When you publish a team site on 5 Team Sites, TeamSideline emails everyone on that team's roster an "Announcement" that tells them how to reach the team site on your website and in the TeamSideline app. It's sent once, when the site is published, and only while Announcement Email is set to Yes. You can't edit the message: to send your own welcome instead, set Announcement Email to No before you publish and email the families yourself.
Applies to: Org admins with the Team Sites permissions · All plans · Team sites published from 5 Team Sites (Youth, Adult, Youth & Adult, Team Registration and Team Registration plus Roster programs)
Where: Programs > Configurations > Team Sites (Announcement Email); Programs > Manage Programs > (program) > 5 Team Sites
When it's sent and who gets it
- When: the moment you publish a team's site with the green Publish Team Site icon, or every ready team in a division with Publish Team Sites, while Announcement Email is Yes. The confirmation warns you: "Click OK to confirm publishing of this team site. Upon publishing, based on current Team Site configurations all roster members will receive an announcement from the current signed in account. This action cannot be undone." When Announcement Email is No, the middle sentence is left out.
- Who: everyone on the new team site who has an email address: the staff, adult players, and the parents and guardians on each youth player's family account. Each address gets one copy. You don't get a copy unless you're on that team's roster.
- Only once: it isn't sent again for that site. People added to the team after it's published (for example with Assign To Roster) don't get it, and publishing schedules to the site doesn't send it.
- From you: the email shows the publishing admin's name as the sender, and replies go to that admin's email address.
What the email says
The subject is Announcement | (team name) Communication | TeamSideline.com. Your organization's name, the program and team names and your website address are filled in automatically. The message reads:
This is a "(team name)" Communication from (your first name).
Good news! (organization) is using TeamSideline to manage the (program) this season.
Each team now has its own TeamSideline Team Site, which already includes roster information. Game dates, times, and locations will be added as soon as they are published by (organization). You can access your TeamSideline Team Site using the free TeamSideline app or the web version when you sign in to (your website). Here's how:
Web: Visit (your website), sign in, and you'll find the link to (team name)'s Team Site. Use the email address this message was sent to and your TeamSideline password to sign in. If you don't know your password, click the "Forgot Password" link.
App: Download the app from the Apple App Store or Google Play (you can also click the link at the bottom of this email). After installing, log in using the same email and password you use on the website. You can now view your schedule, chat with your team, and so much more! Be sure to enable notifications so you'll get updates on practices, game changes, and other important communications from (organization).
Once logged in, you can use the Communication tab to stay in touch with your team or the Family & Friends tab to invite others to receive team updates such as game dates, times, and locations.
If you have any questions or need help, contact your league administrator at (your Contact Us page).
The email ends with "How to reply back to (your first name)", which tells recipients to reply as they normally would. Recipients who don't have an active TeamSideline account also get an "Important Note!" asking them to activate their account or sign up, with a link to register.
Send your own welcome email instead
- Before you publish, go to Programs > Configurations > Team Sites, or click Team Sites Configuration on the program's 5 Team Sites page.
- Under Announcement, set Announcement Email to No.
- Click Save. You'll see "Configurations have been saved."
- Publish your team sites on 5 Team Sites. The confirmation no longer mentions an announcement.
- Go to Communications > Send Communication.
- Open Registrations - Current Programs with its arrow, tick the program or the recipients you want, and click Next.
- On Create Your Message, enter your subject and message. Tell families to sign in on your website, or in the TeamSideline app, with the email address the message was sent to.
- Click Next, check the Send Options, and click Send.
Announcement Email is one setting for your whole organization, not one program. Set it back to Yes if you want the automatic email for team sites you publish later.
If it doesn't work
- Families say they didn't get the email. Go to Communications > Communication Logs and open Team Site Log. Set the Date Range to include the day you published, enter the Team Name and click Update. Emails to that team's members are listed one row per recipient, with the Sender Address (the reply-to), To Address, when it was Sent and any Filter Type; click an Email Id to open the message. A value under Filter Type means that address has an email filter (for example, it opted out or bounced). If nothing went to the team that day, Announcement Email was No when you published: see How To Resend a Skipped Team Site Welcome Email.
- Replies went to the wrong person. Replies go to whoever published the site. To send replies to a shared address, publish while signed in as your organization's shared (role-based) admin account.
- Someone added after publishing didn't get it. That's expected: the email goes out only when the site is published. Send them your own message.
Good to know
- You can't edit the email's wording. Announcement Email is Yes (send it) or No (send nothing).
- Publishing also posts a "Welcome to the (team name) Team Site!" announcement on the team site for 21 days, whatever Announcement Email is set to.
- If you archive a team site and publish the team again, a new site is created and, with Announcement Email set to Yes, the email goes out again.
- This isn't the email team managers get when a team registration comes in from ActiveNetwork, Amilia or Rec Tech. For those programs, the Enrollment Configurations button on the program's ActiveNetwork, Amilia or Rec Tech Configuration page opens a Send Email setting: "Send team managers a welcome email with instructions and temp password." Announcement Email doesn't change it.
- Parents and players who got the email: sign in on the organization's website, or in the TeamSideline app, with the email address it was sent to. If your team isn't there, see Why don't I see my team after I sign in?