Charitable Documentation

Learn how to make the most of Charitable with clear, step-by-step instructions.

How to Enable and Customize Ambassador Emails: Templates, Automation, & Settings

Requires: Charitable Pro 1.8.16+
Charitable Ambassadors 3.0.0+

Every meaningful action in your Ambassadors program should trigger a response. When a fundraiser is approved, the ambassador needs to know right away. When someone’s application is rejected, they deserve a clear explanation. When a recruit signs up through an invite link, the person who recruited them should hear about it.

Ambassadors fires 5 transactional emails that handle all of this automatically. They go out in response to a specific event, not from a marketing campaign you compose manually. This page documents each one: when it fires, who it goes to, what the default body looks like, which smart tags it accepts, and how to customize or disable it.

All five emails are enabled by default.

Where to Find These Ambassador Emails?

To edit the body or subject of any of them, go to Charitable » Settings » Emails.

Ambassadors emails

Scroll to find the emails you need. You can enable/disable these emails here.

How to Edit Ambassador Emails?

Once enabled, click on the Email Settings button to access the email inside.

Ambassadors email

A default email is setup for you.

You can change the subject line, headline, and body to fit your requirements.

There are also shortcodes you can use to auto fetch information such as yoru website URL, team name, creator’s name, and so on.

If any email is accidentally disabled, you will see it appear in your Email Health banner.

Quick Reference

EmailIDFires whenRecipient
Campaign Approvedcreator_campaign_approvedA fundraiser is approved by a moderator or auto-approved on submit.The ambassador.
Campaign Rejectedcreator_campaign_rejectedA fundraiser is rejected by a moderator.The ambassador.
Campaign Needs Revisioncreator_campaign_needs_revisionA moderator requests changes.The ambassador.
Inviter Recruit Approvedinviter_recruit_approvedA recruited ambassador’s first fundraiser is approved.The inviter (recruiter).
New Campaign Requires Actionnew_campaign_requires_actionA new fundraiser submission lands in Moderation Pending.Site administrators (any user with manage_charitable_settings).

The Technical Side

Campaign Approved

ID: creator_campaign_approved
To: The ambassador (post_author of the fundraiser)
Fires: Whenever a fundraiser transitions to published from any other status. The Moderation Approve action fires this, auto-approval on submit fires this, and manually publishing via the WP editor fires this.

Default Subject

Your campaign is live

Default Body

Dear [charitable_email show=campaign_creator],

Your campaign, "[charitable_email show=campaign_title]", has been approved and is now live!

You can view your campaign online at [charitable_email show=campaign_url].

If you would like to edit it, go to [charitable_email show=campaign_edit_url].

Available Smart Tags

TagSubstitutes
[charitable_email show=campaign_creator]The ambassador’s display name.
[charitable_email show=campaign_title]The fundraiser’s title.
[charitable_email show=campaign_url]The fundraiser’s public URL.
[charitable_email show=campaign_edit_url]The fundraiser’s editor URL.
[charitable_email show=campaign_goal]The goal amount.
[charitable_email show=campaign_end_date]The fundraiser’s end date.

Customization Filters

add_filter( 'charitable_email_creator_campaign_approved_default_subject', function ( $subject, $email ) {
    return "🎉 Your fundraiser is live: " . $email->get_field_value( 'campaign_title' );
}, 10, 2 );

add_filter( 'charitable_email_creator_campaign_approved_default_body', function ( $body, $email ) {
    return "

Welcome aboard!

" . $body . "

Reply to this email if you have any questions.

"; }, 10, 2 );

Suppress Per-Call

When approving with the Notify checkbox unticked, the email is suppressed via:

add_filter( 'charitable_ambassadors_skip_creator_campaign_approved', '__return_true' );
// ...the approval runs...
remove_filter( 'charitable_ambassadors_skip_creator_campaign_approved', '__return_true' );

Don’t use this filter for site-wide suppression. For that, use the Notify checkbox default via moderation_default_notify_on_approve.

Campaign Rejected

ID: creator_campaign_rejected
To: The ambassador
Fires: When a moderator rejects a fundraiser via the Moderation queue.

Default Subject

Your campaign was not approved

Default Body

Dear [charitable_email show=campaign_creator],

We've reviewed your campaign, "[charitable_email show=campaign_title]", and unfortunately it does not meet our guidelines.

