Overview

SquadTrip gives you multiple ways to communicate with travelers: Group Chat for real-time messaging, promotional emails for marketing, text message blasts for quick updates, and customizable automated emails for transactional notifications. Each channel serves a different purpose and reaches travelers at different stages of their journey.

Automatic Email Settings page showing booking, payment, and chat email templates with toggles and edit icons

Group Chat

Group Chat creates a private, real-time messaging space for confirmed travelers and organizers.

Enabling Group Chat

Go to Trip Builder > Basics page
Toggle "Enable Group Chat" ON
Write your Welcome Message (or use the default)
Configure Automated Milestone Messages for key moments:
- First Booking, 60 Days Out, 30 Days Out, 7 Days Out, Day After Trip

What You Can Do as an Organizer

Feature	How It Works
Send messages	Real-time text, photos, videos, and files
Pin messages	Keep important updates at the top of the chat
Create polls	Gather group input with single choice, multiple choice, or ranked voting
Delete messages	Moderate the chat by removing any message
Milestone messages	Automated messages at key trip milestones

Travelers can send messages, share media, react to messages (thumbs up, heart, laugh, fire, check), and vote in polls.

Daily Digest Email

Travelers receive a daily email digest summarizing new messages, poll results, and pinned messages. This keeps everyone engaged without requiring them to check the chat constantly.

Promotional Emails

Promote your trips and encourage bookings through email campaigns.

Navigate to My Trips > Select trip > Edit Trip
Go to "Promote your trip" in Trip Builder
Click "Add New Email"
Configure sender details and reply address
Select recipients (from past trips, uploaded contacts, or manual entry)
Compose your message using merge tags for personalization
Preview and optionally send a test email
Schedule or send immediately

Text Message Blasts

Send SMS invitations and updates to travelers.

Go to Trip Management > Share My Trip
Add your MMS content (under 320 characters)
Select recipients via CSV upload or past trips
Upload an image (jpeg, png, or gif, up to 2MB)
Send

Note: Text Blast is a premium feature requiring a subscription.

Customizing Automated Emails

Edit system-generated emails to match your brand voice:

Go to My Trips > Edit Trip > Trip Builder > Automatic Email Settings
Click the pencil icon next to the email you want to edit
Modify the subject line and body content

Built-in templates include: Deposit confirmation, Payment received, Outstanding balance reminder, Payment failed, Cancellation confirmation, Abandoned cart, and Payment reminder.

Editing Communication Settings

Under Settings > Notifications and Emails, configure:

Notification routing (organizer vs. company email)
CC additional admin addresses
Sender name and reply-to address

Important Notes

Group Chat is only visible to confirmed travelers -- prospects and abandoned carts don't have access
Promotional emails support merge tags for personalization (traveler name, trip name, etc.)
Text blasts have a 320 character limit and image files must be under 2MB
Automated emails send based on booking events -- they can be customized but not disabled entirely

Troubleshooting

Problem	Solution
Group Chat not showing for travelers	Verify it's enabled in Trip Builder > Basics. Chat is only visible to travelers with confirmed bookings.
Promotional email not sending	Check that you selected recipients and completed all required fields. Preview and test before sending to a full list.
Text blast not delivering	Verify recipients have valid phone numbers. Text Blast requires an active subscription.
Automated email content not updating	After editing, make sure you saved changes. The next triggered event will use the updated template.
Milestone messages not firing	Check that Group Chat is enabled and the trip has the correct start date set. Milestones are based on the trip date.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What's the difference between Group Chat and promotional emails? A: Group Chat is for real-time two-way conversation with confirmed travelers. Promotional emails are one-way marketing messages sent to prospects, past travelers, or uploaded contacts to encourage new bookings. Use Group Chat for trip coordination and emails for marketing.

Q: Can I send a Group Chat message to specific travelers instead of the whole group? A: No. Group Chat messages are visible to all confirmed travelers. For private communication with individual travelers, use email or the contact information in Trip Data.

Q: Do travelers need to opt in to receive promotional emails? A: You're responsible for ensuring compliance with email marketing laws. Only send promotional emails to contacts who have given you permission. SquadTrip provides the tools, but compliance is the organizer's responsibility.

Q: Can I customize the automated emails that go out for payments and bookings? A: Yes. Go to Trip Builder > Automatic Email Settings and click the pencil icon next to any email template. You can edit the subject line and body content. The emails still send automatically based on booking events.

Q: How do milestone messages work in Group Chat? A: Milestone messages are automated messages posted to Group Chat at key moments: first booking, 60 days out, 30 days out, 7 days out, and the day after the trip. You can customize each message or use the defaults. They help keep travelers engaged throughout the lead-up to departure.