If you utilize Elvanto as a church management system, using the integration with Text In Church is a great way to keep your contacts, data, and messaging organized and up to date! 🙌
In this article, we'll cover the basics of how the integration works and common FAQs before taking the initial steps to set up the integration. Let's dive in! 🤓
Jump to:
Overview
FAQs
Elvanto Integration Initial Set-Up Guide
Next Steps: Using the Elvanto Integration
Un-Syncing a Group and Disconnecting the Elvanto Integration
Overview
The integration is with "groups" feature from Elvanto. This allows you to create groups in Elvanto and then select them to sync into Text In Church.
You can choose to create new syncing Groups in Text In Church or connect them to existing Groups.
From here, you can add a Keyword, Connect Card, and Automated Workflows to this Text In Church syncing Group to gather new contacts and follow up with ease.
When contacts are added to this group in Elvanto, they will be synced into the matching Group in Text In Church.
Additionally, contacts added to this Group in Text In Church will be synced back to this corresponding Elvanto group.
FAQs
What information is required for a contact to be synced from Elvanto into Text In Church?
Text In Church can sync the first and last name, mobile phone number, and email address of contacts to and from Elvanto.
In order for a contact to sync into Text In Church, they must have a valid email or mobile phone number on their Elvanto contact.
How are duplicates handled?
Within Text In Church, email addresses and phone numbers cannot be shared by contacts.
This would result in duplicate messaging, which can easily lead to your emails and texts being filtered as spam.
If two contacts sharing the same information are attempted to sync into Text In Church, only one will be synced, and the other will be designated as a duplicate.
💡 Learn more about sync failures here!
If a contact is created in Text In Church and the data matches an existing contact in Elvanto, when the record syncs back to Elvanto, the records will be matched up and prevent duplicates from being created in your Elvanto account.
How are opted-out or inactive records handled?
At any time, your people can reply with STOP to opt-out of text messaging. This opt-out will only be reflected in Text In Church and will not affect their record in Elvanto.
👉 More about opting out here...
If a record is marked as inactive in Elvanto, the record will not be synced into Text In Church
Where should I edit or delete records?
Elvanto will function as the master database in the integration.
This means that if you need to edit a person's name or contact information or delete their record, you'll need to make this change on the Elvanto side.
The changes will then be synced into Text In Church.
If the change is made on the Text In Church side when the sync completes, the change will be reverted so that the record matches what Elvanto has on file for this specific record.
How often can I sync my groups?
At any time, you can start a manual sync, which will be completed as soon as possible (depending upon how many other accounts are syncing at the same time, and how much data is currently in the queue).
You can set each of your synced groups to sync on their own schedule, either nightly, weekly on a specific night, or monthly on a specific night.
Elvanto Integration Initial Set-Up Guide
In this guide, we'll walk through the initial steps to take so you can start using the Elvanto Integration with Text In Church.
1. Locate Your Elvanto Credentials
To complete the connection, you’ll need:
Your Elvanto Site ID
Your Elvanto API Key
To get your API key:
Log in to your Elvanto account.
Go to the Admin Area.
Under Settings, click on the Developers tab.
Find the API Key field.
Click Show, then copy your Secret API Key.
🔒 Keep this key secure! Never share your API key publicly or with unauthorized users.
2. Enabling the Integration in Text In Church
Log in to your Text In Church account.
Click on your Settings in the bottom left corner.
Select the Integrations tab.
Locate the Elvanto integration and click Connect.
3. Connect Elvanto to Text In Church
Paste your Site ID and API Key into the fields provided.
Click Save.
You’ll receive a success message in the top corner of your screen once the integration is connected.
4. Choose Groups to Sync
After connecting, you’ll see a list of your Elvanto groups, including the number of people in each.
Select the groups you’d like to sync into Text In Church.
Optionally, enable Leader Sync:
When enabled, the group leader in Elvanto will also be synced.
If you’re the group leader and don’t need to message yourself, you can leave this disabled.
💡 You can update these settings at any time, even after the initial setup is complete.
5. Set Your Sync Frequency
Choose how often your groups should sync:
Manual – Sync only when you click Sync Now in Text In Church.
Daily – Sync every night.
Weekly – Sync every week on a selected day of the week
Monthly – Sync every month on a selected date
⏰ Scheduled syncs run overnight!
6. Choose Sync Destination
For each group you sync, choose where it should go:
Create a New Group - Text In Church will make a new Group with synced members.
Sync to Existing Group - Connect to one of your current Groups inside Text In Church.
7. Running the First Sync
Toggle on the "I have received permission" so that you'll be able to send text/email to your synced people.
Toggle on the "Enable automatic sync" so that the integration will sync automatically as determined by each Group's set sync frequency.
Click "Schedule Sync" to begin your first sync.
