Automations – 15 Trigger Examples

Automations are "set-and-forget" – you configure them once and they run on their own. Vendion has three trigger types: event, schedule, and date field. Here are 15 ready-made recipes covering most use cases.

Event-based triggers (react to an event)

1. Welcome SMS for first-time visitors

• Trigger: First visit (first order ever)
• Delay: 24 hours after payment
• Channel: SMS
• Text: "Hi {name}! Thanks for visiting {restaurant} yesterday. We hope you enjoyed it! Book again soon: {booking_link}"
• Why: First impressions are shaped by the follow-up. 24h is the right delay – not pushy but fresh in memory.

2. Thanks after visit

• Trigger: Visit completed (order paid)
• Delay: 2 hours
• Channel: SMS
• Text: "Thanks for your visit {name}! How was your experience? See you soon."
• Why: Short acknowledgment while the experience is fresh. Sets the tone for return visits.

3. No-show follow-up

• Trigger: No-show (booking marked as no-show)
• Delay: 1 hour
• Channel: SMS
• Text: "Hi {name}, we saw you missed your booking today. No worries – book again here: {booking_link}"
• Why: Without automation, no-show guests are lost for good. A warm follow-up recovers 20-30%.

4. VIP upgrade

• Trigger: Tag added (the "VIP" tag is assigned)
• Delay: 0 minutes (immediate)
• Channel: SMS
• Text: "Hi {name}! You are now a VIP guest at {restaurant}. Thanks for your loyalty!"
• Why: Milestone marking strengthens the relationship. Exclusivity feel.

5. First-order upsell offer

• Trigger: Order paid + condition "Total visits = 1"
• Delay: 72 hours
• Channel: SMS
• Text: "Hi {name}! We hope you liked your first visit. Here is 50 kr off next time: VENDION50"
• Why: Day three is the sweet spot – memory starts fading, discount activates recall.

6. Loyalty milestone (10 visits)

• Trigger: Order paid + condition "Total visits = 10"
• Delay: 0 minutes
• Channel: SMS
• Text: "Congrats {name}! That was your 10th visit. We are treating you to a dessert next time."
• Why: Round numbers are psychologically powerful milestones. Makes loyalty visible.

7. Gift card balance reminder

• Trigger: Gift card redeemed
• Delay: 48 hours
• Channel: SMS
• Text: "Thanks {name}! You have 350 kr left on your gift card. Valid until 2026-12-31."
• Why: Re-use of existing balance. Increases likelihood of new visit.

8. Loyalty points notification

• Trigger: Loyalty points earned
• Delay: 0 minutes
• Channel: SMS
• Text: "You now have {points_balance} points! Redeem for discount on your next visit."
• Why: Makes the value of the loyalty program visible.

Schedule-based triggers (recurring)

9. Win-back (not visited 60+ days)

• Trigger: Schedule every Monday 10:00
• Condition: 60+ days since last visit AND at least 3 total visits
• Channel: SMS
• Text: "Hi {name}, it has been a while! We miss you at {restaurant}. 10% off next visit: {booking_link}"
• Why: Early reclamation before guests are permanently lost. Monday because the weekend is planning time.

10. Monthly newsletter to VIPs

• Trigger: Schedule on the first of the month at 14:00
• Condition: Auto-tag = "VIP"
• Channel: Email
• Subject: "Menu events this month – VIPs only"
• Why: VIP-exclusive newsletters reinforce the status feel.

11. Quarterly report to big customers

• Trigger: Schedule every quarter on the 1st at 9:00
• Condition: Total spend ≥ 20,000 kr
• Channel: Email
• Subject: "Your quarterly overview – thanks for your loyalty"
• Why: Relationship building with top customers. Shows you see their value.

Date-field-based triggers (date)

12. Birthday greeting day before

• Trigger: Date field "Birthday"
• Days before: 1
• Time: 10:00
• Channel: SMS
• Text: "Happy birthday tomorrow {name}! We are treating you to a dessert on your next visit."
• Why: Day before = time to plan the celebration. Morning 10:00 = right readability.

13. Anniversary of first visit

• Trigger: Date field "First visit"
• Days before: 0 (on the day)
• Time: 11:00
• Channel: SMS
• Text: "Hi {name}! Today is one year since your first visit at {restaurant}. Thanks for letting us be part of it."
• Why: One year is an emotional milestone. Unexpected – and therefore memorable.

14. Name day reminder (Swedish tradition)

• Trigger: Date field "Birthday" with name-day logic (coming)
• Days before: 0
• Time: 09:00
• Channel: SMS
• Text: "Happy name day {name}! Come celebrate with us."
• Why: Swedish cultural tradition. Sets you apart from competitors who only congratulate on birthdays.

15. Holiday reminder (14 days before Christmas)

• Trigger: Schedule annually (December 11 at 10:00)
• Condition: Email consent = true
• Channel: Email
• Subject: "Christmas Dinner 2026 – book now before it is full"
• Why: The two-week window is perfect for Christmas dinner bookings.

Safeguards all automations follow

Vendion protects automatically against spam:

• Max 2 automation SMS per guest per week. If automations stack, excess ones are skipped.
• 30-day cooldown per automation per guest. The same automation cannot fire twice within 30 days.
• Respects opt-out. Guests who said STOP get no more automations.
• Contact gate. Guests without email get no email automations. Guests without SMS consent get no SMS.

Always test first

Before activating an automation on the entire base:

1. Click Test in the automation list
2. Pick a test guest (yourself)
3. Verify the text looks good
4. Toggle Active on

Monitor the first week in Marketing → Automations → History – there you see exactly who got what.