Reason: [charitable_email show=rejection_reason]

If you'd like to discuss this further or submit a revised campaign, please reach out at [admin_email].

Available Smart Tags

The same set as Campaign Approved, plus:

TagSubstitutes
[charitable_email show=rejection_reason]The reason text from the Reject modal.

Customization Filters

add_filter( 'charitable_email_creator_campaign_rejected_default_subject', function ( $subject ) {
    return 'About your recent fundraiser submission';
} );

add_filter( 'charitable_email_creator_campaign_rejected_default_body', function ( $body ) {
    return $body . '

You can read our submission guidelines at our guidelines page.

'; } );

Campaign Needs Revision

ID: creator_campaign_needs_revision
To: The ambassador
Fires: When a moderator uses the Request Changes action.

Default Subject

Updates needed to your campaign

Default Body

Dear [charitable_email show=campaign_creator],

We've reviewed your campaign, "[charitable_email show=campaign_title]", and we'd like a few small updates before publishing.

Notes from our team: [charitable_email show=revision_notes]

You can edit your campaign at [charitable_email show=campaign_edit_url] and resubmit when you're ready.

Available Smart Tags

The same set as Campaign Approved, plus:

TagSubstitutes
[charitable_email show=revision_notes]The notes from the Request Changes modal.
[charitable_email show=campaign_edit_url]The fundraiser’s editor URL with a magic-link auto-login token.

Customization Filters

add_filter( 'charitable_email_creator_campaign_needs_revision_default_body', function ( $body ) {
    return $body . '

Tip: reply to this email if you have questions about the requested changes.

'; } );

Inviter Recruit Approved

ID: inviter_recruit_approved
To: The inviter (recruiter)
Fires: When a recruited ambassador’s first fundraiser is approved, after attribution has linked the recruit back to the inviter. Only sends if Email Inviter On Approval is enabled under Invitations settings, and only after attribution has linked the recruit back to the inviter.

Default Subject

[charitable_email show=recruit_name] just joined as a fundraiser thanks to you!

Default Body

Hi [charitable_email show=inviter_first_name],

Great news! [charitable_email show=recruit_name] just had their fundraiser approved - and they signed up through your invite link.

Their fundraiser: [charitable_email show=recruit_campaign_url]

Thanks for spreading the word.

Available Smart Tags

TagSubstitutes
[charitable_email show=inviter_name]The inviter’s display name.
[charitable_email show=inviter_first_name]The inviter’s first name.
[charitable_email show=recruit_name]The recruit’s display name.
[charitable_email show=recruit_campaign_title]The recruit’s first fundraiser title.
[charitable_email show=recruit_campaign_url]The recruit’s first fundraiser URL.
[charitable_email show=site_url]Your site’s URL.

Customization Filters

add_filter( 'charitable_email_inviter_recruit_approved_default_subject', function ( $subject, $email ) {
    $recruit = $email->get_field_value( 'recruit_name' );
    return "🎉 Your friend {$recruit} is fundraising too!";
}, 10, 2 );

Site-Wide Disable

Toggle the Email Inviter On Approval setting under Charitable » Ambassadors » Invitations.

New Campaign Requires Action

ID: new_campaign_requires_action
To: Site administrators (any user with manage_charitable_settings)
Fires: When a new fundraiser is submitted and auto-approval is off, meaning it lands in Moderation Pending.

Default Subject

A new fundraiser needs your review

Default Body

A new fundraiser was submitted and is awaiting review.

Title: [charitable_email show=campaign_title]
Ambassador: [charitable_email show=campaign_creator]
Submitted: [charitable_email show=submission_date]

Review it in the Moderation queue: [charitable_email show=moderation_url]

Available Smart Tags

TagSubstitutes
[charitable_email show=campaign_title]The fundraiser title.
[charitable_email show=campaign_creator]The ambassador’s display name.
[charitable_email show=campaign_url]The fundraiser’s URL (preview if not yet public).
[charitable_email show=submission_date]Submission timestamp.
[charitable_email show=moderation_url]Deep link to the Pending view in Moderation.

Customization Filters

add_filter( 'charitable_email_new_campaign_requires_action_default_subject', function () {
    return '🔔 [Charitable] Fundraiser awaiting review';
} );

Throttling

The admin email fires once per submission. If your moderation team is small and the volume gets noisy, consider using Notifications (the bell-icon panel) instead. It’s rate-limited and dismissable, which makes it a better fit for high-volume programs.

