Automate guest communications and key management based on schedules or events. Guest automations ensure timely, consistent outreach without manual intervention.

Overview

HelloShift supports two types of guest automations:

Accessing Automations

Scheduled Jobs

1. Go to Automation > Scheduled Jobs

2. Select the tab for automation type:

   • Message - SMS/Email/WhatsApp automations

   • Key - Smart lock access code automations

   • Room - Cleaning task automations

3. Click New Job to create an automation

Event Triggers

1. Go to Automation > Triggers

2. View existing triggers

3. Click New Trigger to create one

Automation Types

HelloShift has three automation categories:

See Room & Cleaning Automations for room-specific automations.

Part 1: Scheduled Message Automations

Scheduled automations run daily at a specific time and send messages to guests matching certain conditions.

Creating a Message Automation

Step 1: Click New Job

1. Go to Automation > Scheduled Jobs > Message

2. Click New Job

Step 2: Configure the Automation

Step 3: Select Audience

Choose which guests receive the message:

Step 4: Select Snippet

Choose which message template to send:

1. Click Select Snippet

2. Browse or search available snippets

3. Select the snippet to use

The snippet's variables are replaced with guest data when sent.

Step 5: Set Send Time

Enter the time of day to send messages (e.g., 12:00 PM, 09:00 AM).

Tips:

• Pre-arrival: Send between 12-4 PM day before

• Morning check-in reminder: Send at 9-10 AM

• Post-checkout: Send 10 AM-12 PM day after

Step 6: Configure Schedule

Set when the automation runs:

Step 7: Add Check (Optional)

Add a condition that must be true for the message to send:

Step 8: Enable and Save

1. Set Status to Active

2. Click Save

Default Message Automations

HelloShift creates these automations when your site is set up:

Pre-Stay

• Audience: Arriving Today

• Send Time: 12:00 PM

• Snippet: Pre-Stay welcome message

• Purpose: Welcome guests before arrival

In-Stay

• Audience: Arrived Yesterday

• Send Time: 9:00 AM

• Snippet: In-Stay satisfaction check

• Purpose: "How's your stay?" on day 2

Post-Stay

• Audience: Departing Today

• Send Time: 12:00 PM

• Snippet: Post-Stay thank you

• Purpose: Thank guests and request reviews

Note: Default automations are created as Inactive. Enable them to start sending.

Common Message Automation Examples

Pre-Arrival Welcome (Day Before)

Check-in Reminder (Morning of Arrival)

Mid-Stay Satisfaction Check

Pre-Checkout Reminder

Post-Stay Review Request

Gap Night Upsell

Custom Conditions with Liquid

For advanced filtering, use custom Liquid conditions.

Available Variables

VIP Guests Only

{% if guest_stay.guest_type contains 'VIP' %}true{% else %}false{% endif %}

Long Stays (7+ nights)

{% assign nights = guest_stay.nights | plus: 0 %}
{% if nights >= 7 %}true{% else %}false{% endif %}

Direct Bookings Only

{% if guest_stay.booking_source == 'Direct' %}true{% else %}false{% endif %}

Excluding OTA Guests

{% unless guest_stay.booking_source contains 'Expedia' or guest_stay.booking_source contains 'Booking.com' %}true{% else %}false{% endunless %}

Day 3 of Stay (for mid-stay check)

{% if guest_stay.stay_day_number == 3 %}true{% else %}false{% endif %}

Part 2: Key Automations

Key automations manage smart lock access codes for guests.

Accessing Key Automations

1. Go to Automation > Scheduled Jobs > Key

2. View and manage key automations

Default Key Automations

Issue Key

• Audience: Arriving Today

• Send Time: 3:00 PM (check-in time)

• Action: Issue access code and send to guest

• Snippet: Send-Key (with room and code)

Revoke Key

• Audience: Departing Today

• Send Time: 11:00 AM (checkout time)

• Action: Revoke guest access code

Key Automation Checks

Key Automation Flow

1. Guest books room

2. At scheduled time on arrival day, Issue Key runs:

   • Generates unique access code via smart lock integration

   • Sends code to guest via SMS/Email

3. Guest uses code during stay

4. At scheduled time on departure day, Revoke Key runs:

   • Deactivates the access code

Part 3: Event-Based Triggers

Triggers respond to guest lifecycle events immediately (or after a delay).

