Groups and Tags

Wired Church provides two complementary systems for organizing your congregation: Groups for structured teams and communities, and Tags for flexible, ad-hoc categorization. Groups come with built-in features like posts, events, and resources. Tags are lightweight labels you can apply to any member for filtering, reporting, and broadcast targeting. This guide covers both systems in detail.

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Groups Overview

Groups in Wired Church come in two flavors:

Both types share a common set of collaboration features (posts, events, resources, announcements) but ministry groups have additional scheduling and assignment capabilities tied to the ministry scheduler.

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Creating a Ministry Group

Ministry groups are created from the admin panel and are used for teams that serve during church services or maintain operational responsibilities.

1. Open the admin sidebar and click Ministry.
2. Click Groups in the sub-navigation.
3. Click Create Group in the top-right corner.
4. Fill in the group details:

5. Click Save Group to create the group.

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Adding Members to Groups

Adding Individual Members

1. Open the group from Ministry > Groups and click on the group name.
2. On the group detail page, click Add Member.
3. Search for the member by name.
4. Select a role for this member in the group:
   • Member — Standard participant.
   • Leader — Can manage group content (posts, events, resources) and view the group roster from the portal.
   • Admin — Full control over group settings, members, and content.
5. Click Add.

Adding Multiple Members at Once

Click Bulk Add on the group detail page. Use search and filters to find members, check the boxes, select a role, and click Add Selected. Members receive a notification when added (if enabled in their preferences).

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Group Roles and Permissions

Each role grants different capabilities within the group:

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Group Features

Every group (ministry or social) has access to the following built-in features, accessible from the group page in both the admin panel and the member portal.

Posts

The group feed works like a private social timeline. Members can create text posts, share photos, and link to external content. Others can react (emoji) and comment. Leaders can pin important posts to the top. Posts are visible only to group members.

Events

Leaders and Admins can create group-specific events with title, date, time, location, and optional RSVP tracking. Group events appear on the group page and members' personal calendars but not on the main church calendar unless explicitly promoted.

Resources

Groups maintain a shared resource library. Upload files (PDF, documents, spreadsheets, media) or paste links. Common uses: chord charts, lesson plans, training documents, reading materials.

Announcements

Leaders can post highlighted announcements that display as a banner at the top of the group page, separate from regular posts. Announcements support optional expiration dates for automatic removal.

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Social Groups

Social groups are for fellowship, Bible studies, and interest communities. They have the same collaboration features as ministry groups (posts, events, resources, announcements) but without scheduling and assignments. Social groups can be created by admins from Admin > Groups > Social Groups, or by portal users if member-created groups are enabled.

Each social group can be set to Open (any member can join), Closed (join requests require approval), or Secret (invitation only, hidden from the group directory).

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Tags

Tags are lightweight labels you can apply to any member record. Unlike groups, tags have no built-in features (no posts, events, or resources) — they exist purely for categorization, filtering, and targeting.

Common Tag Uses

Examples: "Volunteer," "New Member 2026," "Transportation Needed," "Spanish Speaker," "VBS Volunteer," "Board Member," "Newsletter Subscriber," "Shut-In." Tags can represent any attribute, status, or category relevant to your church.

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Creating and Managing Tags

Creating a Tag

1. Navigate to Members > Tags (accessible from the Members sub-navigation or the settings gear icon on the members list).
2. Click Create Tag.
3. Enter the tag name (e.g., "Volunteer").
4. Select a color for visual identification.
5. Add an optional description explaining what this tag represents.
6. Click Save.

Applying Tags to Members

There are three ways to apply tags:

From a member's profile:

1. Open the member's profile.
2. In the Tags section, click Add Tag.
3. Select one or more tags from the dropdown.
4. Click Save.

From the member list (bulk):

1. On the Members list page, check the boxes next to the members you want to tag.
2. Click the Tag button in the bulk actions bar that appears at the bottom of the screen.
3. Select the tag(s) to apply.
4. Click Apply Tags.

During CSV import: If your CSV file includes a tags column, tags are applied during import. Use commas to separate multiple tags in a single cell (e.g., "Volunteer, Board Member").

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Filtering Members by Tags

On the Members list, click Filter > Tags, select one or more tags, and choose a match mode: Any (at least one tag matches) or All (every selected tag must be present). Combine tag filters with status, campus, and group filters for precise segmentation.

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Using Tags for Broadcast Targeting

In the broadcast compose screen, click Select Recipients > By Tag, choose your target tags, and the recipient count updates in real time. This is more flexible than group-based targeting because tags can be freely combined.

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Bulk Tag Operations

For large-scale tag management:

Adding Tags in Bulk

1. Go to Members, filter or search for the target members.
2. Click the Select All checkbox (or select individual members).
3. Click Tag in the bulk actions bar.
4. Select the tags to add.
5. Click Apply. The tags are added to all selected members.

Removing Tags in Bulk

1. Filter the member list by the tag you want to remove.
2. Select all members shown.
3. Click Remove Tag in the bulk actions bar.
4. Select the tag to remove and click Confirm Removal.

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Groups vs. Tags — When to Use Which

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Visibility and Privacy

• Public groups are listed in the portal group browser. Private groups require an admin to add members. Secret groups are completely hidden from all listings.
• Tags are admin-only. Members cannot see which tags have been applied to them — tags are purely an internal tool and do not appear in the member portal.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Can a member be in multiple groups? Yes. There is no limit on the number of groups a member can belong to.

Can I see all tags applied to a member at a glance? Yes. Tags appear as colored badges on the member list and in the Tags section of their profile.

Can group leaders see member tags? No. Tags are only visible to admin users.

Is there a limit on the number of tags? No. Create as many as needed, but periodically review and clean up unused tags.

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Related Articles

• Adding Members and Families
• Member Profiles — What's Tracked
• Attendance Tracking
• Roles and Permissions
• Email and SMS Broadcasts