---
title: "The General Group"
description: "The General group is created automatically with every Talkspirit organisation and is the default group new members join. Use it for organisation-wide announcements."
category: communication
section: groups-and-rooms
tags: [guests]
type: Quick Fix
lastUpdated: 2026-08-26
locale: en
canonical: https://support.talkspirit.com/en/communication/the-general-group
---

# The General Group


## The General Group

The General group is created automatically with your Talkspirit organisation. It is the default group: every new member joins it automatically at sign-up (guests do not), which makes it the natural channel for organisation-wide announcements. A chat room linked to the General group is also created automatically and appears in **Chats** in the left sidebar.

> **Note:** Administrators can change which groups new members join automatically, and can lock those groups so members cannot leave them. See [Set the organisation-wide defaults for groups](/communication/modifying-default-privileges-for-groups).

## How do I use the General group effectively?

The General group is the space where all your members are gathered. Use it exclusively for content of general interest to the entire organisation, such as:

- Announcements from the project sponsor.
- Arrival of new employees.
- Major customer wins or successes.
- Key news related to your products or services.
- Announcements from leadership (including via live video).
- New groups you want to promote.

![General group news feed showing a welcome post addressed to all members](/images/communication/the-general-group/01-general-group-newsfeed.png)

## How do I use the General group chat?

The General group chat is for quick, informal exchanges between colleagues, while posts in the group carry the official announcements.

![The Chats app with its Conversations list in the left panel, where the General group chat room sits alongside the other group chat rooms and is currently open](/images/communication/the-general-group/02-general-group-chat-room.png)

## How do I launch the General group successfully?

Before inviting all members to Talkspirit, publish a welcome message to set expectations. Involve the project sponsor to give the group immediate legitimacy. Consider including:

- A welcome and context for the launch.
- The personal and collective benefits members will gain.
- An overview of the main groups open to everyone.
- The next steps of the project.

Pin this post to the top of the group, or set it as important, to give it lasting visibility. Pinning a post requires group manager rights in the group; **Set as important** is reserved for administrators.

## What's Next?

- [Publishing, editing, or deleting a post](/communication/publishing-editing-or-deleting-a-post)
- [Defining important posts](/communication/define-important-posts)
- [Understanding Groups](/communication/groups)
- [The Newsfeed](/communication/using-the-newsfeed)