Release Alert Setup

Make Telegram & email alerts impossible to miss

Never miss a release. Connect Telegram (our replacement for text alerts), add backup email addresses, and take a few minutes to set up your phone so RAS alerts always get through.

Alerts tell you when. The Release Center is where.

We never post plays on Telegram, text, or email — those are just release warnings and service updates. Every play is released only in the Release Center at raspicks.com. Alerts simply let you know it's time to log in and check.

What is Telegram, and why do we use it?

Telegram is a free, secure messaging app for iPhone, Android, desktop, and the web. We use it as our replacement for SMS text alerts: when a play is about to go out, we send a short release warning to your Telegram so you're ready — instant and reliable, with none of the carrier delays, filtering, or fees that come with text messages.

In several ways, it's actually an upgrade over texting:

  • It works everywhere. Telegram runs over any Wi-Fi or data connection worldwide, so alerts keep arriving when you're traveling, out of the country, or somewhere with spotty cell coverage — situations where SMS often fails.
  • It's on every screen. Telegram syncs across your phone, tablet, and computer at the same time. If you're at a desk during a release window, the alert pops up right on the machine you're already looking at.
  • Your privacy stays yours. Connecting to our bot does not share your phone number with us or with anyone else, and other Telegram users can't see it either. You can also hide your number entirely in Telegram's Settings → Privacy and Security.
1

Connect Telegram

  1. 1
    Install Telegram if you don't already have it — from the App Store / Google Play — and sign in with your phone number.
  2. 2
    Go to raspicks.com/telegram (or open Account → Settings and find the Telegram section).
  3. 3
    Click Connect Telegram. It opens the RAS bot inside the Telegram app.
  4. 4
    In Telegram, tap Start (or Send). That links your Telegram to your RAS account.
  5. 5
    Head back to Settings — you'll see Connected. That's it. To link a second phone or account, use Add another; to turn alerts off, send /stop to the bot or click Disconnect.
Connect Telegram now
2

Make Telegram alerts stand out

Connecting is step one. These quick settings make RAS alerts stand out from every other notification on your phone — a custom sound, top-of-list placement, and alerts that come through even in Do Not Disturb.

Give RAS alerts their own sound

Set a unique sound for the RAS bot chat so you know it's a release warning without even looking at your phone.

iPhone:

  1. Open your chat with the RAS bot in Telegram.
  2. Tap the bot's name at the top of the chat.
  3. Tap Notifications (or the bell icon), then Sound.
  4. Pick something distinctive — you can even choose a loud, unmistakable tone you never use for anything else.

Android:

  1. Open your chat with the RAS bot.
  2. Tap the bot's name at the top.
  3. Tap the bell (Notifications) icon, then Customize.
  4. Turn on Custom notifications and choose your Sound.

Pin the chat to the top

In your Telegram chat list, long-press (or swipe on) the RAS bot chat and choose Pin. It stays at the top of your list so you can always find the latest alert in one tap.

Let alerts break through Do Not Disturb

If you use Do Not Disturb or Focus modes (nights, meetings, the gym), make an exception for Telegram so release warnings still come through:

iPhone: Settings → Focus → Do Not Disturb (and any other Focus you use) → Apps under “Allow Notifications” → add Telegram.

Android: Settings → Notifications → Do Not Disturb → Apps (or “Exceptions”) → add Telegram.

iPhone only: check Scheduled Summary

Apple's Scheduled Summary feature holds notifications and delivers them in batches at set times — which defeats the whole purpose of a release warning. Go to Settings → Notifications → Scheduled Summary and make sure Telegram (and your email app) are not included. Many people turned this on once and forgot it exists.

Android only: stop the battery saver from delaying alerts

Some Android phones quietly delay app notifications to save battery. To make sure alerts arrive instantly:

  1. Settings → Apps → Telegram → Battery.
  2. Set to Unrestricted (wording varies by phone: “Don't optimize” / “No restrictions”).

Make sure the bot isn't muted

It's easy to mute a chat by accident. Open your chat with the RAS bot — if you see a crossed-out bell next to the name at the top, the chat is muted. Tap the name, then tap Unmute (or the bell icon) to turn alerts back on.

Double-check the basics

In Telegram, go to Settings → Notifications and Sounds and confirm notifications for Private Chats are on. On iPhone, also check Settings → Notifications → Telegram and make sure Allow Notifications, Sounds, and Banners are all enabled.

