> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.goguardian.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Notification Lists > Choose which staff GoGuardian Visitor alerts by email or SMS when a sex offender registry or watchlist match is confirmed, and pair lists with watchlists. A notification list is a group of staff that GoGuardian Visitor alerts by email, SMS, or both when staff confirm a screening match. Notification lists let you choose who is alerted for which matches. Your default list is alerted for every confirmed sex offender registry match, and you attach other lists to watchlists so each watchlist alerts the right staff. You need the Site Admin role at the site to manage notification lists. ## Understand How Alerts Reach Your Lists Visitor alerts a notification list only after a staff member reviews a possible match and clicks **Confirm Match**. Visitor then denies the check-in or check-out and alerts the lists for that match right away: | Confirmed match | Lists alerted | | - | - | | Sex offender registry | Your site's **Default Notification List** | | Watchlist | Every notification list attached to the watchlist | Visitor doesn't alert the default list for a watchlist match unless the list is attached to that watchlist. **Flagged Answer** and **Confirm Students** alerts never go to a notification list. For every alert type, see [Understand Visitor Screening](https://docs.goguardian.com/products/visitor/visitor-screening.md). For what the alert email and SMS contain, see [Respond to a Visitor Alert](https://docs.goguardian.com/products/visitor/respond-to-a-visitor-alert.md). Members don't need Visitor access to receive alerts. Members who can use the **Front Desk** also get a link to it in the alert email. To see who was alerted for a check-in, open it in the **Activity Log**. Under **Notifications**, each list member's **Email** and **SMS** status shows **Sent**, **Failed**, **Pending**, or **Off**, with the reason for any failure. Notification lists are only for screening alerts. Everyday notifications, such as the email a host gets when their visitor checks in, work differently. See [Notifications](https://docs.goguardian.com/products/visitor/notifications.md). ## Plan Your Notification Lists Decide who needs each kind of alert before you create lists. * **Default list:** the staff who should respond to every confirmed sex offender registry match, such as your principal and school security. The first list you create becomes the default automatically, and from then on your site always has exactly 1 default list. * **Watchlist lists:** for each watchlist, decide who should respond to a match and attach the lists for those staff members. One list can serve several watchlists, and a watchlist can alert several lists, such as a security list and an administrators list. A list's **Notification Settings** (email, SMS, or both) apply to every member. If some members should get texts and others only email, put them on separate lists. Your site has only 1 default list, so if anyone on it needs texts, select both. ## Create a Notification List 1. In Visitor, go to **Notification Lists**. 2. Click **Create Notification List**. 3. Enter a **Name** and, optionally, a **Description**. Use a name that says who's on the list, such as "Security Team," so it's easy to pick when you set up a watchlist. 4. Under **Notification Settings**, select **Send email notifications**, **Send SMS notifications**, or both. At least 1 is required. 5. Under **Members**, find each staff member to alert in **Add Members** and select them. You can add anyone with the Staff or Admin role at the site, and every list needs at least 1 member. 6. If you selected **Send SMS notifications**, check the **Phone Number** column for warnings. See [Set Up SMS Alerts](#set-up-sms-alerts). 7. Click **Save**. 8. Verify the result: The list's page opens with its members and settings. If it's your site's first list, **Default Notification List** shows **Yes**. To have a watchlist alert the list, attach it to the watchlist. See [Attach a Notification List to a Watchlist](#attach-a-notification-list-to-a-watchlist). ![Front Office Safety notification list page showing Notify by Email and Notify by SMS set to Yes, Default Notification List set to Yes, the Custody Orders watchlist, and 3 members](https://mintcdn.com/goguardian/vbbcOHBdrxzrcZoi/images/screenshots/notification-lists/01-list-page.