To help make the Automation configuration process quicker, there are a catalogue of preconfigured templates available for use. Each template has pre-filled conditions and actions, however these are all editable to suit your specific needs.
Automation templates
Navigate to Automation > Templates and choose a template that aligns closest with your use case, or to create your own template click on New Account Automation in the top right corner instead:
Below are descriptors of some of the most popular preconfigured templates available, along with some suggested customizations you may wish to add to them.
Customer Support
This template is designed to assist in responding to inbound customer support requests via SMS. It's pre-populated with the message type condition is set to Text Message and the action is set to Add to Group. There's also a second action to send an automated SMS reply, which has also been pre-populated with an example message to acknowledge the customer's request
The idea is that when customers send a text to request support, they're added to an existing contact group so that the customer support team knows who has requested support and therefore needs assistance - contact groups need to be created first before you can use them in your automation, then you can nominate your preferred contact group via the dropdown list.
Customization Suggestions
- Adding keywords to limit the inbound messages that may trigger the automation - for example, Support, Help, Assistance, etc.
- Adding a dedicated number for your support service that can be published to and saved by your customers - this is especially advantageous when there are other reasons for customers to send SMS messages to your business, such as ordering.
VIP Customer Campaign
This template is designed to allow customers to sign up to a VIP list which may afford them certain concessions on your business services like a retailer offering discounts in store to VIP customers. The template is pre-populated with the keyword condition, as well as two actions - Add to Group and an Automated SMS Response to acknowledge their registration to the VIP program.
The idea is that customers send in a text message containing a keyword to sign-up for a campaign, and then present the automated response text as proof of their membership. They're also added to an existing contact group so that you can send them further promotional messages and rewards etc. - contact groups need to be created first before you can use them in your automation, then you can nominate your preferred contact group via the dropdown list.
Customization Suggestions
- If this was being used in conjunction with a limited offer, you could utilize the Date & Time condition to set an end date for registration.
- Contact us to see how you can use this automation to send Mobile Landing Pages to customers, which can contain a voucher with a barcode to be redeemed in store. This can then be tracked to help you further measure the impact of your promotion.
Customer Survey
This template is designed to facilitate inbound responses to an outbound survey send to customers, asking them to reply with a score in relation to their experience. It's pre-populated with a Message Content condition, and an Automated SMS Response action.
The idea is that you might send out a message to customers, for example Please rate our service from 1-5, with 1 being poor and 5 being excellent. Then when customers respond with their rating, a follow-up message is sent to thank them for their feedback.
Customization Suggestions
- You might like to separate the automation into two parts, where the first part caters for ratings of 4 and 5 by sending a simple thank you message thereafter, and the second part caters for lower ratings of 3 and below, whereby the follow-up message asks for more information about the customer's experience. This would be done by running two separate automations, one for each part.
Automated Replies
One of the more generic templates, this is designed to manage automated conversations with customers based on keyword responses. The template is pre-populated with a Message Content condition containing multiple keywords, and an Automated SMS Response as an action.
The very straightforward idea is that when a customer sends a message containing one or many pre-defined keywords, the system sends an automated response.
Customization Suggestions
- You can create fully automated conversational experiences for your customers by setting up multiple instances of this automation. Read this article to see how.
Event RSVPs
This template is designed to manage RSVPs from invitees to an event based on a keyword in their response to either an outbound message, or a call to action to send a specific keyword to a dedicated number. The template is pre-populated with a Message Condition containing multiple keywords, and an Automated SMS Response as the action.
The idea is that when customers send a positive response to an invitation to an event, they receive an automated response to confirm their attendance.
Customization Suggestions
- It's a good idea to add an action to add attendees to a dedicated contact group so you can send them additional information about your event - contact groups need to be created first before you can use them in your automation, then you can nominate your preferred contact group via the dropdown list.
- In addition to adding attendees to a contact group, you might also want to send them their tickets via a Mobile Landing Page.
- You could use the automated response to ask attendees about any specific requirements, such as dietary restrictions or special access needs etc.
Forward Replies to Mobile
Quite simply, this automation is used to forward all replies that meet the specified conditions to one or more mobile numbers. This will allow you to stay on top of responses while not logged in to the Hub. By forwarding responses to multiple numbers, you can keep a team of people in the loop - which is ideal for project management applications.
The template is pre-populated with the Message Type condition as Forward to Mobile, then you just need to enter the mobile number(s) that you want messages to be forwarded to.
Customization Suggestions
- An ideal addition to this automation is the Date & Time Received condition, so that only messages received after a specific time or during a dedicated time window will be forwarded to the mobile number(s) - especially useful for helping you manage responses out of hours.
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- You could create an additional automation to send an automated response to customers after a certain time so that you aren't receiving responses to your mobile throughout the night.
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- You may want to limit the responses being forwarded by setting keywords, or by using a dedicated receiving number so that only messages sent to a particular dedicated number(s) will be forwarded.
Customize Opt-Outs
This template is designed to allow you to add customized opt-out keywords in addition to those you have configured in your Account Settings. The benefit of using this automation is that you can configure specific opt-out phrases for specific campaigns when used in conjunction with a dedicated number condition or a predefined time & date window.
The template is pre-populated with the Message Type condition as well as some example keywords, and the pre-set action is Unsubscribe.
Customization Suggestions
- You may want to add an automated message to confirm to the customer that they've been opted out and won't receive any further messages.
- As mentioned previously, you may want to allocate specific opt-out keywords to specific numbers by using the Receiving Number condition - this is a good idea if you use your account to send both marketing and educational messages, and you want customers to be able to opt-out of marketing messages but not the educational messages, provided you send each message type from different dedicated numbers.
Damaged Goods Refund
This flow is designed to help facilitate a goods-return process by forwarding MMS messages to an email address, such as the returns department. The template is pre-populated with the Message Type condition as MMS, and the action is Forward to Email.
The idea is that a customer sends a photo of a damaged product, which then gets forwarded to the email of a returns assessment body who can then review the damage and instigate the claims process.
Customization Suggestions
- You could use this automation in conjunction with an automated discussion flow to be able to obtain additional information from the customer, for example Was the packaging damaged?.
- You could also use the Forward to URL condition to trigger an external workflow such as an automated claims/credit process in a CRM or accounting platform.
Forward Replies to Email
This follows the same principle as Forwarding to Mobile, except this time the messages are forwarded to one or more email addresses.
The template is pre-populated with the Message Type condition as Forward to Email, then you just need to enter the email address(es) that you want messages to be forwarded to.
Customization Suggestions
- An ideal addition to this automation is the Date & Time Received condition, so that only messages received after a specific time or during a dedicated time window will be forwarded to the email address(es) - especially useful for helping you manage responses out of hours.
- You may want to limit the responses being forwarded by setting keywords, or by using a dedicated receiving number so that only messages sent to a particular dedicated number(s) will be forwarded.