Why Aren’t Members Receiving Email Notifications?
If members of your community have stopped receiving email notifications, it’s usually due to a few common reasons. Here’s how to identify the issue and what you can do to fix it.
Reason: Inactivity (Over 6 Months)
If a member hasn’t accessed the community in more than 6 months, their email notifications are automatically paused. This helps avoid sending unwanted emails to inactive users.
How to fix it:
- As soon as the member logs in again, notifications will resume automatically.
How to check last login:
- Go to Admin > Users
- Look under each user’s name to see the Last Accessed date
- Use the top menu to sort by Last Accessed
How to Re-Engage Inactive Members
You can help members restart their notifications by prompting them to log back in.
Option 1: Send a Reminder Email
- Go to Admin > Users > Export users (CSV)
- Email them using your organization’s email tool with a message such as:
“We’ve noticed you haven’t visited in a while! To keep getting updates from the community, just log in here: [link].”
Option 2: Post in the Forum and @Mention a Group
- Create a new topic in your community
- Use the @mention feature to tag a user group (e.g., @GroupName)
- Include a message such as:
“To continue receiving notifications, just log in once every 6 months. Clicking this link and signing in will restart your email updates."
Tip: Link to a relevant or popular topic to make the visit worthwhile.
Option 3: Send a Direct Message
You can also send a private message to a member directly. This is a good way to personally re-engage them.
Note: Direct messages can only be sent to individual members, not groups. Messages are delivered via email immediately, even if the user is inactive.
Learn more
How Notification Settings Work
Members receive email notifications based on their activity and preferences. Here’s how it works:
Notifications Are Sent When:
- They are following a category or topic
- A post is made in a category set to notify all users (Admin > Categories)
- They are @mentioned in a post
- They receive a direct message (chat)
- They’ve enabled “All replies in categories I am following” in Notification Settings
@mentions and direct messages are always sent immediately, even if the member hasn’t logged in recently.
Replies to topics do not send notifications unless the member is following the topic or has enabled the “All replies…” setting.
Members Can Customize Their Notifications
Each member can fine-tune their preferences in Notification Settings. Options include:
- Receiving notifications for their own posts
- Enabling or disabling alerts for replies, new topics, @mentions, direct messages, and more
Encourage members to check their settings if they aren’t receiving updates they expect.
Tip: Create a “@Members” Group
To easily notify sets of users:
- Go to Admin > Users > Groups
- Create a group.
- Add all or a subset of users to the group
- Use @GroupName in important posts
💡 Remember to manually add new users to the group as they join.
Still Not Seeing Emails?
If a member still isn’t receiving emails:
- Ask them to check their spam or junk folder
- Encourage them to add your community’s “From” email address to their contacts or safe sender list.
By default, emails are sent from: no-reply@forumbee.com
Custom From addresses can be configured for your domain. Contact us to get started.