The first part of the Group Attendance notification sends a reminder email to the Primary Contacts of Groups that have met in the past 24 hours and haven't posted attendance. The email includes an auto-login link directly to the event so they can post attendance using the Portal, MobileTools, or GroupLife. This makes it easy to keep updated attendance records.

• Frequency: Daily.
• Recipients: The Group Primary Contact where the group met within the previous 24 hours, they didn't post attendance, and the Group meets the Initial Configuration Eligibility requirements listed below.
• From/Reply To: This field populates with the From/Reply to of the Message Template in the Configuration Setting for SERVICES, AttendanceNotificationTemplateID.
• Contents: The Message Template contents are in the Configuration settings for SERVICES, AttendanceNotificationTemplateID.
• Method for Sending: MinistryPlatform.
• Logging in Messages: Yes. Attendance reminders are available in MinistryPlatform, and you can view them on the Messages page. They are recorded in the Audit Log.
• Configuration Settings:
  • SERVICES, AttendanceNotificationTemplateID specifies which Template to use for notifications. Set this to 0 (zero) to turn off all Attendance Notifications.
  • SERVICES, AttendanceNotificationPath is the application URL you want to include in the Message. Use the path for either the Portal, MobileTools, or GroupLife.
  • COMMON, PathToMobileTools is the path to MobileTools. Configure this to send the notification with the option to link the user back to MobileTools.
• Merge Fields Supported: [Nickname], [Event_Group_Listing].
• Initial Configuration for Eligibility: To send the attendance notification to the Group Primary Contact, confirm these settings on the Group record:
  • Primary Contact: The Primary Contact must have an email address and a user account.
  • End Date: This must be a future date or left blank.
  • Available Online set to Yes: This ensures the group is available in the Portal and MobileTools.
  • Send Attendance Notification set to Yes: Set this to No if you don't want to send attendance reminders.
• Optional Configuration: Modify the template to fit your church.
• How to Stop:
  • For One Group: Set Attendance Notification to No on the Group record.
  • For All Groups: Set the value field on SERVICES, AttendanceNotificationTemplateID to 0 (zero).

If you haven't already manually created the Group's next meeting, the second part of the Group Attendance Notification creates the Group's next meeting according to each Group's configuration.

• Frequency: Daily.
• Configuration Settings:
  • CLOUDAPPS, GroupMeetingRoomID specifies the Room to use when you create a Room Reservation from a Group record that doesn't have a Default Group Meeting Room.
  • SERVICES, AttendanceNotificationEventVisibility specifies the Event Visibility for automatically created Events.
  • PORTAL, DefaultEventTypeID specifies the Event Type for automatically created Events.
  • PORTAL, DefaultEventProgramID specifies the Program for automatically created Events.
• Initial Configuration Eligibility: To schedule the Group's next meeting, confirm these settings on the Group record:
  • Start Date: This must be a past date. You can't create Meetings for Groups with a future Start Date.
  • End Date: This field must be a future date or left blank. You can only create Meetings for Groups with an end date.
  • Meeting Time: Select your Group's meeting time. Use this to schedule future events.
  • Meeting Day: Select your Group's meeting day. Use this to schedule future events.
  • Meeting Frequency: Select how often your Group meets. If Meeting Frequency is blank and Create Next Meeting is set to Yes, the routine assumes the Group meets weekly.
  • Default Meeting Room: Select where your group meets. Use this to schedule future events. If you don't select a room, the routine uses the room identified on CLOUDAPPS, GroupMeetingsRoomID.
  • Create Next Meeting is set to Yes: A nightly routine automatically schedules the next meeting and advance Next Scheduled Meeting date. Set to No to turn off or pause meeting creation.
• How to Stop: Set Create Next Meeting to No.

If Create Next Meeting is set to Yes and you haven't manually created the next event:

• MinistryPlatform creates your Group's Next Meeting based on the Group's Configuration and Configuration settings.
  • The Event's Title is "[Group Name] Meeting".
  • The Event's Congregation is the Group's Congregation.
  • The Event's Primary Contact is Group's Primary Contact
  • The Event's Start Date and Time is the Group's Meeting Day and Meeting Time.
  • The Event's End Date and Time is the Group's Meeting Day, Time, and Duration.
    Note: If Group Meeting Duration is blank and Create Next Meeting is set to Yes, the routine assumes the Group Meeting Duration is 60 minutes.
  • The Event's Room is the Group's Default Meeting Room. If there is no Default Meeting Room, the routine uses the room identified in CLOUDAPPS, GroupMeetingsRoomID.
    Tip: Create a room record for an Off-Campus or "No Room" room and set that as the Group Default Meeting Room.
  • The Event's Program is the Group's Default Program, as identified in PORTAL, DefaultEventProgramID.
  • This routine creates the events when it runs overnight. It creates the Next Scheduled Meeting Event depending on the Group's configuration, so it may vary based on the Group's setup. It won't create any meetings more than seven days in the future.
• The Next Scheduled Meeting field populates with the next Group Meeting.
  • If the date is in the past and Create Next Meeting is set to Yes, the nightly routine moves this date forward and creates the next Event based on Meeting Day, Frequency, and Duration.
  • If you manually create a future event, the nightly routine adds that date and time to this field.