Skip to main content
Must know
  • Each family has one chat thread with your club. You can switch its channel from the header at any time, and a family who texts your club number moves it to Web & SMS.
  • Web & SMS is available only if your club has the SMS feature. Very long chat messages are refused with “Message too long”, and Web & SMS messages are capped at 1,600 characters. Each Web & SMS text counts toward your SMS usage.
  • Web & Email relies on the Chat message notification email in System Rules. If you switch it off, emails to families fail.
  • Chat has no attachments on any channel. Families can’t start a chat from the family portal, but a family with no thread who texts your club number gets a new Web & SMS one.
The three channels. Switching channels. Select the channel badge beside the family’s name in the conversation header and pick another channel. The same checks apply, so a switch to Web & SMS is refused without a verified phone. Web & SMS only appears if your club has the SMS feature. The header also shows the phone number, the email address, or “Web Only”. New Conversation. A family never gets a second thread. Pick a different channel for a family who already has one and you see Switch channel?, which re-routes the existing thread. Families who can’t take the channel you chose are greyed out with a reason. When a family texts in. A text is recorded in chat when Uplifter can match it to a family: the phone on their account, or a number your club has texted before. It counts even if that number was never verified, and even on a Web Only or Web & Email thread. The thread moves to Web & SMS on the number they texted from, so you can reply by text. A family with no thread gets a new Web & SMS one. Texts that can’t be matched are not recorded. Replies from families. A reply typed in the family portal is always a plain portal message: it costs no text and is never sent out as SMS or email. An email reply is captured only on a Web & Email thread and only from the thread’s own address, and shows as an email card. Replies from other addresses are dropped without a notice. Delivery marks. Each message you send shows a small mark: one tick while it is on its way, two ticks once delivered, and a red warning triangle if it failed. Hover the triangle to see why. A Web & Email message keeps the one tick after it is sent. A message that fails to send gets a Retry link. Limits. Chat email settings. Go to Settings > Communication > Notifications, open System Rules and find Chat message notification to switch it off or reword it. If it is off, emails to families fail with “Chat email notifications to families are switched off in Notifications settings.” Staff and coaches still get chat email. Usage and permissions. Each Web & SMS text counts as one message however long it is. Other channels and portal replies never count. Viewing chats needs View Communication. Starting a chat, sending or switching needs Send Communication. Related: How do I chat one-on-one with a family? · What counts toward my email and SMS usage? · Which emails does Uplifter send automatically? · What do the Web Only, Web & SMS, and Web & Email channels mean?