Texting parents has been one of the most requested features we receive for Check-ins, and now it’s included in every plan for customers in the US and Canada—completely free.
We know this feature is not entirely helpful while you’re doing church from home, but we want you to know it's here for you when you are back to welcoming families in person.
One day you will again need parents’ help with diaper changes and hurt elbows on Sunday mornings, and texting will be ready to help you communicate that need.
How It Works
Texting is only an option once someone is checked in. So, when you need to send a message, go to a Manned or a Roster Station and click on the new message icon next to a child’s name.
Select which adult or trusted person in the household you want to text and choose one of 5 pre-written messages. You’ll see a preview message of exactly how it’s going to look.
To make this feature affordable, and obey the many text messaging laws in the U.S. and Canada, we need to limit the messaging options, so no one abuses this service for advertising. That’s why we’ve limited these messages to:
- Help: Please help us with [First Name] in [Location]
- Feeding: [First Name] is hungry in [Location]
- Diaper: [First Name] needs a diaper change in [Location]
- Medical Emergency: Medical Emergency for [First Name] in [Location]
- Doing Great: [First Name] is doing great!
- Nevermind: Nevermind! [First Name] is doing great!
We are open to adding options if they are generic enough to be useful to all churches, so if you have ideas, let us know!
Text Limit
This feature is intended for emergencies, so we've set a daily texting limit of 10% of your daily check-in limit. So if you're on the 150 daily Check-Ins plan, you’ll get 15 text messages a day. If you’re on the 500 daily Check-Ins plan, you’ll get 50 text messages, and so on. It’ll scale as you scale! We won’t stop or charge you if you need to go over from time to time.
If you have any questions, please reach out—our support team is ready to help.
Talk soon,
Team Check-Ins