Automated Workflows are one of the key features of Text In Church.
They are super powerful in following up automatically with people who are added to a given Group.
You can also create Automated Workflow steps that can be repeated, sending the message again on a daily, weekly, monthly, or yearly basis to your members.
In this example, I’ll be showing you how to build a weekly bible study reminder that repeats!
First, navigate to the Workflow section under Connect.
Then click Add New in the top right corner and select Create From Scratch.
3. Next, set a name for your Workflow to help identify it later if you need to make any changes!
In this example Workflow, the title is “Bible Study Reminder”.
4. We can then set our Workflow Trigger.
For this example, we will use the Group Trigger, which will trigger the Workflow to begin when someone joins the Group we selected when the Workflow is active.
(Note: When working with Groups Trigger Workflows, the Workflow must be active before contacts join the Group for it to be triggered.)
5. Click the “Add Step” Button and select the step we would like to use.
I’ll be using the Text Message option as I would like the Group members to receive a text with this reminder; however, the Email option can also be used!
6. Next, configure when this step will send!
For our example, we will set it to send immediately after they join the Group.
Consider scheduling yours for a specific time and sending it at a time that isn’t exactly on the hour.
This can help to make the message feel more personal and less automated.
7. Enable “Repeat this step” to have the message sent again on a daily, weekly, monthly, or yearly basis.
(Pro Tip:
You can set the number of repeats to 0, and the step will repeat each week infinitely. However, sending the exact same message every single week can cause people to start to ignore the content of the message.)
In this example, I’ve set the number of repeats to 13 weeks, so that the message is only the same for this quarter.
Next quarter, I can create a new repeating message to change up the content and sending time.
8. Click “Save Step."
Our last step is clicking the Activate button in the top right of the Workflow, so the Workflow will be triggered to send our messages when we add contacts to this Group.
Troubleshooting Repeating Workflow Messages:
If you are having trouble with Workflow messages not repeating, here are some troubleshooting steps:
First, ensure your account is active and doesn't have any failed payments.
This can be checked in the Invoices section of your Settings; any unpaid invoices will not have a Paid status.
Check if your Workflow is active.
A Workflow will be deactivated if the blue Save button in the Workflow's Trigger settings is clicked.
Check to see if the recipient of your message is still opted in.
This information can be found in their contact in the People tab.
Ensure that the Repeat toggle is enabled and has a set number of repeats.
If you toggled on the Repeat toggle after a message has already been sent, you will need to duplicate your Workflow and set the messages to repeat before the new copy is activated.
Check the Workflow's Report:
This Report lives in the Workflow beside the Activate / Deactivate button:
Click the Processed tab to see any processed contacts, and if their message was successfully sent or what prevented it from sending:
Have questions or need help? Chat with us within your account using the Message Us section of the Resources tab or send us an email at support@textinchurch.com!
