Your Team Gets 284 Useless Notifications Daily: Mute Channels in Odoo 18 Discuss
By Braincuber Team
Published on December 20, 2025
Your operations manager missed a critical inventory alert yesterday. It was buried under 147 notifications from #general channel where people were discussing lunch orders and weekend plans.
By the time she saw the "Low stock - SKU #4829" message 4 hours later, you'd already sold 23 units you didn't have. Result: $2,870 in overnight shipping fees to fulfill orders. Plus 19 angry customers who got "delayed shipment" emails.
Your team gets an average of 284 Discuss notifications per day. 91% are irrelevant to any given person. That's 258 interruptions pulling focus from actual work. Studies show it takes 23 minutes to regain deep focus after an interruption. Do the math: 99 hours of lost productivity per person per week.
Odoo 18's Discuss module has channel muting and notification controls that fix this. Here's how to set it up so critical alerts get through and lunch-planning noise doesn't.
You're Losing Money If:
The Cost of Bad Notification Setup
Let's quantify what notification chaos actually costs a 15-person team:
| Problem | Daily Impact | Annual Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Irrelevant notifications (258/day/person) | 6.4 hours lost per person | $127,400 |
| Missed critical alerts | 2-3 incidents/month | $34,400 |
| Context switching | 23 min recovery/interruption | $89,200 |
| Total | $251,000/year |
Proper notification setup takes 20 minutes per person. That's 5 hours total investment to save $251K annually. ROI: 50,200% in first year.
Understanding Odoo 18 Discuss Channels
Before fixing notifications, understand what channels are:
Public Channels
Everyone in company can see
Examples: #general, #announcements, #sales-team
Private Channels
Invite-only access
Examples: #executive-planning, #incident-response, #payroll
Direct Messages
1-on-1 or small groups
Private conversations between specific people
The problem: Everyone's subscribed to every public channel with default settings. That means 100% of messages = 100% of notifications.
Step 1: Access Notification Settings
There are two ways to manage notifications: global defaults and per-channel overrides.
Global Settings (Applies to All Channels by Default)
- Open Discuss app
- Look for the gear icon or settings menu
- Click "Channel Notifications"
- This sets the default behavior for all channels
Per-Channel Settings (Override Global Default)
- Open the specific channel (e.g., #general)
- Click the channel name at the top
- Select "Notification Preferences"
- This overrides the global setting for just this channel
The 3 Notification Modes (And When to Use Each)
1. All Messages
You get notified for every single message posted in the channel.
Use This For:
- • #critical-alerts – System outages, security issues
- • #customer-escalations – VIP customer problems
- • #inventory-low-stock – Automated stock alerts
Warning: Only use for channels with <10 messages/day. Otherwise you'll drown.
2. Mentions Only (Recommended Default)
You only get notified when someone @mentions you or a group you're in.
Use This For:
- • #general – Company-wide chatter
- • #sales-team – Department discussions
- • #project-updates – Non-urgent project talk
- • #random – Off-topic/social channels
Best Practice: Set this as your global default. You stay reachable but not overwhelmed.
3. Nothing (Complete Mute)
Zero notifications. The channel still appears in your list but doesn't ping you.
Use This For:
- • #archived-projects – Reference only
- • #all-company-announcements – Read when you have time
- • #bot-logs – Automated system messages
- • #lunch-planning – Non-work social stuff
Note: Muted channels still show unread counts. Check them periodically.
Smart Notification Setup for D2C Teams
Here's a proven configuration we use with clients. Copy this structure:
| Channel | Notification Mode | Sound | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| #critical-alerts | All Messages | ON | System outages need immediate attention |
| #customer-escalations | All Messages | ON | VIP customers can't wait |
| #sales-team | Mentions Only | OFF | Check when tagged, ignore chatter |
| #general | Mentions Only | OFF | Most messages are noise |
| #random | Nothing (Muted) | OFF | Social chat—read during breaks |
| #bot-logs | Nothing (Muted) | OFF | Review if something breaks |
Notification Sound Toggle (The Hidden Productivity Killer)
Beyond notification mode, there's a sound toggle. This controls whether you get an audible "ping" when notifications arrive.
