GladstoneGo: Alert List Notification Setup

Problem

Administrators need to set up the Go alert list (waiting list) in Operator, and its email, so customers are told when a place frees up in a full class, with opening and cut-off times that match the site's booking windows.

Resolution

1. Open the alert list settings

   • In Operator, go to Configuration > Modules > Configure.
   • Search for Waiting List. This opens the Waiting List group and its settings.
   • The settings appear twice under different names: alert list near the top of the settings list and waiting list near the bottom. Both relate to the same feature.

2. Set the alert list settings

   Setting	Guidance
   Enable alert list	Switch on if customers should be notified when a place frees up. There is no priority order.
   Hours before class the list opens	Default 48; for example, 168 = 7 days. This is when customers can start adding themselves once a class is full; it does not change advance booking windows. Set it to match (or exceed) the furthest-ahead booking window (for example, 192 = 8 days) so customers can join as soon as a class is full. A smaller value (for example, 5 days) means the list only opens 5 days before the class. If some reservations are bookable months ahead (for example, 10 days for racquet sports, 3 months for some sessions), use a larger value.
   Cut-off period (minutes) / Cut Off Period in Minutes	How close to the start customers can still join, and how many minutes before the start alert emails stop being sent (default 60). 0 = no limit: customers can join right up to the start. Align it with the booking and cancellation cut-offs.
   Excluded Statuses / Excluded Price Levels	Customer statuses or price levels that should not receive alert emails, entered as IDs separated by commas. Use them to exclude, for example, cancelled, deceased, frozen or suspended statuses. Excluding a non-member price level stops non-members joining at all, so members get the space. Expired members and customers with debts cannot book anyway, so excluding them is not necessary.
   Search Duration in Hours	The time frame, in hours, to search for available bookings. Set it to match or exceed your furthest-ahead booking window.
   Sites To Search For	The sites included in the search for available bookings.
   Deeplink Base URL	The website base URL for the deep link in the email, which takes the customer to the class to book.

3. Save and test the clash rule

   • Click Save.
   • Before go-live, test what happens when an alert-list booking clashes with a customer's existing booking, and report any removal of an existing booking to Gladstone Support.

4. Open the Email Templates area

   • In Operator, go to Configuration > Automation > Communication > Email Templates (shown in some versions as Automation Portal > Email Templates).

5. Edit or create the alert list email template

   • Edit the existing waiting-list template, or create a new one for alert list emails.
   • Give it a friendly subject, such as "Space available on your class".

6. Personalise the email content

   • Use placeholders such as [[First Name]] to personalise the message for each recipient.
   • Include [[Fill space from waiting list link]] in the Button URL so recipients can go straight to the class.
   • Save the template.

Notes

• Terminology: "Alert List" and "Waiting List" mean the same thing. Some settings still use "Waiting List" while wording is updated.
• Prerequisites:
  • The Waiting List tick must be on each class in Plus2: see Enabling the Alert List for Classes in Gladstone Go.
  • You must have permission to make changes in Operator.
• The emails are sent by a communication job of type Fill space in class from a waiting list. Creating that job, and adding push notifications, are covered in Class Alert Lists and Push Notifications.
• The alert list works for reservations (classes) only, not activities.
• When a space becomes available, the customer gets a notification with a link and must book themselves in. The notification reports availability; it does not hold the place.
• Everyone on the list is emailed at the same time and the first to book gets the space. People not on the list can also book it if they find it, including customers already on site who walk up.
• Customers keep receiving notifications while they stay on a list and space remains, so tell them how to remove themselves (Go account > Class alerts).
• Clashes: by default Go stops a customer booking two things that overlap, even by a few minutes, including joining a waiting list for a clashing class. Test the behaviour as in step 3.
• Third-party mobile apps: some app providers treat the booked and waiting lists as one continuous list, so the app still shows the class as full. Customers must use the book now link in the alert email (which opens Go Book) rather than the app. Raise it with the app provider too.
• Decisions to record before go-live: opening window, cut-off, notification hours and interval, whether customers may join several lists at once, and any fair-use limits.
• Alert list emails are not being sent: check Cut Off Period in Minutes and that the class start time is not beyond the send window. Also check the class alert communication job is running.
• Some customers are not receiving alert emails: confirm their price level or status is not in Excluded Price Levels or Excluded Statuses.
• Email button does not open the correct class: check Deeplink Base URL, and that [[Fill space from waiting list link]] is in the Button URL.
• Alert button missing on a full class: check the alert list is enabled, the excluded price levels and statuses, and the Plus2 Waiting List tick.
• Related: Class Alert Lists and Push Notifications; Enabling the Alert List for Classes in Gladstone Go; Configuring Activities in Plus2; Configuring Block Bookings in Plus2.

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