Overview

IMPORTANT

1. For those with the Starter Pack, please contact support via email if you would like to have this feature added to your subscription. For Maximise Package, this feature is included in your subscription as an add-on feature (additional fees apply).
2. An SMS Template must be created prior to setting up an automated SMS. Check this tutorial on how to create one: How to Add a New SMS Template
   

Step Tutorial

1. Title - Enter a title for your automated SMS.
   
2. Active - Set the automation to active to make it available for use. 
3. Description - Enter a description for your automation. You may use this section to note the conditions to be used and when the SMS will be sent.
4. Action- Select the SMS feature you want to automate from the action drop-down menu. Select SMS to automate SMS messages.
   
5. Category - This field will appear after selecting an action. Select a category to which the SMS automation is related to (This is used to filter the available templates to automate - based on the e-mail template's type):

List below is just a reference of the pre-created templates in your system - ready for use (keep in mind that Category will sort the available e-mail template on the Automation tab by properly tagging the Email type from the Templates tab)

1. Recipient Type - Select who you want to email in the Recipient Type field.  This could be Student, Org Unit, Company, Trainer, Individual Staff Member, or Studeny (Company related)
   
2. Email Template - Choose the template that you prepared for this automation.
   
3. By Default emails will be sent from: (emailaddress) – You can overwrite the username of the email that will appear as the sender of the automated report. This is optional.
   

3. In the Automate When section, click + button. This will set when the automation runs.

1. Field - Select a field from the dropdown list that will best suit your requirement.
2. Period - Select a period from the list. This could be Days, Weeks, Months, or Minutes.
   

NOTE: Additional fields will appear once a period is set. Fill in these fields based on your preference.

1. Input a Number based on period selected.
2. Select When the automation will run. Either Before or After the field and period that were previously selected.
   

You can add another Date Trigger by clicking the + button again.

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4. In the Conditions section, click the + button.  A Condition Trigger validates a set of requirements in the SMS for the automation to run. If the requirements are not met, the automation will not run.

1. Field - There are several fields for you to choose from, select one that is suited for your condition.
2. Operator - An operator is used to determine the relationship of the field and its value. The list will vary depending on the field selected.
   

1. Recipient Type - Select who you want to send the SMS to in the dropdown field. This could be Student, Org Unit, Trainer, Individual Staff Member, or Student (Company-related).
2. SMS Template - Choose the template you wish to use for this automation. You may refer to this tutorial for instructions on how to create a new SMS template: How to Add a New SMS Template

3. In the Automate When section, click + button. This will set when the automation runs.

1. Field - Select a field from the dropdown list that will best suit your requirement.
2. Period - Select a period from the list. This could be Days, Weeks, Months, or Minutes.

NOTE: Additional fields will appear once a period is set. Fill in these fields based on your preference.

1. Input a Number based on period selected.
   
2. Select When the automation will run. Either Before or After the field and period that were previously selected.

You can add another Date Trigger by clicking the + button again.

Important Note on Using Multiple Date Triggers in Automations

When configuring an automation with more than one date trigger, it is important to understand that all configured date conditions must be true on the same day for the automation to apply. Multiple date triggers do not cause the automation to run multiple times; instead, they further narrow down which records are eligible.

The system checks the automation conditions daily. On each check, it evaluates whether every date trigger resolves to the current date. If even one condition is not met, the automation will not run.

Example to illustrate the logic

Consider the following Automation designed to send a payment reminder email after 3 weeks from the course start date and 5 days before the course end date.:

• Course Start Date: 1 January

• Course End Date: 28 January

Date Trigger 1:

• 3 weeks after Start Date

• Resolves to 22 January (true only on this date)

Date Trigger 2:

• 5 days before End Date

• Resolves to 23 January (true only on this date)

Because these two triggers resolve to different dates, there is no single day on which both conditions are true. As a result, the automation will not run.

• On 22 January: Trigger 1 is true, Trigger 2 is false → automation does not run

• On 23 January: Trigger 2 is true, Trigger 1 is false → automation does not run

• On all other days: both triggers are false → automation does not run

This behaviour is expected and is by design.

When using two date triggers is appropriate

Using two date triggers is only effective when they are intentionally designed to align on the same day. For example, an RTO may wish to send a compliance reminder only when:

• a certain amount of time has passed since a start date, and

• the item is approaching its end date.

If both triggers are configured so they resolve to the same calendar date (for example, a midpoint of an activity), the automation will run once at that precise and meaningful point in time.

Final clarification

While the examples above reference start and end dates for simplicity, this logic is not limited to enrolment or course-related dates. The same behaviour applies to any date fields supported by the automation feature across the system.

Careful planning of date offsets is essential when using multiple date triggers to ensure the automation behaves as intended.

 

4. In the Conditions section, click the + button.  A Condition Trigger validates a set of requirements in the SMS for the automation to run. If the requirements are not met, the automation will not run.

1. Field - There are several fields for you to choose from, select one that is suited for your condition.
2. Operator - An operator is used to determine the relationship of the field and its value. The list will vary depending on the field selected.
   

1. Value - This field will appear once a field is selected. And the format will depend on the field selected. You may add more than one value for some. 
   

NOTE:  When you add another Condition Trigger, you may choose AND if you want BOTH conditions to be met for the automation to run. Otherwise, use OR if you want at least ONE of the conditions to be met for the automation to run.

5. Once done setting up these sections of your automation, click the Save button.

NOTE: The sender of the text message will appear as "SMS". It is not possible to customise the sender's name or number, as this is standard across all accounts.

See sample below:

NOTE: Date-based automations are triggered once per day, at 10pm.

Automations are scheduled to send:

1. Email - 10pm AEST / 12pm UTC
2. SMS (Short Messaging) - 10pm AEST / 12pm UTC
3. Task - 10pm AEST / 12pm UTC
4. Reports - Every 30 minutes (user defines what time they want the report to be run)
5. Has Minutes - Every 5 minutes
   

Automations that include minutes (already outlined on the help guide) will be triggered more frequently than once a day at 10pm as the notification might be time-sensitive e.g. 30mins before the event. Hence, the system will check every 5 mins to see if there are time-based automations to trigger.

And that’s how to setup an automatic SMS Message!

Congratulations on completing this tutorial. We hope this has been helpful to you and your organisation. For any questions or concerns regarding this function, please reach out to the contact support via email.