What All Five Emails Have in Common

A few conventions apply across every email, which makes customizing them consistent once you know the pattern.

Email IDs

The ID strings (such as creator_campaign_approved) are stable. They’re used as the filter prefix (charitable_email_<id>_default_subject, etc.) and as the option key for the Charitable email on/off setting.

Filters

Every email exposes the same set of filters. All of them receive the $email object as the second argument so you can call get_field_value() to compose your customization:

charitable_email__default_subject
charitable_email__default_body
charitable_email__recipient_email
charitable_email__recipient_name
charitable_email__should_send

Smart-Tag Filter

Add new smart tags by hooking into the content field value filter, then use your tag in any email body:

add_filter( 'charitable_email_content_field_value_', function ( $value, $email ) {
    return 'Computed value';
}, 10, 2 );

// Then use [charitable_email show=your_tag] in any email body.

From Address

All five emails use the WordPress admin_email by default. Override globally via charitable_email_from_address or per-email via charitable_email_<id>_from_address.

HTML vs Plain Text

All five emails are HTML by default. Recipients’ mail clients will fall back to a plain-text representation automatically. To force plain text, return a stripped body from the _default_body filter.

Tips Worth Keeping in Mind

A few things that make a real difference in how these emails land with your ambassadors.

  • Customize subject lines more than bodies. Subject lines drive open rates. Bodies that are clear and direct almost always outperform clever ones.
  • Always send a test before deploying. Charitable Pro has a “Send Test” button on each email’s settings page. Use it every time you change a subject or body, not just on the first setup.
  • Use smart tags liberally. Hard-coding the ambassador’s name would mean every fundraiser gets the same impersonal email. Smart tags make every message feel like it was written for that person specifically.
  • Keep the New Campaign Requires Action email short. Your moderation team reads this many times a week. A one-liner with the campaign title and a direct link to the queue is more useful than a long paragraph they’ll skim past.

Developer Reference

Email Class Hierarchy

Charitable_Email                                                    # Pro base class
    └─ Charitable_Ambassadors_Email_Creator_Campaign_Submitted     # Base for creator-targeted emails
            ├─ Charitable_Ambassadors_Email_Creator_Campaign_Approved
            ├─ Charitable_Ambassadors_Email_Creator_Campaign_Rejected
            └─ Charitable_Ambassadors_Email_Creator_Campaign_Needs_Revision
    └─ Charitable_Ambassadors_Email_Inviter_Recruit_Approved        # For inviter-targeted
    └─ Charitable_Ambassadors_Email_New_Campaign_Requires_Action    # Admin-targeted

Each leaf class lives in includes/emails/.

Static Helpers

For programmatic triggering:

Charitable_Ambassadors_Email_Creator_Campaign_Approved::send_with_campaign_id( $campaign_id );
Charitable_Ambassadors_Email_Creator_Campaign_Rejected::send_with_campaign_id( $campaign_id, $reason );
Charitable_Ambassadors_Email_Creator_Campaign_Needs_Revision::send_with_campaign_id( $campaign_id, $notes );
Charitable_Ambassadors_Email_Inviter_Recruit_Approved::send_with_recruit_id( $recruit_user_id, $recruit_campaign_id, $inviter_user_id );
Charitable_Ambassadors_Email_New_Campaign_Requires_Action::send_with_campaign_id( $campaign_id );

Capabilities

The New Campaign Requires Action email is sent to all users with manage_charitable_settings. To target specific admins instead, filter the recipient list via charitable_email_new_campaign_requires_action_admin_recipients.

Wrapping Up

That covers all five transactional emails in Ambassadors. Between the approval, rejection, and revision emails your ambassadors receive, and the admin notification that keeps your moderation queue moving, these are the messages that keep your program running smoothly behind the scenes. Customize the subject lines, add your brand’s voice to the bodies, and use smart tags to make every email feel personal.

If you run into anything that isn’t covered here or need help with a specific email, our support team is happy to help.

You May Also Want to Read

These are the docs most closely connected to the transactional emails in Ambassadors.

  • Moderation – the actions (approve, reject, request changes) that fire most of these emails.
  • Email Health – the banner on the Overview that flags any of these emails when they’ve been accidentally disabled.
  • Notifications – the in-admin bell-icon panel that complements these emails for your moderation team.
  • Invitations – the feature that triggers the Inviter Recruit Approved email.
  • Hooks & filters in Ambassadors – the full filter reference.

