CourtPass venues send messages via SMS, WhatsApp, and email. You control what you receive per category × per channel.
Channels
| Channel | When you'd use it | How to set up |
|---|---|---|
| Default for everyone — receipts, confirmations, reminders | Always on (your sign-up email) | |
| SMS | Faster delivery, especially for time-sensitive (door PIN, reminders) | Add phone in profile + verify via OTP |
| Free messaging in some regions, supports rich content | Same as SMS — add phone, verify, system uses WhatsApp where available |
Categories
CourtPass groups all messages into 6 categories:
| Category | What it covers | Default opt-in |
|---|---|---|
| Transactional | Booking confirmations, cancellation notices, refund receipts | ON (legally required) |
| Reminders | 24h / 2h pre-booking reminders | ON |
| Schedule changes | Session moved, cancelled, capacity changed | ON |
| Attendance | Post-session no-show alerts (mostly academy) | OFF |
| Marketing | Venue promotional broadcasts, new programs | OFF (must opt in) |
| Emergency | Lockout / closure / safety alerts | ON (cannot opt out) |
You can independently toggle each category × channel. Want emails for receipts but SMS for reminders? Easy.
Setting your preferences
Profile → Communications:
A grid of toggles — rows are categories, columns are channels (SMS / WhatsApp / Email). Each cell:
- ✓ ON (you'll receive this)
- ⏸ OFF (you won't receive this)
- ⚠ "Not verified" — channel hasn't been verified via OTP
A checkbox is greyed out if the channel isn't verified. Verify the channel first (next section).
Verifying a channel
To turn on SMS or WhatsApp for any category:
- Profile → Communications → + Add channel.
- Enter your mobile in E.164 format (
+614…). - Pick SMS or WhatsApp.
- CourtPass sends a 6-digit OTP.
- Type the OTP back. Channel is verified.
Now you can toggle preferences for that channel.
Reminders
Default reminders for confirmed bookings:
- 24 hours before start
- 2 hours before start
Some venues let you customise:
- Reminder timing in your profile lets you pick from preset chips (1h / 2h / 24h / 2 days / 3 days / 7 days)
- Opt out of reminders entirely — toggle in profile
Reminders go out via your highest-priority verified channel:
- WhatsApp (if verified) > SMS (if verified) > Email
If you have no verified phone, reminders go via email only.
Marketing
CourtPass venues can send promotional broadcasts (new programs, special offers, holiday closures) but ONLY to users who've explicitly opted in.
When you opt in, you get a confirmation email + welcome message. Marketing volume is capped per Australian SPAM Act — typically max 1 marketing message per week.
To opt out:
- Reply STOP to any SMS / WhatsApp marketing message → instant opt-out
- Click Unsubscribe in any marketing email → instant opt-out
- Or toggle the Marketing × channel cell in your profile
Stopping marketing doesn't stop transactional / reminder / emergency messages — those continue.
Quiet hours
Each venue sets its own quiet-hours window (typically 21:00–08:00 local time). During quiet hours, only emergency messages are sent. Everything else queues until quiet hours end.
So if a session is cancelled at 11pm, you might not get the SMS until 8am the next day. Schedule changes that affect tomorrow morning's slot are typically queued for early morning.
Emergency messages
Cannot be opted out. Used only for:
- Venue closure (gas leak, flood)
- Access lockout (gateway down, doors won't unlock)
- Safety alerts (active threat, evacuation)
Marked with [EMERGENCY] prefix in SMS. Volume is rare — most venues never send one.
Throttle
Per-venue defaults:
- Max 5 non-emergency messages per day to one recipient
- Max 1 marketing per week to one recipient
Throttles are venue-specific and protect you from being spammed. If a venue's throttle is hit, the message is deferred or dropped (you won't see it).
Replies
SMS / WhatsApp replies you send to a venue's number land in their staff inbox. The venue sees your message and can reply directly.
Useful for:
- "I'm running late, will I lose my slot?"
- "Where do I park?"
- "Is the gym open today?"
Replies aren't 24/7 — staff respond during venue hours. Most venues commit to a response SLA (e.g. within 1 hour during ops hours).
Privacy
You own your contact details. CourtPass:
- Never sells / shares with third parties
- Honours opt-outs immediately
- Stores consent receipts (so you can prove what you opted into and when)
- Lets you download your full comms history via the data export tool
Per AU Privacy Act, all comms are logged and you can request a copy any time.
Common scenarios
"I'm getting too many emails"
Toggle off the categories you don't care about (Profile → Communications). Reminders + marketing are the usual culprits. Transactional + emergency stay on.
"I'm not getting reminders"
- Confirm at least one channel is verified.
- Confirm Reminders × that channel is toggled ON.
- Confirm you're not in quiet hours (reminders queued until end of window).
- Confirm the booking is
CONFIRMED(cancelled bookings have reminders cancelled too).
"STOP doesn't work"
It always works for the channel you sent it to. If you texted STOP via SMS, you opted out of SMS for that venue. WhatsApp / email opt-outs need to happen on those channels separately. Use the profile toggles for the cleanest control.
"I want to switch from email to SMS"
Go to Profile → Communications. Toggle email OFF for the category, SMS ON. Save.
"I want messages from one venue but not another"
Profile preferences are per-venue. Each venue has its own toggle grid. Set them independently.
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