Slack Quick Start

Summary

Quick start guide to Slack, including sending messages, joining channels, and starting or joining a huddle

Body

Problem/Question

How to quickly get started with Slack?

Overview 

In Slack, conversations happen in channels and direct messages (DMs). Channels are spaces where you can work with your co-workers on specific topics. DMs work well for one-off conversations that don't require an entire channel to weigh in.

Sometimes it’s easier to talk things through, whether you’re brainstorming or just catching up. Open a channel or DM and click the 🎧 headphones icon in the conversation header to start a huddle. You can even share your screen.

Solution

  1. Start a Conversation: Start a conversation with the right people by sending a message in a channel or sending a DM.

    • Say you have a question about a project. Send a message to the dedicated project channel to get an answer from the right people. If your question is only for a specific teammate, you can send them a DM.

  2. Find & Access Direct Messages (1:1 conversations): To start a DM with a colleague, click on the 💬 DMs button from the left navigation bar.

  3. Work in Channels: In Slack, communication with your team about specific topics takes place in channels. When you work in channels, use @ mentions to get the attention of the right people, and emoji reactions to simplify communication.

    • Share a File: Say you need to share a file with project info. By adding it to the channel dedicated to that project, the file and the messages about it stay together with the rest of the conversation.
    • Formatting Messages: Say you’re providing feedback about a document. To make it easier to scan for the team, add list formatting to your message.
    • Scheduling Messages: If it’s not the best time to share a team-wide announcement quite yet, you can schedule a message to send in the future by clicking the arrow to the right of the paper plane icon.
    • Editing Messages: Did you make a mistake in a message you’ve already sent? Edit your message to fix typos, or delete it to start over.

  4. Start a Huddle: Sometimes it’s easier to talk things through, whether you’re brainstorming or just catching up. Open a channel or DM and click the 🎧 headphones icon in the conversation header to start a huddle. You can even share your screen.

For additional information, check these categories in the Knowledge Base:

Still Need assistance? See the following related services: