Setting up templates, automatic replies, and message notifications

Updated 3 months ago | 6 min read
Save

You can set up message templates, automatic replies, and enable message notifications on the Extranet or the Pulse app to save time and deliver important info to your guests.

Only Extranet accounts with admin rights can add or edit a template. If you need to perform admin actions, refer to these instructions to manage your access rights. 

Read more


In this article


Setting up and scheduling templates

Templates let you automatically share important info with guests.

You can set them up for any of these key stages in the reservation process:

  • When a guest makes a booking
  • 3 days before arrival
  • One week before arrival
  • On the day of arrival
  • One day before arrival
  • One day before departure

You can personalize templates by adding placeholders for your guest’s name, check-in time, property name, and more.  You can also add in custom replies and image attachments to provide them with additional info. Here’s how to set up message templates:

  1. Log in to the Extranet or Pulse app
  2. Click the Extranet’s Property tab or More in the Pulse app, then select Messaging Preferences
  3. Select the Message templates tab, then click Create new template
  4. Write your message template. To make it easier, we created pre-filled info blocks that autofill booking details
  5. Confirm the language – you can choose an additional language for the template and attach images
  6. Click Continue
  7. Enter the Template name and choose a Template topic
  8. Click Save template to finalize

You can update or remove templates in the Message templates tab.

To schedule a template message, follow these steps:

  1. Log in to the Extranet or Pulse app
  2. Click the Property tab and select Messaging Preferences
  3. Go to the Template scheduler tab and click Schedule a template
  4. Select when you want to send a template, then choose which template you want to send from the dropdown menu. You’ll also see a preview of the message
  5. Click Add to schedule to finalize

You can always keep track of which message templates were sent to guests because they’ll automatically show in your inbox in both the Extranet and the Pulse app.

Note:

Make sure to use the same name to group templates with different language options. This helps us match the guest’s language preference in the automated message. We use the default language when a template isn’t available in the guest’s preferred language. We recommend using English as the default language unless a majority of your guests speak a different language.


Creating automatic replies with templates

Automatic replies are standard replies that you can set up to answer frequently asked questions  around parking, check-in and check-out, bed types, etc.. They can save you time and create better experiences for guests.

Automatic replies are divided into replies that fall within your policy or outside of your policy. For the former, an automatic response accepting a guest’s request is sent to them when it falls within your reservation policy. For the latter, you can pair automatic replies with template messages and other conditions to reply to guest requests that fall outside of your normal policy.

To set up automatic replies, follow these steps:

  1. Log in to the Extranet or Pulse app
  2. Click the Property tab and select Messaging Preferences
  3. Go to the Automatic replies tab and select the Settings related to the topic
  4. Tick the box next to the topic you’d like to enable an automatic reply for
  5. Choose your preferred response
  6. Click Select template to include a message template in your automated reply – you can also create a new template
  7. Click Save to finalize

When an automatic reply is sent to guests, they will receive it as an email and a message on the Booking Assistant chat. You can check guests' interactions with automatic messages in your Extranet inbox or the Pulse app and send them another message at any time. You can also send scheduled templates to guests automatically to share info at a time of your choosing.


Setting up message notifications

You can customize the types of notifications you get from us to better manage your reservations. For example, we can send you a text message for last-minute reservations, email you about arrivals, and notify you when you get a new message in your inbox.

To control your notification settings, follow these steps:

  1. Log in to the Extranet or Pulse app
  2. Click Account and select Notification settings
  3. Select Yes or No for the type of notifications you want to receive alerts about. When you click yes, a drop-down menu will appear and you can specify when and how you’d like to receive this notification
  4. Click Save to finalize.

Is this article helpful?