When a family says they aren't getting invoices, receipts or reminders from NextKick, the cause is usually one of a few settings. This guide walks you through checking each one, starting with what NextKick actually sent.
Step 1: Check what NextKick sent
Open the student's profile.
Click the Message History tab.
Find the message the family is asking about and check its status in each column.
Column | What it shows |
Whether the email went out | |
Push Notification | Whether a notification went to the student app |
Message Status | Whether a text message went out |
Sent: NextKick sent it. If the family still can't find it, go to Step 5.
Failed: The email bounced. This usually means the address is wrong, or the family or their email provider, such as Gmail, blocked it. Check the email address on the profile (Step 4) and see Step 5.
Not Sent: The message wasn't sent that way. This is normal for channels a message doesn't use, such as text messages when you haven't set them up.
Not listed: Messages to members on an exclusion list don't appear here at all. Check the exclusion lists (Step 2).
Tip: Click a row to see the full message.
Step 2: Check the notification exclusion lists
Your school can stop NextKick's automatic messages for chosen members. A member on one of these lists gets nothing from that list, so check here first when a family gets no emails at all. The lists don't affect messages your staff send from Communications → Messages. Those still go out.
Go to Settings → Communication.
Under Notifications, find the list that matches the missing message:
Exclude members from system notifications: NextKick's built-in messages, such as invoices, payments and other automatic alerts.
Exclude members from automation messages: messages from the automations your school set up.
Click Edit member list next to that list.
In the window that opens:
Check Show only members with blocked system notifications (or blocked automation messages) to see who is excluded.
Select the family's members.
Click Resume notifications.
To stop messages for a member instead, select them and click Stop notifications.
Step 3: Check "Block for new members by default"
Each list has a Block for new members by default switch. When it's on, every member added from then on is excluded automatically. Members who were already there aren't affected.
If new families say they never get emails, check whether this switch is on.
Turning it off doesn't change members already blocked. Resume them in Edit member list (Step 2).
Schools often turn it on while moving students into NextKick, so families don't get a flood of emails. Turn it off when you're done. See How to Move Your Existing Students into NextKick.
Step 4: Check the email address and who receives it
Open the Member Info tab and check the Email for typos.
Family members share one email, usually the parent's. NextKick's emails for each child go to that shared email.
A parent added under Parents Contacts gets NextKick's invoices and payment notices only if System Automation is turned on for that parent. See How to Manage a Member's Profile and Family.
Step 5: Check spam and your sender email
Ask the family to check their spam or promotions folder, and to add your school's email address to their contacts.
Check Email Sender Verification in Settings → Communication. Until your school's address is verified, emails go out from the NextKick address, which families may not recognize.
Free email addresses, such as Gmail, can show a sender warning to families. An address on your school's own domain works best. See How to Verify Your School's Sender Email Address.
Push notifications and text messages
Push notifications go to the NextKick student app. The family needs the app installed, needs to be signed in, and needs notifications allowed on their phone. Parents added under Parents Contacts don't get push notifications.
Text messages only go out once your school has set up texting and has SMS credits. See How to Send Emails, Push Notifications, and Text Messages.
FAQ
A family isn't getting a message from one of our automations. What should I check?
Make sure the automation exists and is turned on, then check the Exclude members from automation messages list. See How to Set Up Automations.
Can I stop emails to one family for a while?
Yes. Add them to an exclusion list with Stop notifications, and resume them when you're ready. Excluded members also stop getting invoices and payment notices. Messages you send them by hand still go out.
Where do I see every message a family received?
On the student's profile, in the Message History tab.