sheets | |
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| Skyward | |
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| Over 100 data sources | |
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| PowerSchool | ||||||||||||
| Embedded into PowerSchool user-interface | |
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| Ability to schedule daily absent/tardy calls by individual school | |
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| Low lunch balance notification | |
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| Integration with PowerSchool Parent Portal | |
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| Integration with PowerTeacher and PowerTeacher Pro Gradebook | |
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| Automatic calculate attendance totals for special messaging of cumulative absences/tardies | |
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| Ability to send PDF, PowerSchool object reports, and MBA reports | |
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Only some report types available, extra charge for feature | ||||||||
| PowerTeacher includes filtering for teachers to send, such as current "final grade" and assignments missed | |
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| COVID-19 tracking notification feature | |
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| Mail merge of any PowerSchool field into voice calls, texts, and emails, including in subject of email | |
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| Free emailing report cards with posting to Parent Portal | |
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| Flexible encryption of PDF reports for emailing, including all birthdate formats | |
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| Support for PowerSchool Contacts | |
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| Email teachers who are late in submitting attendance | |
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| Two-Way Instant Messaging Communication | ||||||||||||
| Two-way IM communication between parents, students, and admins | |
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| Ability to send attachments, permission slips, images, videos, and other files | |
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| Easy for parents to join and engage | |
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| Seamless integration using text, emails, and push notifications | |
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| Automated synchronization with student database for populating class rosters | |
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| Custom Branded Mobile App | ||||||||||||
| Custom app branded for each school that includes full information about classes, schedules, meals, announcements and all other school information | |
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| Other Features | ||||||||||||
| Online payments | ||||||||||||
| Teacher conference scheduling | ||||||||||||
| Invoices | ||||||||||||
| Volunteer sign-up | ||||||||||||
| KEY | ||||||||||||
| Partial | |
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| Yes | |
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| Included with additional charge | |
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| Included with premium charge | |
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| Partial compliance, full compliance with additional charge | |
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We have captured and saved all the links from which the above data was collected. If you would like to see the backup information for any particular assertion, please reach out to us with that request.