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Automation Triggers

Understanding Triggers​

Triggers are the starting points of your automation. They define when an automation should run and for which contacts or reservations. A well-configured trigger ensures your automation activates at exactly the right moment in the customer journey.

Setting Up Triggers​

tip

Click on the background to load the Triggers on the right. When you click on the background, you are deselecting any given Action that is on the screen.

The trigger configuration panel (shown in the screenshot) allows you to set up sophisticated trigger rules with multiple conditions. You can define:

  1. Trigger Type: What event or condition will start the automation
  2. Conditions: Additional criteria that must be met for the trigger to fire
  3. Logical Operators: AND/OR conditions to create complex trigger rules

Available Trigger Types​

SendSquared offers a comprehensive set of trigger types that can activate your automation workflows based on specific events or conditions.

Reservation-Based Triggers​

  • Reservation Created: Activates when a new reservation is made in your system
  • Reservation Modified: Activates when any reservation details are changed
  • Reservation Cancelled: Activates when a reservation is canceled
  • Reservation Status Changed: Activates when the status of a reservation changes
  • Reservation Type Changed: Activates when the type of reservation is modified
  • Time-Based Reservation Triggers:
    • Days Before/After Arrival Date: Activates a specified number of days before or after the guest's arrival
    • Days Before/After Departure Date: Activates a specified number of days before or after the guest's departure
    • Days Before/After Contract Date: Activates a specified number of days before or after the contract date

Lead Management Triggers​

  • New Lead: Activates when a new lead is added to the system
  • Lead Updated: Activates when lead details are changed
  • Lead Assigned: Activates when a lead is assigned to a team member
  • Lead Won: Activates when a lead is marked as won
  • Lead Closed: Activates when a lead is closed (regardless of outcome)
  • Lead Reopened: Activates when a previously closed lead is reopened
  • Lead Lost Reason: Activates when a lost reason is assigned to a lead
  • Lead Followup Date: Activates at a specified time relative to the lead followup date

Contact-Based Triggers​

  • Contact Property Changed: Activates when specific contact properties change, including:
    • First Name
    • Last Name
    • Email
    • Last Email Open
  • Contact Tag Added: Activates when a specific tag is added to a contact
  • Contact Tag Removed: Activates when a specific tag is removed from a contact
  • Contact Email Verified: Activates when a contact verifies their email address
  • Contact Email Verification Sent: Activates when a verification email is sent to a contact

Segment/Group Triggers​

  • Join Segment: Activates when a contact is added to a segment or group
  • Leave Segment: Activates when a contact is removed from a segment or group

Communication Triggers​

  • SMS Incoming: Activates when an SMS message is received from a contact
  • SMS Opt-In: Activates when a contact opts in to receive SMS messages
  • SMS Opt-Out: Activates when a contact opts out of SMS messages
  • SMS Incoming from Chat: Activates when an SMS is received through the chat interface
  • WhatsApp Incoming: Activates when a WhatsApp message is received

E-commerce Triggers​

  • Cart Abandonment: Activates when a customer abandons their shopping cart

Channel-Specific Triggers​

  • Airbnb Incoming Message: Activates when an Airbnb message is received
  • Airbnb New Thread: Activates when a new Airbnb message thread is created

Salesroom Triggers​

  • Salesroom Loaded: Activates when a salesroom is loaded
  • Salesroom Updated: Activates when a salesroom is updated
  • Salesroom Proforma Change: Activates when there's a change to a salesroom proforma

Digital Experience Triggers​

  • WiFi Login: Activates when a guest logs in to your WiFi
  • Guidebook Loaded: Activates when a guest opens your digital guidebook

Trigger Conditions​

Each trigger can be refined with conditions to make your automations more targeted. Looking at the screenshot, you can see how conditions are set up in blocks with logical operators (AND/OR) and specific criteria.

tip

Triggers can have several conditions, while Actions are limited to one condition.

Condition Types​

Depending on the trigger type, different condition types are available:

  • Property Conditions: For property and contact-based triggers
  • Segment Conditions: For group/segment triggers
  • Connector Conditions: For reservation triggers
  • SMS Conditions: For SMS triggers
  • Reservation Conditions: For lead triggers

Condition Operators​

When creating conditions, you can use various operators:

  • Equal to / Not Equal to: Exact matches
  • Contains / Does Not Contain: Partial text matches
  • Greater Than / Less Than: Numerical comparisons
  • Is Empty / Is Not Empty: Check for null values
  • Starts With / Ends With: Text pattern matching
  • Before / After: Date comparisons

Time-Based Triggers​

Time-based triggers are particularly powerful for creating guest journey automations. You can set these to activate:

  • At a specific time (e.g., 2:00 PM on check-in day)
  • A specific number of days before or after a key date
  • At recurring intervals

When setting up time-based triggers related to reservations, you'll need to specify:

  1. The date field to reference (arrival date, departure date, or contract date)
  2. The time offset (number of days before or after the date)
  3. Any additional conditions to filter the relevant reservations

Advanced Trigger Configuration​

For more complex scenarios, you can create combinations of triggers and conditions. As shown in the screenshot, you can set up conditions like "Reservation Total Revenue is greater than or equal to 4" to target specific types of reservations.

Condition Blocks​

Conditions can be grouped into blocks, with logical operators (AND/OR) connecting them. This allows for sophisticated targeting, such as:

  • Guests staying at specific properties AND with reservations above a certain value
  • Leads with specific status OR from particular sources
  • Contacts who have opened recent emails AND are in a specific segment

Testing Triggers​

To ensure your triggers are configured correctly:

  1. Use the test function to verify the trigger will fire as expected
  2. Check the condition logic carefully, especially when using multiple condition blocks
  3. Set up a small test segment before deploying to your entire contact base

Best Practices for Triggers​

  • Be specific: Define triggers precisely to avoid sending irrelevant communications
  • Consider timing: Ensure time-based triggers account for time zones and appropriate delivery windows
  • Start simple: Begin with straightforward triggers before implementing complex condition logic
  • Document your logic: Add notes explaining why certain triggers and conditions were chosen
  • Review regularly: Audit your triggers periodically to ensure they're still relevant and effective

Common Trigger Scenarios​

Booking Journey Triggers​

  • New reservation created → Send confirmation email
  • 7 days before arrival → Send pre-arrival information
  • Day of arrival → Send welcome message
  • Day before departure → Send checkout instructions

Lead Nurturing Triggers​

  • New lead created → Send initial follow-up
  • Lead status changes to "Interested" → Begin nurturing sequence
  • 5 days with no contact → Send re-engagement message

Re-engagement Triggers​

  • 180 days after departure → Send "We miss you" email
  • 1 year after booking → Send booking anniversary offer

By mastering trigger configuration, you can create highly targeted automations that deliver the right message at precisely the right moment in the guest journey.