HOW TO FIND THIS PAGE

1. Click on Messages (speech bubble icon, white box below).

2. The screen will refresh to the two columns above.

2a. The middle column (yellow arrow + text above) is a list of your different message categories.

2b. The right-hand column (blue arrow + text above) shows the items within the chosen category. In our example, since All Messages is chosen, this column shows us ALL our open text messages. For more information about this category, click here.

HOW TO WORK WITH THIS PAGE

This is quite a long article. Here is a Table of Contents to make it easier to navigate:

I. LOOKING AROUND A BIT MORE

II. CHOOSING YOUR MESSAGE CATEGORY

III. HOW THE PAGE CAN LOOK

IV. DEALING WITH ALL THE ICONS

V. SENDING A NEW MESSAGE

VI. MORE ABOUT 5.4 {Add image/attachment]

VII. SEARCH [magnifying glass icon]

VIII. ACTION MENU [3 vertical dots]

VIX. UNDERSTANDING MESSAGE TYPES

I. LOOKING AROUND A BIT MORE

# of items in a category: In our example above, there is a number (12) to the right of the category name we chose [All Messages]. This means that there are 12 items (messages) within that category.

Sub-categories:

As you can see, there are downward arrows next to some of the message categories. (gold arrows in image to the left)

This means that there are sub-categories also.

Keeping clicking on the downward arrows until there are no more sub-categories to expand.

II. CHOOSING YOUR MESSAGE CATEGORY

1. Click on the main message category. In this case, we clicked on Sent.

2. If this category has sub-categories, click on the sub-category you want. In this case, we clicked on Groups.

3. If this sub-category has further sub-categories, click on the sub-category you want. In this case, we clicked on All.

4. Since we have reached the end level, we now choose the item we want to look at from the right-hand column. In this case, we will click on Test Group to look at their sent messages (gold box above).

A NOTE ABOUT THE ALL MESSAGES CATEGORY

This category shows all your open messages. In other words, the messages which are sitting in your Inbox. They could be sent or received, read or unread. This is not an umbrella category for the categories below it. In other words, it does not represent every message in your PastorsLine account.

To close a message: Hover at the end of the message until you see the Close (checkmark icon, turquoise circle in image below). Click on Close to remove the message from your All Messages list and add it to the Closed category.

III. HOW THE PAGE CAN LOOK

There are 2 possible views. [Don't worry. We will discuss all the information, icons, and possibilities later. We just wanted your eyes to get familiar with the layout first.]

Expanded view...

Note the differences between the view above and the view below. Clicking on the left/right arrows (gold circle in image above and image below) expands or collapses this page. Collapsing the page gives you more space when working on your new SMS/MMS.

Collapsed view...

IV. DEALING WITH ALL THE ICONS

There are a lot of icons on this page. We are doing our best to keep an updated list of icons for easy reference, including what the icon looks like and what it does. You can find this list here.

V. SENDING A NEW MESSAGE [ Person(s), Group(s), Number(s) ]

NOTE 1

This version of PastorsLine requires that you have an assigned number. You cannot send messages if you do not. In previous versions, you could send via the PastorsLine shared short code. This is no longer an option.

If you try to send a message without having first set up an assigned number, you will see the warning in the image above.

End of NOTE 1

NOTE 2

Sending a group message? Is your group an external group (linked to an integration)? Did you remove any people from this group? If so...

When you remove a person from an external group (a group linked to an integration), we don't archive or delete the person from the group itself. The reason is that this person would just come back after a sync. Instead, we mark this person as 'removed'. When you send a group message, PastorsLine will automatically exclude all 'removed' people in a group, i.e., they will be skipped.

End of NOTE 2

To send a new message, click on New Message (speech bubble with plus icon, turquoise box in image above). The New Message box will pop up (see image below).

To search for a person or group, type a search key in the search line. We have typed "wa" (turquoise box in image to the left).

PastorsLine returns all options containing your search key.

Note that we are choosing AWANA.

If your search key is a number, a dropdown menu will appear to the left.

Option 1: The number is part of a name such as "Group 717". In this case, do nothing with the dropdown menu. This tells PastorsLine to search and return people and group names containing your search key.

Option 2: The number is part of a number such as "1-717-111-1111". In this case, select your country code from the dropdown menu. This tells PastorsLine to search and return numbers containing your search key.

We have chosen AWANA. As a result, it has been moved from the list to the send area (turquoise arrow in image below). Click Next (gold arrow in image below).

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QUESTION: Can you choose more than one option from the list which PastorsLine returns? In other words, could we choose AWANA and The Water Group?

ANSWER: Yes. PastorsLine creates temporary new groups for the purpose of sending the message. They used to be called "ad hoc groups". In V3, they are called "unnamed groups" and will appear in the Unnamed sub-section of your All Groups category until you name them.

