Channel Basics
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      3. Channel Basics

      Learn About and Create Channels

      In this article, you'll learn what Channels are and their use cases, how to create and how to manage them

      Table of contents

      1. What is a Channel?
      2. What are the use cases for Channels?
      3. How to create a Channel
      4. Fine-tuning and managing Channels
        1. Channel colour
        2. Header image
        3. Manage Channel members
        4. Happeo tools
        5. Channel discoverability
        6. Set posting and commenting restrictions
        7. Video summary
        8. Archiving a Channel
      5. Adding members, Channel tools and posting
        1. Channel overview
        2. Adding members
        3. Customising Channel sidebar
        4. Using the Channel feed

      What is a Channel?

      A Channel is a social space where you can communicate and collaborate with others. This is done through posting, commenting and liking as well as sharing and collaborating on documents.

      What are the use cases for Channels?

      The three main use cases are company news, collaboration and social.

      Company news

      This use case is focused on top-down communication via the internal comms team or management. Setting up primary and secondary news Channels allow you to ensure that news is seen that is relevant for each employee.

      Collaboration

      Collaboration Channels should be created by the employees and grow organically. They could be used for a specific project or as a place for a group of people to collaborate. These types of Channels will normally come from a specific need or problem. One good use case that we recommend is a Happeo implementation project Channel. This will allow you to collect questions and answers during the setup and transform the Channel into a Q&A Channel after launch.

      Social

      Social Channels should be aimed at driving social interaction within your business. They should be a combination of central and employee creation. These Channels can be both business-related and completely social. Use cases include office, department, social club, and recognition Channels.

      How to create a Channel

      The ability to create a Channel depends on if the Happeo admin has given permission through the admin settings. We recommend that admins allow all users the ability to create Channels.

      To create a Channel you will need to open the Channel navigation. From there, you can create a new Channel by clicking on the + icon on the top right.

      To create a Channel you will only need to choose a name and give a Channel description.

      Learn About and Create Channels 1

      Fine-tuning and managing Channels

      After creating a Channel you can fine-tune the Channel to personalise it and ensure that it fits your use case. You can set the following:

      Channel colour

      The colour will be displayed on the left of the Channel name within the Channels menu. This will allow you to colour code Channels that are related.

      Header image

      The header image will be displayed at the top of the Channel. Please see the recommended image specifications.

      Manage Channel members

      Here you will be able to change sharing options for Google users and groups in the Channel.

      Happeo tools

      Activate Channel tools such as discussion, files, calendar and hangouts

      1. Discussion: Enabling this option will allow you and, Channel editors and members to create posts and articles 
      2. Files: Connect an existing team drive or folder or a new folder to the Channel for users to collaborate on. Any files shared in the Channel will be saved to this folder
      3. Calendar: Add an existing calendar to the Channel or create a new one based on the Channel Participants
      4. Hangouts: Allow Channel members to invite each other into hangouts directly from the Channel

      Channel discoverability

      1. Only invited users: By choosing this option, only users who have been invited to join the Channel can find the Channel within the Channel discovery
      2. Anyone in my organisation can ask to join: Visible in discovery, anyone can ask to join from the Channel discovery
      3. Anyone in my organisation can join: Visible in discovery, anyone can join automatically and also view the Channel contents without joining

      Set posting and commenting restrictions

      Here, you can adjust the level of participation by restricting commenting and posting.

      1. Anyone can post and comment: All Channel members have the ability to create posts, articles and comment on either of the two types of content
      2. Anyone can post and comment, but posting an announcement is restricted to Channel editors: This option entails the same as above, however, announcement posts can only be made by Channel editors and the Channel owner
      3. Anyone can comment, but posting is restricted to channel editors: All Channel members can comment on posts and articles, however, they are unable to create either posts or articles as this feature is only available to Channel editors and the Channel owner

      Video summary of the above-mentioned features

      Learn About and Create Channels 2

      Archiving a Channel

      If you wish to know how to archive a Channel, please see this article. 

      Archiving a Channel will remove it from the Happeo user interface and can only be undone by a Happeo admin. If you, an admin, wish to unarchive a Channel, you can view this article for a step-by-step guide through the process.

       

      Adding members, Channel tools and posting

      Channel overview

      The Channel page is made up of three sections:

      1. Channel Feed
      2. Channel Navigation
      3. Channel Sidebar

      Adding members

      After adjusting the Channel settings to your liking, you can add Channel members if you wish. This can be done by selecting the people option next to the Channel settings in the Channel menu or through the Channel's settings under "Basic settings".

      You can add either specific users or groups. When users or Groups have been added, they will be notified that they have been added to the Channel and it will show in their Channel overview.

      Customising Channel sidebar

      The Channel Sidebar is visible to all Channel members and can be customised with different Channel widgets such as:

      • Channel links: These links act as quick links for Channel members where they can link Happeo Pages, Drive and external content
      • Upcoming Events: This widget will show any upcoming events on the Channel calendar
      • Important Files: This allows you to link Drive folders or files that are important for the Channel members

      Using the Channel feed

      In the Channel Feed, you are able to post, comment, like, share documents and tag people, similar to other social platforms.