Groups - Member
Being
a Group Member - Overview
Starting Groups is fun -- but so is joining
them! Basically, there are two ways to get into
a Group. Either you can ask to join a Group,
or someone in a Group can send you an invite.
If the Group is private you can only get in
if someone sends you an invite. However, if
a Group is public you can ask to join or someone
in the Group can send you an invite.
Either way, once you join a Group you can start
sending out messages to Group members -- either
from SMSjunction.com or from your mobile phone.
With SMSjunction you can even send text messages
from your very own mobile phone.
Getting invited to join
a Group
If someone invites you to join their Group,
we'll send a text message to your mobile phone
or pager letting you know. Just log on to SMSjunction.com
to accept or decline the invite. If you're not
familiar with the Group or the member who's
invited you, check them both out from your Home
page on SMSjunction.com. Don't worry, invites don't
expire.
Finding a Group to join
Why not expand your horizons and join a public
Group? Click the Search link on the nav bar
and you'll find a listing of Featured Groups
as well as Search and Browse. You can also click
the link to see Most Popular Groups on SMSjunction
(the Groups with the most members). Read the
first sentence or so of the Group Description,
and when you find one that interests you just
click on the name of the Group to learn more
about them on their Group Home Page.
You can also search for a Group by entering
all or part of the Group name and clicking "Search."
Remember, private Groups won't show up in your
search. A Private Group means membership is
by invite only.
Asking to Join
Just click the Ask to Join link (p.s. if you
don't see it, you're already a member!) at the
top of any Group Home page and your request
will automatically be forwarded to the Group
founder. (Sorry, requests to join Groups --
unlike Channels -- must first be approved by
the Group founder.)
Getting in…or Not
You can tell if your request to join a Group
went thru by going to your Home page, where
you'll see your request listed in your Updates
panel. It will say "pending" until the Group
founder either approves or denies your request.
If you are approved we'll send a text message
to your mobile phone or pager welcoming you
in. If you're denied, you'll only see it in
your Updates panel. (Hey, wouldn't you rather
get the bad news sitting down?)
Once You're In
Now that you're in, the new Group will be listed
on your Home page in Your Groups and Channels
panel. This panel gives you access to all the
things you can do as a member:
View
your Group's Home page
Once you have joined a Group you can view the
full Group Home page -- including the Message
Inbox and Member List -- by clicking the Group
name under Your Groups on your Home page.
The Message Inbox contains all the messages to
this Group from the past 30 days (most recent
message first). You can read the messages, reply
to them, or send out a new message.
The Member List shows you every member of the
Group, their handle (which links to their Profile
page), when they joined, and their status (ie,
if they are Active or Away.)
Read/Reply to Group messages
To read messages sent to your Group, click the
Group Name under Your Groups on your Home page
and you will see the Message Inbox. The Message
Inbox contains all the messages to this Group
from the past 30 days (most recent message first).
You can read the messages, reply to them, or send
out a new message.
You may also read your Group messages from the
Read Message link on the nav bar. However, since
Your Inbox contains all the messages from all
your Groups and Channels, as well as all private
messages you have received from any SMSjunction members,
this is probably not the best way to read messages
from one particular Group.
Finally, launch the SMSjunction Messenger from the
nav bar and you'll instantly know when you have
any new voice or text messages from one of your
Groups, Channels or another SMSjunction member. You
can use this if you're going to be online for
a while and would rather have your messages directed
here (instead of your mobile phone or pager.)
Send your Group a message
To send a text message to your Group, use the
send message (blue) box) on the left side of each
page.
Just type your message in the box and press "Send"
when you're done. Remember, since SMSjunction messages
are generally meant for wireless devices, your
message needs to be short -- 120 characters at
the most. Don't worry: the counter just below
the message box tells you how many characters
you have left.
Invite others into your Group
Once you're a member you can invite others into
your Group. You can do this by clicking Invite
next to the Group Name listed under Your Groups
on your Home Page. You will also see an Invite
button at the top of your Group Home page.
Once you're on the Send an Invite page just type
in the SMSjunction member's handle you want to invite
and press "Send". If you don't know the member's
handle you can click "Search" to look for them
by as much of the member's handle you know, their
mobile phone number, or email address.
If the person you want to invite isn't a SMSjunction
member yet, just type in their email address and
we'll send an email out to them on your behalf
telling them a little about SMSjunction, and that
you want them to join your Group. Then, when they
join SMSjunction, the first thing they'll see is
an invite from you in their Alerts box on their
Home page.
You can find out status of invites you've sent
in the Updates panel on your Home page. Click
the "details" link there to find out specifics.
Change your Group status
When you join a Group, your default status is
Active. This means that you are able to send messages
to and receive messages from your Group members.
If you decide that you temporarily don't want
to receive messages (voice and text) from a particular
Group just click the Active button and it will
switch your status to Away. You can change it
back to Active at any time with just one click.
While you're Away your Group messages will still
be available to read and listen to on your Group
Home page Message Inbox.
Click here to learn how to change your status
in all your Groups (and Channels) to "Away" (ie,
Do Not Disturb) with one click.
Quit a Group
If you decide that you no longer want to be a
member in a particular Group, just click the "Quit"
button next to the Group name you wish to quit
on your Home page. You won't get any more messages
sent to your wireless device, and you'll no longer
have access to the full Group Home page. To get
back in to a Group you've quit you need to ask
to join again (if the Group is public) or be invited
back in (if the Group is private.) |
