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The Messages section is your hub for reaching your members by email. You can send one-off announcements, newsletters, and updates directly from the Haven admin dashboard — no third-party email tool required. Every email goes out under your club’s name, branded with your logo and colors.

Getting to Messages

In your admin dashboard, click Messages in the left sidebar. You’ll see a list of all your messages organized by status: All, Drafts, and Sent. To write a new email, click New Message in the top-right corner.

Composing an email

1

Choose your recipients

Use the To dropdown to select who receives the email. You can send to:
  • All active members — everyone with an active membership in your organization
  • A specific membership level — for example, “Family” or “Individual” members only
  • A tag — members tagged “Board Members,” “Volunteers,” or any other tag you’ve applied
  • Event registrants — everyone who signed up for a specific event
  • Custom selection — hand-pick specific members
The recipient count updates as you change your selection so you always know how many people will receive the email before you send.
2

Write your subject line

Enter a clear, specific subject line. Subject lines are the first thing your members see in their inbox — make them descriptive enough to stand on their own.
3

Write your message

The message body uses the same rich text editor as the page editor. You can add headings, bold and italic text, links, bulleted and numbered lists, images, and more. Write as much or as little as the message warrants.
4

Send a test email

Click Send Test to Me to preview exactly what your members will receive, including your club’s branding, before sending to anyone else.
5

Send or save as draft

When you’re ready, click Send to deliver the email immediately. If you’re not ready, click Save Draft — your draft appears in the Drafts tab and you can return to it at any time.
Use Send Test to Me before every send. It shows you the exact email your members will receive, including your branding, so you can catch typos or formatting issues before they go out to your full list.

Targeting options

Targeting lets you reach the right people without spamming everyone.

All active members

The default option. Reaches every member with an active membership status — the most common choice for newsletters and organization-wide announcements.

By membership level

Send only to members of a specific level, such as “Individual,” “Family,” or “Student.” Useful for level-specific announcements like dues reminders or tier-exclusive events.

By tag

Tags like “Board Members” or “Finance Committee” let you reach specific groups without creating separate membership levels. Apply tags to members in the Members section.

By event

Send to everyone registered for a specific event. Useful for last-minute logistics updates, post-event thank-yous, or sharing event materials.

Viewing sent messages

Every message you send is saved to your Messages history. Click any sent message to see:
  • The full email content
  • How many members received it
  • When it was sent
  • The recipient filter that was used
Use the Sent tab to filter down to only delivered messages, or Drafts to find messages you haven’t sent yet.

How Haven sends email

Haven sends all messages through its shared email infrastructure using notifications.gohaven.co as the sending domain. Your members’ inboxes display your club’s name as the sender — for example, “Riverside Canoe Club” — not Haven or a generic address.
If your members have a secondary email address on file, they receive a copy at that address automatically. This is especially useful for household memberships where both partners want to stay informed.
If your club has a custom sender domain configured under Settings > Emails, emails go out from your own domain instead of notifications.gohaven.co. Contact support if you’re interested in setting this up.

Best practices for member communication

Be consistent, not constant. A monthly newsletter your members expect is more valuable than frequent messages they start ignoring. Decide on a cadence and stick to it. Use a specific subject line. “March Newsletter” is fine. “Hi” is not. Members scan their inboxes quickly — a clear subject line is the difference between an open and a delete. Target when it makes sense. Not every message is for every member. Sending a board-only agenda update to your full membership list trains people to ignore your emails. Use tags and levels to keep communications relevant. Keep it short. Your members are busy. Lead with the most important information. If you have a lot to say, use headings and bullet points to make it scannable. Preview before sending. Always use Send Test to Me first. Check links, double-check the date of your event, and confirm the formatting looks right on your own device before sending to hundreds of people.