Bonus: put Telegram on your computer

Install the Telegram desktop app or open web.telegram.org in your browser and sign in. Alerts will pop up on your computer screen at the same moment they hit your phone — perfect if you're at a desk during release windows.

3

Make email alerts work like text alerts

Email is your backup layer — and it can be just as fast as texting, if your inbox treats RAS mail as a priority instead of burying it. A couple of minutes of setup fixes that permanently.

Add backup email addresses

Add a second (and third) email so a release warning never slips through — we'll send to all of them.

  1. Open raspicks.com/settings (Account → Settings).
  2. In your contact info, add a secondary (and optional tertiary) email address.
  3. Click Save. Release warnings and service updates will now go to every address on your account.

Go to Settings

Gmail: create a “never miss it” filter

This tells Gmail our alerts are important, keeps them out of spam and the Promotions tab, and stars them so they jump out.

  1. Open Gmail on a computer and click the search options icon (sliders) on the right side of the search bar.
  2. In the From field, enter: admin@raspicks.com (the address our alerts come from).
  3. Click Create filter, then check:
    • Never send it to Spam
    • Always mark it as important
    • Star it
    • Apply the label → create a new label called RAS Alerts
    • Categorize as → Primary
  4. Click Create filter.

Gmail on Android: give RAS emails their own notification sound

  1. In the Gmail app, tap ☰ → Settings → your email address.
  2. Tap Notifications and set it to All.
  3. Tap Manage labels → RAS Alerts (the label you created above).
  4. Set Sync messages to Last 30 days, turn on Label notifications, and choose a custom Sound.

Now RAS alert emails ring differently than everything else in your inbox.

iPhone: use VIP in Apple Mail for a custom alert

The Gmail app on iPhone doesn't support per-sender sounds, but Apple's built-in Mail app does, through VIP:

  1. Make sure your email account is added to the iPhone Mail app (Settings → Mail → Accounts).
  2. In Mail, go to your mailbox list and tap the ⓘ next to VIP.
  3. Tap Add VIP and add admin@raspicks.com (save us as a contact first if needed).
  4. Tap VIP Alerts and choose a custom Sound and alert style.

Using Outlook, Yahoo, iCloud, or AOL?

The same idea works everywhere — tell your provider our mail is safe and important:

  • Outlook / Hotmail: Settings → Mail → Junk email → add admin@raspicks.com to Safe senders. You can also create a rule to flag or categorize our messages.
  • Yahoo Mail: Settings → More Settings → Filters → create a filter for our address that sends it straight to your inbox (or a dedicated folder).
  • iCloud Mail: At icloud.com, open Mail → Settings (gear) → Rules → create a rule for messages from our address.
  • AOL: Add admin@raspicks.com to your Contacts — AOL prioritizes mail from saved contacts.

On your computer? Turn on desktop notifications

If you're at a desk during release windows: in Gmail on the web, go to Settings (gear) → See all settings → General → Desktop notifications → turn on New mail notifications and click Save. You'll get a pop-up the moment an alert lands.

One last deliverability tip

Whatever email you use, add admin@raspicks.com to your contacts / address book. Mail from saved contacts is far less likely to ever be filtered.

Recommended setup (the short version)

For a true text-message replacement, we suggest all three layers:

  1. 1
    Telegram with a custom sound + Do Not Disturb exception — your instant, primary alert.
  2. 2
    Gmail filter + custom email sound — your backup if Telegram is ever closed or offline.
  3. 3
    A second email address on your account — belt and suspenders.

Set it up once, and you'll never miss a release again.

Not getting alerts? Check these three things

  1. 1
    Is the bot muted? Open the RAS chat in Telegram — a crossed-out bell next to the name means it's muted. Tap to unmute.
  2. 2
    Is Telegram allowed through Do Not Disturb? Check your Focus/DND exceptions (see Step 2 above). On iPhone, also make sure Telegram isn't in Scheduled Summary.
  3. 3
    Are notifications enabled for Telegram in your phone's settings? iPhone: Settings → Notifications → Telegram. Android: Settings → Apps → Telegram → Notifications (and set Battery to Unrestricted).

Still stuck? We're happy to walk you through it — reach us on Support Chat.

In short

  • Telegram & email — how we tell you a release is coming.
  • Release Center (raspicks.com) — where every play always lives.
  • Questions? Reach us on Support Chat.