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=vbbcOHBdrxzrcZoi\&q=85\&s=efcfca09626e9599c1d28847a00c35f3) ## Set Up SMS Alerts SMS alerts go to the phone number on each member's account in GoGuardian Org Management. Visitor can text a number only if it has 10 digits (or 11 starting with 1) and no extension. It also needs to be a mobile number: a desk phone number passes the check but can't receive texts. When **Send SMS notifications** is selected, Visitor checks each member's number while you create or edit the list. A warning icon in the **Phone Number** column means that member can't receive texts, for example: * "The staff member cannot receive SMS without a valid phone number" * "The phone number for this staff member cannot be used for SMS because it contains an extension" You can still save the list. Members with a warning still get emails if **Send email notifications** is selected, but they don't get texts until their number is fixed. To fix a number, a Super User updates the phone number on the member's account in Org Management. If you aren't a Super User, ask one to add the member's mobile number without an extension. See [Edit Account Permissions](https://docs.goguardian.com/products/org-management/create-manage-user-accounts.md#edit-account-permissions). Then edit the list again to confirm the warning is gone. ![Editing a notification list with Send SMS notifications selected and a member's phone number that has an extension highlighted, with a warning icon](https://mintcdn.com/goguardian/vbbcOHBdrxzrcZoi/images/screenshots/notification-lists/02-sms-warning.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=vbbcOHBdrxzrcZoi\&q=85\&s=cfe007c3890f34811aff7efc51e9f244) ## Attach a Notification List to a Watchlist You choose a watchlist's notification lists from the watchlist, not from the notification list. 1. In Visitor, go to **Watchlists** and open the watchlist. 2. Click **Edit**. 3. In **Notification Lists**, select the lists to alert on a match. 4. Click **Save**. 5. Verify the result: The watchlist's page shows the lists under **Notification Lists**. On the notification list's page, the watchlist appears under **Assigned Watchlists**. For more about watchlists, see [Watchlists](https://docs.goguardian.com/products/visitor/watchlists.md). ## Change the Default Notification List 1. In Visitor, go to **Notification Lists**. 2. Under **Default Notification List**, select the list. 3. Click **Save**. 4. Verify the result: The list you selected shows under **Default Notification List**. From now on, confirmed sex offender registry matches alert the new default list instead of the old one. ## Edit a Notification List 1. In Visitor, go to **Notification Lists** and open the list. 2. Click **Edit**. 3. Change the **Name**, **Description**, **Notification Settings**, or **Members**. To remove a member, click **Manage** next to them, select **Remove**, then click **Remove** to confirm. 4. Click **Save**. 5. Verify the result: The list's page shows your changes. Changes apply to the next alert. Removing a member doesn't change their past alerts in the **Activity Log**. ## Archive a Notification List Archiving can't be undone. An archived list no longer gets alerts for any watchlist it's attached to. You can't archive the default list. To archive it, first make another list the default. See [Change the Default Notification List](#change-the-default-notification-list). 1. In Visitor, go to **Notification Lists** and open the list. 2. Click **More actions**, then select **Archive**. 3. Click **Archive** to confirm. 4. Verify the result: The list no longer appears under **Notification Lists**. ## Troubleshoot Notification Lists | Problem | Cause | Fix | | - | - | - | | A member didn't get a text | **Send SMS notifications** isn't selected, or the member has no phone number or one Visitor can't text | Edit the list, select **Send SMS notifications** if needed, and check the **Phone Number** column. See [Set Up SMS Alerts](#set-up-sms-alerts). | | A member didn't get an alert at all | They aren't on a list alerted for that match, or their account is deactivated | Open the check-in in the **Activity Log** and check **Notifications** for the reason. For a sex offender registry match, check that they're on the **Default Notification List**. For a watchlist match, check that they're on a list attached to that watchlist. | | A staff member doesn't appear in **Add Members** | They don't have the Staff or Admin role at the site, or their account is deactivated | Add them to the site in Org Management. See [Add Sites and Users in Org Management](https://docs.goguardian.com/products/visitor/add-sites-and-users-in-org-management.md). | | **Archive** shows a lock icon | The list is the **Default Notification List** | Make another list the default first. See [Change the Default Notification List](#change-the-default-notification-list). | ## Resources * [Set Up GoGuardian Visitor](https://docs.goguardian.com/products/visitor/set-up-visitor.md) * [Understand Visitor Screening](https://docs.goguardian.com/products/visitor/visitor-screening.md) * [Watchlists](https://docs.goguardian.com/products/visitor/watchlists.md) * [Respond to a Visitor Alert](https://docs.goguardian.com/products/visitor/respond-to-a-visitor-alert.md) * [Notifications](https://docs.goguardian.com/products/visitor/notifications.md) This documentation is built and hosted on [Mintlify](https://mintlify.com), a developer documentation platform.