If you have a large number of people to sync, this first sync could take a few hours to complete.
You can close Text In Church or continue using any other part of the application while the sync is running in the background.
When completed, the synced Groups within the "Groups" section of Text In Church will be populated to match their connected Elvanto Group.
The "Last Synced" section will display the time and date of when the last sync of the integration was completed.
🎉 That’s it!
Your Elvanto groups will now sync into Text In Church based on the schedule you selected.
You can always return to the integration settings to adjust preferences or manually sync when needed.
Next Steps: Using the Elvanto Integration
General Syncing Groups
The Elvanto Groups that you've selected should now be auto-generated as new, Syncing Groups in your Text In Church "Groups" Section.
These Groups will be designated with a 🔁 icon and the description designating where the Group originated from.
Just like a non-syncing Group in Text In Church, you can set up a Keyword, Connect Card, and Automated Workflows for your Syncing Groups.
Check out the guides below on how to set up and use each feature if needed:
After the first sync has been completed on your account, these Syncing Groups should now be populated with members.
Additionally, if you were to add any people to this Syncing Group in Text In Church, they will be synced back to Elvanto when the next sync is completed.
You may see that some contacts were not synced into the Group as you were expecting.
In this case, you'll want to open this Group in Text In Church, then review the "Sync Logs" tab for specific information about why these contacts could not be synced.
First Time Guest Follow-Up with Elvanto Integration
As we've talked about, the way the integration with Elvanto works is that Elvanto is the master holder of contact details.
Upon sync, any selected groups from Elvanto will then push into the new Syncing Group in Text In Church.
Let’s talk about how the integration works specifically for first-time guest follow-up.💡
Create your API Key in Elvanto and complete the initial set-up for the Elvanto Integration, then select your guest follow-up group to sync from Elvanto into Text In Church.
If you don’t have an existing group in Elvanto, go ahead and create one now.
Once you’ve selected this guest follow-up group to sync into Text In Church, decide if you want to connect it to an existing Text In Church Group, or Create a New Group.
Next, you can enable the Keyword, Automated Reply, and Connect Card for this Syncing Group so that people can text in to receive the Connect Card and be automatically added to this group.
Finally, you’ll want to set up your Automated Workflow. There are 3 ways you can do this:
Import one of our proven templates and personalize the messaging for your church
Copy one of your existing Workflows into this new Syncing Group
Create your own Workflow from scratch
After that is set up, anytime someone texts in the Keyword you’ve assigned to that Group and/or fills out the Connect Card, they will be created as a contact in Text In Church.
When the next sync completes, they will be synced into Elvanto.
If they are new to Elvanto, a record will be created for them.
If they match an existing record in Elvanto, no duplicates will be created 🤩
You can also manually add any Elvanto records to this group in Elvanto, and they will sync into this Syncing Group in Text In Church; the Automated Workflow messages will then begin sending to them when they are synced into the Text In Church Group.
Un-Syncing a Group and Disconnecting the Elvanto Integration
We totally understand that there may come a time when you need to remove a Syncing Group or disconnect the Elvanto integration from Text In Church entirely.
Here are some common questions Members ask before deciding to remove a Group or disconnect the integration:
What happens to People records synced from Elvanto if I remove or disconnect the integration?
The records will not be deleted from Text In Church.
They will remain in your People section, and the designation that they were created via Elvanto Integration will remain on their profile.
What happens to Groups synced from Elvanto if I remove or disconnect the integration?
The Group will now be designated as Non-Syncing, and the description will still indicate that this Group originated from Elvanto.
It will not be deleted. Instead, it will function just like your other Groups in Text In Church. The members, Keywords, Workflows, etc., will not be impacted by this change.
Because Elvanto is treated as the master database, if you need to fully delete a group, you'll need to do this first in Elvanto.
Then you can delete the Group from Text In Church, and it won't be automatically re-created upon the next sync.
How to Un-Sync a Group
Sign in to Text In Church, then select the Settings icon
Select Account Settings, then Integrations
Click View by the Elvanto Integration
Within the “2. Select Lists” tab, click the checkbox beside the group you’d like to un-sync to deselect it
How to Disconnect the Integration
Sign in to Text In Church, then select the Settings icon
Select Account Settings, then Integrations
Click View by the Elvanto Integration
Within the “1. Connect” tab, click the Disconnect button and confirm your selection
This will stop data from syncing between Elvanto and Text In Church. No data will be deleted from Text In Church as a result of this change.
The previously synced groups in Text In Church will now be marked as Non-Syncing, and the description will still show they originated from Elvanto.
They will remain functional and retain their members, Keywords, and Workflows.
Having trouble?
Check out this guide on Troubleshooting the Elvanto Integration.
Still have questions? No worries! Feel free to reach out to our Member Support team at support@textinchurch.com. We're always happy to help!