> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.introw.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Channels

> Set up off-portal delivery for notifications and announcements: email, Slack, and Teams, reply-by-email, and your own sending domain.

export const Rail = ({children}) => <div className="not-prose" data-overview="rail">
    {children}
  </div>;

## Where it lives

Channels sits under **Settings**, at [Integrations](https://app.introw.io/settings/integrations).

<Frame>
  <img src="https://assets.introw.io/docs/features/engagement/channels/shots/catalog.png" alt="The Communication integrations, where Slack, Microsoft Teams and WhatsApp are connected so partner notifications reach the channels partners already use." />
</Frame>

## Before you start

| You need                          | Why                          | Fix it                                                                                                                                   |
| --------------------------------- | ---------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Partners synced with valid emails | Email is the default channel | [Sync partners](/features/integrations/crm/guides/sync-partners-and-contacts)                                                            |
| Slack or Teams, with a channel    | Only for chat delivery       | [Connect Slack](/features/integrations/chat/guides/connect-slack) or [Teams](/features/integrations/chat/guides/connect-microsoft-teams) |
| DNS access for your own domain    | Introw generates the records | [Sending domain](/features/portal/email-domain/guides/send-notifications-from-your-own-domain)                                           |

## How it works

Introw delivers every notification and announcement on up to three off-portal channels. **Email** is always available and reaches any partner with a valid address. **Slack** and **Microsoft Teams** become available once you connect that workspace, and Introw then posts updates into the shared channel mapped to each partner and, optionally, into your own internal channels.

Email is two-way. Collaboration emails carry a reply address, so when a partner replies from their inbox, Introw captures the reply, adds it as a comment on the deal or record, and sends it on to everyone collaborating on that thread. Attachments are saved to the record. Email and chat are configured in different places: email recipients on your organisation default and per segment, chat on each chat integration. This page is about connecting and configuring the channels themselves.

```mermaid theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"github-dark"}}
flowchart LR
  introw["Introw"] --> email["Email"]
  introw --> slack["Slack"]
  introw --> teams["Microsoft Teams"]
  email -->|"partner replies"| record["Comment on the record, shared with all collaborators"]
```

## Settings & configuration

Channel setup spans three places: the **Integrations** area (connect Slack and Teams), **Default settings** in the segments area (who receives each event by email), and each chat integration's **Partner channels** tab (which events reach partner chat channels). Email and chat are configured separately.

### Email

Email delivery is decided by the **recipients** value on each event: **All partners**, **Collaborating only**, or **Disabled**. Set it on [Default settings](https://app.introw.io/settings/segments/default), and override it for one audience on that segment's **Notifications** tab. There is no separate email channel toggle, because email is available for every notification type, so anything not disabled sends. See [Control who gets notified](/features/engagement/notifications/guides/control-who-gets-notified).

**Reply-by-email** is built into collaboration emails (comments, deal and object updates, submission outcomes) as **Respond via email**; a partner's reply threads back onto the record and reaches all collaborators. Commission payout emails accept a reply with an invoice attached.

**Sending domain** controls the address partners see. By default emails send from an Introw address; connect your own authenticated domain so they send as your brand and land in the inbox. See [Send notifications from your own domain](/features/portal/email-domain/guides/send-notifications-from-your-own-domain).

### Slack, Microsoft Teams, and WhatsApp

**Connect the workspace** from **Integrations**. Once connected, the integration gains a **Partner channels** tab listing every partner event, so you choose per platform what reaches partner channels. WhatsApp gets the same panel, since a partner's mapped phone number receives partner notifications the same way a channel does. An organisation running more than one platform configures each separately, and chat cannot be targeted per segment.

**Partner channels** map a shared Slack or Teams channel to each partner, so partner-facing notifications post into the channel that partner is in.

**Internal channels** are your own team channels; point notifications about a partner into them so your team sees partner activity without leaving chat.

## How-to guides

<Rail>
  * ![One value carries the whole email decision: there is no separate channel checkbox.](https://assets.introw.io/docs/features/engagement/channels/guides/configure-partner-notifications-by-email/steps/05.png)

    [**Configure partner notifications by email**](/features/engagement/channels/guides/configure-partner-notifications-by-email)

    Choose which partner notifications go out by email, scope them to the right partners, and turn on reply-by-email so partners respond from their inbox.

  * [**Configure partner notifications in Microsoft Teams**](/features/engagement/channels/guides/configure-partner-notifications-in-microsoft-teams)

    Choose which partner events Introw posts to each partner's mapped Microsoft Teams channel, on the Teams integration's Partner channels tab, and how chat differs from email.

  * [**Configure partner notifications in Slack**](/features/engagement/channels/guides/configure-partner-notifications-in-slack)

    Choose which partner events Introw posts to each partner's mapped Slack channel, on the Slack integration's Partner channels tab, and how chat differs from email.

  * ![Once the address and access are correct, resend the notification or invite so the partner receives it.](https://assets.introw.io/docs/features/engagement/channels/guides/troubleshoot-partner-email-delivery/steps/07.png)

    [**Troubleshoot partner email delivery**](/features/engagement/channels/guides/troubleshoot-partner-email-delivery)

    Troubleshoot partner email delivery: check the address, notification settings, spam and domain filtering, then resend the missing email or invite.
</Rail>

## Troubleshooting

<Warning>
  Chat delivery requires the Slack or Teams integration connected and a channel mapped to the partner; without a mapped channel, chat notifications for that partner do not send. Email is the only channel that reaches partners with no connected workspace. A reply only threads back when the partner replies to the original notification email, not a forwarded copy.
</Warning>

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="A partner gets no email">
    See [Troubleshoot partner email delivery](../guides/troubleshoot-partner-email-delivery).
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Chat notifications are not arriving">
    Confirm the workspace is connected and the partner has a mapped channel.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Replies are not showing on the record">
    Confirm the partner replied to the original email and that reply-by-email is on for that notification.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>