> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://help.alternativepayments.io/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://help.alternativepayments.io/automations/email-notifications-and-reminders/automatic-email-notifications.md). # Automatic Email Notifications **Automatic email reminders help customers pay invoices on time and save you from sending manual notifications.** *** Easily automate your emails and improve collections with invoice summaries and invoice reminders. **Set up automatic email notifications in 4 easy steps:** {% stepper %} {% step %} Go into Automations {% endstep %} {% step %} Select [Email Notifications](https://app.alternativepayments.io/dashboard/email-notifications) {% endstep %} {% step %} Add Your Notifications (Invoice summaries & Invoice reminders) {% endstep %} {% step %} Add Customer Exclusions {% endstep %} {% endstepper %} *** ## Invoice Summaries Email your customers comprehensive invoice summaries to highlight all outstanding invoices. This serves as a gentle reminder, ensuring timely payments for the services you've delivered. The fastest way to set one up is with Alti. Alti walks you through each choice, then asks you to confirm before anything is saved. #### Set up a summary with Alti 1. **Go to Automations**\ \ In the Partner Dashboard, select **Automations > Email notifications** from the side menu, then open the **Invoice summaries** tab. 2. **Select New summary**\ \ Select **New summary** to open the Alti panel and start configuring automatic email summaries.
3. **Choose a template**\ \ Alti shows your email templates as cards, along with how many summaries each one is used in. Select Preview to check a template's content, or Use to pick it. You can also select Create a new template.
4. **Choose how often it sends**\ \ Once your template is selected, Alti asks how often the summary should send. Select **Monthly** or **Weekly**. Then choose which day it sends from the options presented. You can also type a different day into the answer box and select **Send**.
5. **Choose your audience**\ \ In the **Who should get it?** card, select **All customers with open invoices**, **Customers with a tag**, or **Specific customers**. You can also type your answer and select **Send**.
6. **Review and save**\ \ Alti shows a **Save this summary?** card with the audience, template, and cadence, including the send time. Select **Save** to create it, or **Deny** to cancel.
#### Set up a summary manually Prefer to configure a summary yourself? You can get to the manual setup from the Alti panel. * Select **New summary**. The Alti panel opens on the right. * Select **Set up summary manually** in the Alti panel.
* The **New summary** page opens, where you can set up your summary as usual.
Now you're all set up to send automatic invoice summaries! *** ## Invoice Reminders Invoice reminders email your customers automatically based on each invoice's due date or creation date. The fastest way to set one up is with Alti: select **New reminder** and Alti walks you through each choice, then asks you to confirm before anything is saved. #### Set up a reminder with Alti 1. **Go to Automations**\ \ In the Partner Dashboard, select **Automations > Email notifications** from the side menu, then open the **Invoice summaries** tab. 2. **Select New reminder**\ \ Select **New reminder** to open the Alti panel and start configuring automatic email reminders.
3. **Choose a template**\ \ Alti shows your email templates as cards. Select **Preview** to check a template's content, or **Use** to pick it. You can also create a new template from here.
4. **Choose when it sends**\ \ In the **When should it send?** card, select a timing, such as **When the invoice is created**, **7 days before the due date**, **3 days before the due date**, or **On the due date**. If you want a timing that isn't listed, type it into the answer box instead, for example "10 days after the due date."
{% hint style="success" %} **Note**: As best practice, we recommend you set reminders for: * On due date * 3 days before due date * 7 days after due date (and optionally 15, 30, and 45 days) {% endhint %} 5. **Choose your audience**\ \ In the **Who should get it?** card, select **All customers**, **Customers with a tag**, or **Specific customers**. You can also type your answer and select **Send**.
6. **Review and save**\ \ Alti shows a **Save this reminder?** card summarizing who the reminder reaches, its timing, and the template it uses. Select **Save** to create it, or **Deny** to cancel.
#### Set up a reminder manually Prefer to configure a reminder yourself? You can get to the manual setup from the Alti panel. * Select **New reminder**. The Alti panel opens on the right. * Select **Set up reminder manually** in the Alti panel.
* The manual reminder configuration page opens, where you can set up your reminder as usual.