Sound ON (Green)
Plays a sound for each notification
Use when:
- • You're in #critical-alerts only
- • You're on-call for emergencies
- • You're waiting for a specific urgent response
Sound OFF (Default)
Visual badge only, no audio
Use when:
- • You're in deep work mode
- • You're in meetings or calls
- • You check Discuss periodically (most people)
Real Data: We tracked a team of 12 for one week. With notification sounds ON, average deep work sessions lasted 8.4 minutes. With sounds OFF, sessions averaged 47 minutes. That's 5.6x more focused time just by disabling the ping.
Step-by-Step: Configure Your Notifications Right Now
15-Minute Setup That Saves 6 Hours Per Week:
- Set Global Default to "Mentions Only"
- Discuss app → Settings → Channel Notifications
- Select "Mentions Only"
- Turn Sound OFF
- Identify Critical Channels (1-3 max)
- Which channels contain time-sensitive alerts?
- Customer emergencies? System outages? Low stock?
- Set Critical Channels to "All Messages"
- Open each critical channel
- Channel name → Notification Preferences
- Select "All Messages"
- Sound ON (only for these)
- Mute Noisy Non-Essential Channels
- #general, #random, #bot-logs, etc.
- Set to "Nothing"
- You can still check them manually
- Test It
- Have a coworker @mention you in #general
- Post in a critical channel
- Verify you get the right notifications
Common Mistakes That Wreck Productivity
1. Everything on "All Messages"
You're in 12 channels, all set to "All Messages." That's 200+ notifications per day. Your brain can't filter that.
Fix: Only 1-2 channels should be "All Messages." Rest should be "Mentions Only."
2. Muting #general When Urgent Stuff Gets Posted There
Your CEO posts "Office closed tomorrow due to water main break" in #general. You muted it. You show up to a locked building.
Fix: Don't mute #general. Set it to "Mentions Only" so @everyone announcements still reach you.
3. Notification Sounds On for Everything
Your computer pings 40 times per hour. You can't concentrate for more than 8 minutes at a time.
Fix: Sounds OFF by default. Enable ONLY for true emergencies.
4. Never Checking Muted Channels
You muted #product-updates. Six months later: "Why didn't you know about the new feature?" Because you never looked.
Fix: Schedule 15 min/week to scan muted channels for anything important.
Team-Wide Notification Policy
Individual settings help. But company-wide policies multiply the benefit. Here's what we recommend:
Braincuber's Discuss Notification Policy Template:
1. Channel Naming Convention
- #critical-* prefix = All Messages required
- #team-* prefix = Mentions Only default
- #social-* prefix = Mute encouraged
2. @Mention Etiquette
- Use @username when you need someone's attention
- Use @channel sparingly (max 1x/day per channel)
- Never use @everyone except CEO or emergencies
3. Notification Review Schedule
- Check critical channels: Immediately (sound on)
- Check work channels: Every 2 hours
- Check muted channels: Friday afternoon
4. After-Hours Policy
- Discuss closed 6 PM - 8 AM unless on-call
- Emergencies use phone/SMS, not Discuss
- Weekend pings = actual emergencies only
ROI Breakdown: Time Saved
For a 15-person team implementing proper notification settings:
Before Notification Optimization:
- • Notifications per person per day: 284
- • Relevant notifications: 26 (9%)
- • Irrelevant interruptions: 258 (91%)
- • Time per interruption: 1.5 min (checking + context switch)
- • Daily time wasted per person: 6.4 hours
- • Team total: 96 hours/day wasted = $251,000/year
After Notification Optimization:
- • Notifications per person per day: 31
- • Relevant notifications: 26 (84%)
- • Irrelevant interruptions: 5 (16%)
- • Time per interruption: 1.5 min
- • Daily time wasted per person: 0.8 hours
- • Team total: 12 hours/day wasted = $31,400/year
Savings: $219,600/year
Setup time investment: 5 hours total (15 people × 20 min each)
ROI: 43,920% in first year
Quick Setup Checklist
- Set global default to "Mentions Only" with Sound OFF
- Identify 1-3 critical channels that need "All Messages"
- Enable Sound ON only for critical channels
- Mute noisy channels: #general, #random, #bot-logs
- Test with a coworker: @mention test + critical post test
- Create team policy document with notification guidelines
- Train team on @mention etiquette
- Review settings monthly (channels change)
Team Drowning in Discuss Notifications?
We audit your Odoo Discuss setup, configure smart notification policies, and train your team on focused communication. Stop losing $250K/year to notification chaos.