Helpful Links

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👤 Creator Profiles: Put a Face to Every Peer-to-Peer Campaign

Ambassadors 3.3.0 now provies Creator Profiles — giving your supporters a permanent, shareable public home that turns one-time fundraisers into ongoing relationships.

👤 Public Creator Pages: Give every fundraiser an instant, clean landing page at /creator/their-name/ to showcase their custom avatar, bio, and a browsable grid of their campaigns.

📊 Proof of Impact: Boost donor trust by displaying site-wide milestones on the profile—like total funds raised and total donor counts.

💳 Interactive Hover Cards: When donors hover over a creator’s name on a campaign page, a compact card expands with their bio and social handles right at the moment of decision.

📍 Responsible Location Sharing: Allow creators to safely show local supporters where they are based using only city, state, and country details.

🛠️ Self-Serve Customization: Fundraisers can update their own profiles and link up to six social networks directly from the My Campaigns hub, saving you admin time.

Ready to empower your advocates? Update to Ambassadors 3.3.0 and turn on “Enable Public Creator Page” today!

Improvement Payments

📱 Turn Mobile Scrollers Into Donors: Meet Charitable’s Mollie Upgrade

Losing mobile supporters because they hate typing out long card numbers on their phones? Charitable’s updated Mollie integration features:

⚡ One-Tap Wallet Checkout: Enable donors to complete their gifts instantly using Apple Pay or Google Pay with a simple face scan, fingerprint, or tap.

💰 No Extra PCI Burden: Skip complex domain verification and security compliance since all wallet transactions run safely through Mollie’s hosted checkout.

🛠️ Custom Cancel Routing: Keep the experience predictable by automatically sending donors who back out to your cancellation page, or use developer filters to route them to a custom page.

Visit this page to learn more.

ambassadors improved New

Moderation and Directory Screens In Ambassadors 3.0

Ambassadors 3.0 has new features: moderation and directory screens… now easily see those who are earning donations on your peer to peer network – including campaign creators that might need to be verified – all in one place. Generate reports, email ambassadors and campaign creators directly and more.

🚀 See when campaign creators and ambassadors have updated their campaigns, what donors/donation they have brought in and more.

🎉 Manually add ambassadors and campaign creators, and approve them in one-click!

Visit this page to learn more.

New Payments

⚡ Unlock India-Based Donations: Meet Charitable’s Native Razorpay Integration

Trying to collect donations in India? Charitable’s native Razorpay integration features:

⚡ Instant UPI Integration: Accept fast, local donations directly inside your form via apps like PhonePe, Google Pay, Paytm, and BHIM without sending donors away from your site.

📲 Auto-Generated Campaign QRs: Instantly render scannable QR codes encoding a UPI deep link directly on your public campaign pages and sidebars for an effortless “scan-to-give” experience.

💰 Dual Local & Global Reach: Headline your campaigns in INR while seamlessly accepting major international currencies like USD, EUR, GBP, and CAD to maximize global support.

🔁 Seamless Recurring Giving: Fully integrates with the Charitable Recurring addon to manage automatic monthly subscriptions directly through Razorpay without extra code.

↩️ Automatic Two-Way Sync: Keep your books perfectly clean with two-way refund syncing—issue a refund inside WordPress or your Razorpay dashboard and both sides update automatically.

🔒 Webhook-Verified Security: Automatically protect your donation records using HMAC-signed webhook verification to ensure every status update represents real money cleared on the rails.

Visit this page to learn more.

Integration New

🎉 New Built-in PushEngage Integration

Struggling with falling email open rates and rising ad costs just to keep your supporters engaged? Charitable’s built-in PushEngage integration features:

🔔 Zero-Fee Direct Messaging: Deliver crisp, instant pop-up notifications straight to your donors’ desktops and mobile devices.

⏱️ Four Smart Automated Triggers: Automatically send updates for immediate donation thank yous, full-list campaign launches, urgent “ending soon” alerts, and goal milestone celebrations.

📈 Group Momentum Broadcasts: Turn private milestones into public wins by automatically broadcasting alerts to your entire subscriber list the moment a campaign hits 50%, 75%, or 100% of its goal.

📊 Automatic Analytics Tracking: Monitor exactly where your incoming notification traffic is coming from with built-in attribution that requires zero complex configuration.

Visit this page to learn more.