Topics (or subscription topics) are used to organize your information in govDelivery. When you create a topic, the public can subscribe to updates about that topic. Adding a new topic and assigning it to a category allows the topic to appear on the Quick Subscribe Page. Assigning an administrator to a topic allows them to create and send bulletins to the people subscribed to that topic.

How to Create a New Topic

To add a new topic:

  1. On the Account Area Toolbar, click Topics.
  2. Click Create Topic.
  3. Complete the Create Topic form. Items marked with * are required. Fields are described below.
  4. Click Save to save your changes.

Topic Fields

To set up your new Topic for success, fill out as many of the Topic fields as possible. Only the first three fields are required, however filling out the rest of the Topic information will allow your Topic to be dynamic and more engaging in a variety of ways. Note that fields displayed will vary based on options enabled for your account. The available Topic fields are:

  • Name - Name of the topic. This should be descriptive enough that subscribers and admins can clearly identify the topics: e.g. "Department of Education – Jobs".
  • Short Name - The Short Name is the topic name displayed within the hierarchy tree of categories and topics for subscribers and admins, allowing topics to be named more concisely. For example, if the category name is "Department of Education", the Short Name field allows the topic under this category in the hierarchy tree to be shortened to "Jobs" as opposed to the longer topic name "Department of Education - Jobs" to avoid repetition.
  • Code - A code is systematically assigned by govDelivery. This code can be changed by an administrator to anything that benefits their organizational purposes.
  • Description - Description of the topic. This is optional, but recommended. Topic descriptions can be seen by subscribers on your organization's subscription pages, giving them more information about the updates they'll receive.
  • Visibility - Set the topic's visibility:
    • Listed topics are visible to any user via the Quick Subscribe page.
    • Unlisted topics are visible only to administrators logged into govDelivery. Potential subscribers can be sent active subscribe links to unlisted topics.
    • Restricted topics are not visible to anyone on public pages, and subscribe links are not active. Typically restricted topics are used for internal communications.
  • Quick Subscribe Page - Select a Quick Subscribe page.
  • Subscription Restore - Enable this setting for the ability to restore previously deleted subscriptions. It also allows you to see why subscribers were deleted. For more information about this option, see Moderating Deleted Subscribers. If you do not see this setting and would like to use it, contact our Support team by submitting a new request at the bottom of this page.
  • Subscription Approval - Enable this setting to approve subscriptions before a subscriber can successfully sign up for a topic or category. This helps you protect your subscriber list (and deliverability) by preventing spam email addresses from being added. For more information about this option, see Subscription Approval and Moderation. If you do not see this setting and would like to use it, contact our Support team by submitting a new request at the bottom of this page.
  • Subscription Restrictions - Enable this setting to be able to limit which users can subscribe to certain topics. For more information about this option, see Subscription Restrictions. Note that when you set a restriction, it is inclusive, meaning that you are restricting your subscribers TO whatever criteria you set (for example, a certain domain). 
  • Wireless Alerts Enabled - Enable wireless alerts for the topic.
  • Send by Email Enabled - Enable to allow your administrators to send bulletins from their local email client (e.g., Microsoft Outlook, Gmail, etc.). For more information, see Send By Email.
  • RSS Feed Title - The title for the topic's public RSS feed.
  • RSS Feed URL - The URL for the topic's public RSS feed.
  • RSS Feed Description - A short description of the topic's public RSS feed.
  • Page Watch Enabled - Enable Page Watch to automatically watch for content updates and notify subscribers of updates.
  • Page Watch Suspended - Temporarily suspend Page Watch.
  • Page Watch Type - Select the type of content you want to monitor with Page Watch. For more information, see Page Watch.
  • Page Watch URL - The URL of the web page to be monitored by Page Watch for this topic.
  • Number of Page Watch Results to Save - Set the number of Page Watch results that are stored in govDelivery. By default, govDelivery saves the last 10 Page Watch schedules. Note that govDelivery saves the last (specified number) of changes, non-changes, and errors for each Page Watch URL.
  • Page Watch Schedule - Select a Page Watch schedule. See Page Watch Schedules for information on creating a new Page Watch schedule.
  • Watch Tagged Content - Enable govDelivery to only watch particular sections of a web page by tagging content.
  • Page Watch Content Block Code - A code used on your webpage to indicate what content govDelivery should watch.
  • Bundle Page Watch Messages - Set to "yes" to send all Page Watch messages for a time period in a single email. Set to "no" to send all Page Watch messages in individual emails.
  • Page Watch Auto-Send - Enable Page Watch to automatically notify your subscribers when your web pages are updated.

Adding a Topic to a Category

After creating a new topic, you need to add the topic to a category or the topic will not display on the Quick Subscribe page. When you create a new topic, you are prompted to assign the topic to the category. To assign a topic to categories or to modify the categories assigned to a topic:

  1. On the Account Area toolbar, click Topics.
  2. On the Area Option toolbar, click Categories.
  3. Select one or more categories.
  4. Click Save.
Tip: If you're creating multiple topics, you might find it easier to assign topics to a category after all topics have been created. You can add multiple topics to a category at once in the Category settings. For more information, see Modify Topics Associated with a Category.

Adding or Modifying Administrators for a Topic

Once you have created a topic and added it to a category, you will need to assign an administrator to that topic. This allows them to communicate with and manage the subscribers of that topic. To modify a topic's administrator(s): 

  1. On the Account Area toolbar, click Topics.
  2. Select the topic you want to modify.
  3. On the Area Options toolbar, select Administrators.
  4. A list of all administrators for the account displays. Select the account, group, or topic administrators that you want to assign to the topic.
  5. Click Save.

Managing Subscribers for a Topic

For information on managing the subscribers for your topic, see Adding, Modifying, and Deleting Subscribers.

Saving a List of All Topics

You can print or export a list of all your topics, with the subscriber count for each, its visibility, and page watch settings. To do so:

  1. In the left navigation menu, click Topics.
  2. Do one of the following: 
    • Click PDF to save the list as a printable PDF.
    • Click CSV to save the list as a spreadsheet.