Slack
Connect Slack to let your assistant message you, post in channels, and respond to @mentions directly in your workspace.
What’s included
With Slack connected, your assistant can:
- Respond to @mentions — @mention the Town bot in any channel to ask your assistant a question
- Send you direct messages — Get notifications and alerts in Slack
- Post in channels — Send messages to channels as the Town bot
- Send group messages — Message one or more users
- Send as you — Post messages that appear as sent by you (always requires your approval)
- Search messages — Find messages across your workspace
- List channels and users — Discover channels and look up people
Bot vs Persona
Slack supports two connection models:
| Mode | Identity in Slack | Best for | Approval behavior |
|---|---|---|---|
| Town bot | Posts as @Town | Team-visible workflows, channel automation, shared updates | Uses workflow/tool approval rules |
| Slack Persona | Posts as you | Personal DMs, private channel access, messages that should appear from your identity | Always requires explicit approval for send-as-you actions |
The bot model is the default. Persona is optional and complements the bot model.
@mention your assistant
You can @mention the Town bot in any Slack channel or thread to ask your assistant a question. Your assistant will:
- Reply with a “Working on it…” message and a link to the full session
- Show live progress as it works (searching emails, browsing the web, etc.)
- Post the final response directly in the thread
The @mention feature uses your Personal Assistant — the same assistant you chat with in Town. It has access to all the same tools and integrations.
Setting up @mentions
To use @mentions, invite the Town bot to any channel where you want to use it. Type /invite @Town in the channel to add it.
Connecting Slack
- Go to Integrations
- Find Slack and click Connect
- Authorize Town in your Slack workspace
- Return to Town
Enabling Persona (optional)
After Slack is connected, enable Persona when you need actions to appear as sent by your user identity:
- Open Integrations > Slack
- Enable Persona / send-as-you access
- Confirm the requested permissions
Use Persona when identity and private Slack context matter. Use the bot model for broad workspace automations.
What your assistant can do
| Capability | What it does | Makes changes? |
|---|---|---|
| Send you a DM | Direct message to you — for alerts and notifications | Yes |
| Post in a channel | Send a message to a channel as the Town bot | Yes |
| Send group message | DM one or more users as the Town bot | Yes |
| Send as you | Post a message that appears from you (requires approval) | Yes |
| Search messages | Find messages across your workspace | No |
| List channels | See channels in your workspace | No |
| List users | See members and their details | No |
| Get thread | Read a full message thread | No |
Use cases
Quick questions from Slack
Ask your assistant directly without leaving Slack:
@Town what emails did I get from Acme Corp today?
@Town summarize the thread about the product launch
Real-time alerts
Get important notifications in Slack instead of email:
- Critical alerts that need immediate attention
- High-priority email notifications
- Urgent approval requests
Channel updates
Post automated updates to team channels:
- Daily standup summaries
- Weekly metrics reports
- New customer notifications
Faster notifications
Slack notifications can be faster and less cluttered than email:
- Mobile push notifications
- Desktop alerts
- No inbox noise
Best practices
Use @mentions for quick questions. Asking in Slack is faster than switching to Town or emailing your assistant. The response posts right in the thread.
Use Slack for urgent alerts. Slack is great for time-sensitive notifications. Use email for longer summaries and reports.
Don’t over-notify. Too many Slack messages can be as overwhelming as email. Be selective about what triggers Slack notifications.
Combine channels. A workflow can send a Slack alert AND an email. Use Slack for the quick ping, email for the details.
Limitations
- Single workspace — One Slack workspace per account
- @mentions require bot in channel — The bot must be invited to channels where you want to @mention it
Troubleshooting
Messages not arriving
- Check that Slack is connected in Integrations
- Verify your Slack notifications are enabled
- Check Slack’s Do Not Disturb settings
@mention not working
- Ensure the bot is invited to the channel (type
/invite @Town) - Verify Slack is connected in Integrations
Rate limits
Slack limits how many messages can be sent in a short period. If you hit limits:
- Reduce notification frequency
- Batch notifications together
- Use email for less urgent items