Enable SMS for your organisation

SMS notifications let your members receive their parking news as a text message instead of waiting for the next time they check their email. There are two things a member can be texted about: the weekly allocation run, which lists the days and bays they were allocated, and the decision on a park request they have made.

SMS is an add-on to email, not a replacement. Every member still receives email notifications; members who opt in to SMS simply get a text as well. If the organisation runs out of its monthly SMS allowance, everyone quietly falls back to email until the next month begins.

SMS notifications are available on the Standard and Pro plans. The Standard plan includes 100 SMS per calendar month and the Pro plan includes 400. The Free plan does not include SMS at all, so the toggle described below will stay greyed out until you upgrade.

SMS is switched on at the organisation level. Until it is on, no member can opt in and no text messages will be sent, even if someone has saved a mobile number.

1. 1Go to Admin, then Settings.
2. 2Scroll to the SMS notifications section.
3. 3Tick Enable SMS notifications for this organisation.

Turning the organisation toggle on does not automatically text anyone. Each member chooses SMS for themselves: they go to their Preferences page, save a mobile number and tick the opt-in box. Nothing is sent to a member who has not done both of those things.

Text messages are delivered through ClickSend and appear as coming from ParkShare, so members know the message is genuine. The monthly allowance included in your plan is drawn against your organisation's ClickSend account.

Each text is one of two kinds: the weekly allocation summary a member receives after a run, or the decision on one of their park requests. The allowance resets at the start of each calendar month.

When the organisation reaches its monthly limit, members who would have received a text simply get their notification by email instead. Nobody misses out on information; only the channel changes. Admin, then Allocations shows how many SMS were sent after each run and flags when the limit has been reached.

See Quota and troubleshooting for how the monthly allowance is counted and what to check when texts are not arriving.