Now you're all set up to send automatic email notifications. For questions, use the chat icon at the bottom right of the Partner Dashboard. *** ## Add customer exclusions If you want to exclude any customers from automatic email notifications, use the **Exception List** option. These steps apply to both invoice summaries and invoice reminders. Select **Choose Customers**, filter for the customers you want, and select the checkboxes next to the company names. You can also **Select All** or **Clear Selection**. Confirm with the **Select x customers** button when you are ready.
*** ## Send Reminder In addition to automatic reminders, you can send a one-off reminder manually from the Invoices page — either for a single invoice or for multiple invoices at once using the bulk selection bar. ### Choosing a template When you click **Send reminder** (single or bulk) next to an invoice, a dialog opens with a **Templates** carousel and a live **Preview** pane below it. The carousel shows: * **Default** — the built-in system reminder template, always listed first and pre-selected. * **Your Reminder templates** — any Reminder-type templates you have created, with favourites listed first, followed by the rest in alphabetical order. The **Preview** pane updates as you move through the carousel, showing the **From**, **To**, **Subject**, and body of the selected template exactly as your customer will receive it. If you do not change the selection, the **Default** template is sent — behaviour is identical to before this dialog was introduced. {% hint style="info" %} Only **Reminder-type** templates appear in the carousel. Templates of other types, and any templates not owned by your account, are not available for selection. {% endhint %} ### Managing your templates from the dialog A **Manage** link in the dialog header opens the [Invoice reminders](https://app.alternativepayments.io/dashboard/email-notifications?pageTab=reminders) page in a new tab so you can create or edit templates without losing your place in the send flow. ### Sending the reminder Once you have selected a template (or left **Default** selected), click **Confirm** (single invoice) or **Send to *****N***** invoices** (bulk) to dispatch the reminder immediately. {% hint style="success" %} **Multi-entity tip:** If you manage multiple client companies, use a custom Reminder template that addresses the client by company name. This removes the need to send reminders from a personal inbox and keeps all outbound communication under your branded sending domain. {% endhint %} *** ## Email Sending Domain Invoice notification emails are sent from one of two addresses, depending on whether your account has a custom email domain configured: * **Custom email domain configured:** Notifications are sent from your custom sending address (for example, `billing@yourcompany.com`). This keeps your brand front and center in your customers' inboxes and helps with deliverability. * **No custom email domain:** Notifications are sent from Alternative Payments' default email address on your behalf. ### Setting up a custom email domain Custom email domain configuration requires DNS verification (DKIM and return-path records) and is set up by the Alternative Payments team. To get started, contact your Customer Success Manager or email . For more context on white-labeling and branding options, see [White-labeling your Payments Portal](/getting-started/account-set-up-and-configuration/white-labeling-your-payments-portal.md). ### Confirming which domain is active Once your custom email domain is configured and verified, confirm the from-address used on sent notifications in your [Email Activity](https://app.alternativepayments.io/dashboard/email-activity) log. Each entry shows the sending address used for that notification. For a full walkthrough, see [Tracking Email Notifications](/automations/email-notifications-and-reminders/tracking-email-notifications.md). *** ## Limitations ### File Attachments in Email Notifications Attaching files — such as worksheets, PDFs, or other supporting documents — to AP invoice reminder or summary emails is not currently supported. Only the invoice itself is included in the email notification. **Recommended workaround:** If you need to send a worksheet or other attachment alongside an invoice, use this two-step approach: 1. **Send the first invoice email through QuickBooks Online.** In your QuickBooks Online email template, include both the file attachment and your AP custom billing link (the unique URL from your Alternative Payments account that takes customers directly to your payment portal). This ensures the customer receives the attachment and can still pay through AP. 2. **Use AP for all subsequent reminders.** Once the initial email has gone out via QuickBooks Online, configure remaining reminders in Alternative Payments as normal. AP continues automated follow-ups with the billing link included. To find your custom billing link, see [Custom Billing Links](/getting-started/account-set-up-and-configuration/custom-billing-links.md). {% hint style="info" %} **Note:** An API-based approach to including attachments may be possible for partners with custom integrations, but this is not an officially supported workflow. Contact your customer success representative for guidance. {% endhint %} *** {% hint style="info" %} **Note:** Invoices enrolled in Auto-Pay are marked with an Auto-Pay icon in the Invoice Reminder email. {% endhint %}
Invoice reminder email showing the Auto-Pay icon on enrolled invoices
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