Text Messages

Use Text when you need phone numbers for a group or a Sunday School class. ChurchCRM does not send the message itself from that button. On a phone or tablet it opens the device's messaging app. On a computer it copies the numbers so you can paste them into your own app.

The Communication menu (including Text) is shown when your user account is allowed to send email.

Text dashboard

1. Open Communication → Text.
2. The SMS Integration card tells you whether the Vonage plugin is set up.
3. Text Tools points you back to the group and class pages, which is where the Text menu lives.

Vonage is used for kiosk parent alerts. See Notifications. The Text button on a group still uses the device's messaging app, or copies the numbers, even when Vonage is connected.

Leaving someone off the list

An administrator can choose a person property that means "do not text."

1. Open Communication → Text.
2. Click Text Settings.
3. Set Do Not SMS Property to the person property you use for this, then save.

Anyone who has that property is left out of the phone lists. Assign the property on the person record the same way you assign any other property.

Text a group

1. Open the group from Groups.
2. Click Text on the group toolbar.
3. Choose Text All or Copy All Numbers.
4. Under a role name, choose Text or Copy to limit the list to that role.

If nobody in that set has a usable number, the menu says No phone numbers available.

On a phone, Text opens the messaging app with those numbers. On a desktop browser, ChurchCRM copies the numbers and shows Phone numbers copied — paste into your messaging app.

Sunday School class pages have the same Text menu. See Sunday School.

One person from the photo directory

People → Photo Directory has a text button on each card when a cell number is on file. The button title is Send text message. It opens an sms: link for that one number. See Persons.