Messaging rules allow you to automate your guest communication in a systematic, personalized fashion. There are three main components:
Event message rules: reply to an event
Scheduled message rules: schedule a message in advance
Question rules: reply to a question from a guest
Scheduled messages and event messages are automated messages that are created and customized according to the criteria set within Messaging Rules. These rules allow you to automatically deliver timely information to your guests, including new reservation notifications, check-in instructions, preparation details, property guidebooks, smart lock codes, guest follow-ups, upsell offers, check-out guidelines, review requests, and more.
For all messaging rules, you can customize these to target guests at specific properties or from certain booking platforms, and designate hosts or co-hosts as the message sender.
You can customize your guest messages by booking platforms in the scoping of your messaging rules, or by including custom codes which are scoped to different booking platforms.
You can read more about message scoping here.
You can read more about Custom Codes here.
Question Rules are also part of Messaging Rules. You can learn more about those here.
Scheduled Messages
Scheduled messages are based on specific timing, and are generated as soon as a booking is confirmed. You can schedule as many messages as you wish, and you can edit a guest's messages until the time they are sent. Scheduled messages can be sent:
After a new reservation
Before check-in
After check-in
Before check-out
After check-out
On a given day of the week
To create or customize scheduled messages:
Go to Guest Experience > Messaging Rules in the application.
Select a messaging rule related to check-ins, check-outs, or other events.
Enable the rule and set a schedule for the message.
Edit the content to fit your needs, ensuring it aligns with your guest communication strategy.
For instance, you can create custom reminders for specific days of the week, like trash pick-up notices on Wednesdays or Thursdays. Use the "On a given day of the week" option to schedule these tailored messages.
Event Messages
Event messages are similar to scheduled messages. The major differences are that event messages are based on a certain event rather than timing, and only one message can be sent per event. Event messages are sent when the event occurs (or can be delayed a maximum of 60 minutes). They can also be prepared, rather than sent automatically.
Learn how to create a scheduled or event message here. To avoid duplicate messages, make sure you disable any automated messages on your booking platform, and make sure you haven't accidentally enabled two of the same messaging rule on Hospitable. This step helps in maintaining effective and professional communication without redundancy.
Managing Automated Messaging for Co-Hosted Accounts
Airbnb: If both the listing owner and the co-host are scoped in a messaging rule, messages default to the listing owner's account. To send messages only from your co-host account, deselect the listing owner from the rule.
VRBO: Rules should include all host accounts to ensure all guests are covered. Currently, VRBO does not support messaging exclusively from a co-host account.
Best Practices for Managing Messaging Rules
Regularly update your rules to align with platform-specific requirements.
Verify reservation details, such as check-in and check-out times, to avoid mistimed communications.
Test or otherwise verify your automated setups periodically, especially on co-hosted accounts, to confirm they function as intended.
Troubleshooting Common Issues With Messaging Rules
If you're experiencing issues with messaging rules applying to unintended reservations, the messaging rule might have been created with all properties scoped initially. When it was activated, it applied to all reservations, including those not intended. You can update the scoping to remove the scheduled messages.
Remember that manual changes to a scheduled message makes it independent of the rule. Further updates to the messaging rule will not update it.
If a message is sent at the wrong time, ensure that the check-in time of the reservation matches the messaging schedule. Adjust the rule setup to reflect desired timing. For example, to send a message 2 hours before a 4 PM check-in, ensure the rule specifies this interval. You can remove this setting and get scheduled messages sending at all hours of the day.
If you changed the check-in time from what you have it set to normally, this can cause the send order of the messages to get confused and everything to send at 9 AM (because you had the "9 PM to 9 AM" restriction enabled).