Creating a Trigger

1. Go to Automation > Triggers

2. Click New Trigger

Configure the Trigger

Available Events

Available Conditions

Available Actions

Message Actions

Key Actions

Room Actions

Delay Setting

Add a delay before the action executes:

Default delays:

• Post-Booking: 300 seconds (5 minutes)

• Post-Checkin: 1800 seconds (30 minutes)

• Post-Checkout: 3600 seconds (1 hour)

Default Triggers

HelloShift creates these system triggers:

Post-Booking Message

• Event: Guest Booking Confirmed

• Action: Send Post-Booking Snippet

• Delay: 300 seconds

Post-Checkin Message

• Event: Guest Checked In

• Action: Send Post-Checkin Snippet

• Delay: 1800 seconds

Post-Checkout Message

• Event: Guest Checked Out

• Action: Send Post-Checkout Snippet

• Delay: 3600 seconds

Post-Booking Key

• Event: Guest Booking Confirmed

• Condition: Booking Past Check-in Time

• Action: Issue & Send Key

Post-Cancel Key

• Event: Booking Cancelled

• Condition: In-Stay Guests

• Action: Revoke Key

Post-Checkout Room

• Event: Guest Checked Out

• Action: Set Room Vacant/Dirty

Post-Cancel Room

• Event: Booking Cancelled

• Action: Remove Cleaning Task

Common Trigger Examples

Welcome SMS After Check-in

Auto-Dirty on Checkout

Issue Key on Booking (Walk-ins)

Revoke Key on Cancel

Assign Cleaner on Checkout

Managing Automations

Enabling/Disabling

1. Find the automation in the list

2. Click Edit

3. Change Status to Active or Inactive

4. Click Save

Testing Before Enabling

1. Keep automation Inactive

2. Use Preview feature to see which guests would receive messages

3. Review the matches

4. Enable when satisfied

Editing an Automation

1. Click Edit on the automation

2. Modify settings as needed

3. Click Save

Note: For triggers, Event and Action cannot be changed after creation.

Deleting an Automation

1. Click Delete on the automation

2. Confirm deletion

System automations cannot be deleted, only deactivated.

Per-Stay vs Per-Guest Messaging

By default, automations send one message per guest. For guests with multiple stays:

Enable "Per Stay" in automation settings if guests may have multiple reservations.

Best Practices

Timing

• Pre-arrival: 24-48 hours before check-in

• Morning of: 9-10 AM on arrival day

• Post-checkin: 30 minutes to 1 hour after

• Pre-checkout: Evening before departure

• Post-stay: 10 AM-12 PM day after

Messaging Strategy

1. Pre-arrival - Welcome, check-in instructions

2. Arrival day - Check-in reminder, key code

3. Day 2 - "How's your stay?"

4. Pre-checkout - Reminder, late checkout offer

5. Post-stay - Thank you, review request

Avoid Over-Messaging

• Maximum 3-4 automated messages per stay

• Space messages at least 12 hours apart

• Don't send during quiet hours (10 PM - 8 AM)

Segment by Guest Type

• VIP guests: More personalized, earlier access

• OTA guests: Basic communications

• Direct bookers: Loyalty offers

Troubleshooting

Automation not firing

• Verify automation is Active

• Check audience filter matches guests

• Verify send time has passed today

• Review any conditions that might block

Guest not receiving message

• Check guest has valid phone/email

• Verify guest isn't marked "Do Not Send"

• Check message channel matches guest's preferred channel

• Review carrier/spam filtering

• Check if WhatsApp failed and message was sent via email/SMS instead

Key not issued

• Verify smart lock integration is configured

• Check condition requirements (payment, etc.)

• Verify room has lock assigned

• Review integration logs

Wrong message content

• Verify correct snippet is selected

• Check variables have data (room number assigned, etc.)

• Preview the message before sending

Message delivery failed

After a message is sent, check the delivery status indicator on each message:

Note: Failed messages are logged but do not automatically retry.

WhatsApp message not delivered

• HelloShift automatically falls back to SMS if WhatsApp delivery fails

• Check if guest's WhatsApp status shows as invalid

• Verify the guest has a valid phone number on file

Key automation condition failed

If a key automation's condition check fails (e.g., "Payment Received" not met):

• An internal error message is added to the guest's conversation thread

• Look for system message: "[Automation Name]: [Check Name] checks failed"

• The key is not issued until the condition is satisfied

Related Articles

• All About Guest Messaging - Complete messaging overview

• Snippets & Templates - Message template configuration

• Room & Cleaning Automations - Housekeeping automations

• Smart Lock Integration - Key automation setup