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The message page of the person/group/phone number you chose will open. At the bottom will be a space to write your new message (see image below).

5.1	Click on the phone number. A pop-up box will appear (image to the left). To change the "From" number, click on another choice. Then click on the X (upper-righthand corner of the pop-up box) to save your choice.
5.2	Note the shortcut: CTRL/CMD + Enter if you want to SEND NOW.
5.3	Click on the Smiley. A pop-up box of emojis will appear. Click on the emoji(s) of your choice.
5.4	Click on the Plus sign. Note that more options open up (see image to the left). Click on the option you need and follow the instructions. You can click on as many options as you need, doing them one by one. Here is more information about each one: More about 5.4
5.5 IMAGE 1 IMAGE 2	Type your message in this space. Note that several new items open up: Characters (gold box in Image 1 to the left): the number of characters in your text message Credit Estimate (turquoise box in Image 1 to the left): the cost to send one person this SMS Clock icon (brown box in Image 1 to the left): The scheduler will pop up (Image 2 to the left). Complete it to have a message sent automatically at a later date and/or time. In the popup you will see... Specify Date: the date the message should be sent Specify Time: the time the message should be sent Repeat Message? Click on the downward arrow to reveal the dropdown menu. (see image below). Choose the repeat schedule from the dropdown menu. To STOP the recurring message: (1) If you want to keep it but not have it recur, come back here. Choose 'Does not Repeat' and change the scheduled date. (2) If you do not want to use it again, just delete it. Summary The scheduling you have asked PastorsLine to set up. Click on the purple Save button to confirm your schedule.
5.6	Click on Send (purple arrow icon, dark blue arrow in image to the left) to get your message on its way.

VI. MORE ABOUT 5.4

Add Image & Add Attachment

Upload the image(s) / attachment(s) for your message.

Sometimes, it happens that the file extension of your image does not match the type of image it really is. For example, the name of your image file is NicePicture.png but the image is really a jpeg file.

In this case, PastorsLine will let you know. Check out the red/orange warning in the image below.

Add URL

Choose from an existing link or click Create New Short Link and follow the prompts.

Add Template

Choose from an existing template or click Create New Template and follow the prompts.

Add Merge Fields

Click to select the merge field(s) you wish to use.

Choose Signature

As we move through this process, keep in mind that your signature options depend on a combination of factors. We will try to be as clear as we can about how those factors work.

Turquoise 1 in image above

This is the first factor which determines signature options because each person on your team can set up their own signatures.

Click on the downward arrow to open the dropdown menu. Then click to choose the name of the person sending the message. If your role is "user", you will not be able to change the FROM. You need to have admin, admin+, or owner permissions to do this.

Turquoise 2 in image above

Click on the downward arrow to open the dropdown menu. The options presented depend on the SENDING FROM number you chose earlier. (5.1 above, reminder in image below).

In this example, the FROM number is a regular 10-digit number. Thus, there are two relevant signature categories: Regular 10 Digit Number and Custom Unassigned.

This is because the signatures in these categories are equivalent (i.e, both follow the same rules needed for such signatures).

Turquoise 3 in image above: This list shows all the numbers in the category you chose in Turquoise 2 just before. Each of these numbers has associated signatures. This will further narrow down your options.

Click on the downward arrow to open the dropdown menu. Then click to choose the number whose signatures you wish to choose from.

Turquoise 4 in image above

Here are all the signature options available for you to choose from at this point.

Click on the downward arrow to open the dropdown menu. Then click to choose the signature you wish to use.

Turquoise 5 in image above

If you wish to make changes to your existing signatures or add a new one, click on this link. You will be redirected to the My Signatures page.

Turquoise 6 in image above

Check out the preview to see how your message + signature will look.

Turquoise 7 in image above

Click Insert to save your signature choice.

VII. SEARCH

Read more about Search (magnifying glass icon, turquoise #1 in image above).

VIII. ACTION MENU

In the Action Menu (vertical 3 dots, turquoise #2 in image above) are three items:

Select Multiple, Mark all as read, Mark all STOP as read. These actions will be done on the visible messages - the messages you see in your list on the screen.

Let's go from the bottom to the top.

Mark all STOP as read: Visible messages (the messages you see in your list on the screen) that requested you to stop texting them are marked as read.

Mark all as read: All visible messages (the messages you see in your list on the screen) will be marked as read.

Select Multiple: Selects all visible messages. Once you click on it, you will see something like this:

All the messages will be selected (gold box in image above).

There is now a further 3-dot action menu (turquoise arrow in image above. Click on it to reveal a dropdown menu. Choose one of the actions. This will be performed on all the messages you have selected.