Communication is a flexible service designed to deliver any type of message to any recipient through various channels, such as email, SMS, or push notifications. It allows you to configure messages that are automatically sent to users whenever a specific trigger occurs.
Components of an Automated Message
An automated message defined within the communication service comprises seven components:
Channels
Recipients
Section
Trigger
Tags
Name
Body
Below, we elaborate on the different components of an automated message.
Channels
Channels represent the methods of user communication. The following four channels are available for sending automated messages:
SMS
Email
Push Notification
Webhook
SMS
When SMS is chosen as one of the automated message channels, an SMS is sent to recipients through the integrated SMS service provider.
Email
Selecting Email as an automated message channel results in sending an email to the recipients.
Push Notification
A push notification is a message "pushed" from the backend server to user applications. On mobile devices, push notifications typically appear promptly upon receipt.
Webhook
This channel allows setting up a webhook, with the option to have multiple webhooks with different endpoints.
When setting up an automated message, you can select multiple channels (email, SMS, push notifications). A single message can be sent through all selected channels, but only if the recipient is reachable on each one. For example, if no contact number is provided in the order pickup info, an SMS won’t be sent to the order sender. Likewise, if the Customer App isn’t installed or logged in, push notifications won’t be delivered.
Section
Use this option to specify which part of the system the communication is intended for. This helps ensure that the message is applied to the relevant section.
Choose one of the following sections:
Orders
Drivers
Support
Customers
If you select orders, the order type option will appear, allowing you to choose the specific order type for this communication.
Order Type
When defining an automated message, the order type can be specified. In such cases, the automated message is sent only for orders of the specified type. For example, an automated message defined for On-demand orders will be sent only for such orders.
Trigger
A trigger defines the specific event or condition that causes an automated message to be sent. It determines when the message should be delivered based on user actions or system changes.
In simple terms:
"When X happens → send message Y."
The triggers you see depend on the section you chose earlier. Each section has its own set of triggers, so the options will change based on which section you've selected.
Examples of common triggers:
Send a password reset URL to the customer
Send a password reset URL to the driver
Send verification code
Order status changes
Customer registered
Customer new support message
Driver new support message
Driver gets online
Driver gets offline
Recipients
Recipients are users to whom automated messages are sent. When creating an automated message, recipients can be selected from the following options:
Individual Customer
Business Customer
Custom
Driver
Customer
Pickup Contact
Dropoff Contact
Individual Customer
Refers to the customer who places an order, such as a user ordering an on-demand courier service to send a package to a friend.
Business Customer
Business customers use your services for their business operations. For example, a restaurant uses your service to deliver food.
Custom
Sometimes, you might want to send an automated message to a specific person instead of a group. This could be for reasons like giving a personal update or a special notice. By selecting 'Custom,' you can send the message to a specific individual.
If you want to send certain notifications to your dispatcher or admin user or even yourself, you can put your contact info here.
Driver
Drivers play a crucial role in fulfilling orders. They can be selected as recipients when creating automated messages.
Pickup Contact
The person placing an order may not necessarily be the one at the pickup location. This contact is designated as the Pickup Contact and can be different from the customer placing the order.
Dropoff Contact
The Dropoff Contact is a user typically present at the drop-off location. Since an order can have multiple drop-offs, the customer can provide separate phone numbers for each drop-off's contact person.
Currently, communication with Pickup or Dropoff contacts is possible via email and phone.
Tags
When a tag is used in the automated message setup, the server replaces it with the relevant information when sending the message. Essentially, the tag acts as a placeholder that gets filled with real data from the server.
The list of some of the existing tags:
Customer Name
Verification Code
Password reset URL
Vehicle Plate
Vehicle Color
Vehicle Model
Track Link
Receipt Link
Order Price
Order Code
Order Status
Pickup Address
Dropoff Address
Dropoff Contact Name
POD Photo
COD Amount
Reference ID
etc
Title
Messages generally have titles, regardless of whether they are SMS, push notifications, or emails. For emails, the title becomes the email's subject.
Body
The message body is the primary content of the message. While setting up an automated message, the Body section can contain a combination of static text and Tags.