Automated Actions and PDF Forms
Automated actions are what make things happen without anyone clicking: the pre-check-in reminder that goes out the day before arrival, the folio that closes at checkout, the digital keys that refresh on a timer, the reservation export that runs every night.
This article explains what automated actions do and how to request a change to them. It is written for the operator or manager who wants to understand the automation behind a property, not for guests.
1. Who Can Use This
Automated actions are configured by LIKE MAGIC. The Actions screen is not available to any customer role, so there is nothing to set up yourself.
To change what runs automatically for a property, raise a Support Ticket describing the behaviour you want (which action, which property, which trigger or timing). Which action types exist for a property can depend on its PMS, so name the property in the ticket.
2. What an Action Is
An action is a configured rule that says "when this happens, do that." Each action has:
- a trigger: the event or schedule that starts it,
- a type: what it does (send a notification, run a charge, assign a unit, export data, refresh keys),
- and its own settings: timing offsets, templates, conditions.
Actions are configured per property, so two properties can automate the same journey differently.
3. Triggers (Event vs. Timed)
Every action is triggered in one of two ways:
| Trigger | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Event | Fires immediately when something happens in the system. | A reservation is created, so a prepayment reconciliation runs. |
| Timed | Fires relative to a moment (for example, a number of hours before arrival) or on a recurring schedule. | 24 hours before arrival, the pre-check-in reminder is sent. |
A timed action carries an offset (for example, "4 hours before arrival") expressed as a duration. See section 7.
4. Action Categories
Actions fall into two broad families:
- Notification actions: send a message to the guest (see section 5).
- Normal actions: do something operational rather than messaging the guest.
Normal actions cover a wide range, including:
- Check-in / checkout automation: automated check-in, automated checkout, fast-check-in availability, folio closing at checkout.
- Payments & prepayment: charge a real credit card on arrival or activation, and the various prepayment reconciliation and routing steps.
- Digital keys: confirm, refresh, force-private, check-out and housekeeping key timers that keep mobile keys and door access in step with the stay.
- Housekeeping & units: assign a unit, set units to clean, reconcile unit state and condition, flag non-clean rooms.
- Data & exports: export reservations on a timer, upload guest data, and produce documents (see section 6).
- Services: amend services, complimentary breakfast and cleaning, box-rental expiry handling.
5. Notification Actions
Notification actions send a message to the guest at a defined moment in the journey. The moments include, among others:
- booking reminder, pre-check-in reminder, check-in introduction, check-in reminder and room-ready confirmation,
- checkout introduction, checkout alert, checkout reminder and checkout follow-up,
- reservation cancelled, companion added, invoice, box-rental expiry reminder, and the food-and-beverage "out for delivery" message.
Each notification action pairs the moment with a template and the timing rules from section 7. Which delivery channels a notification can use (for example WhatsApp or email) is covered in the Communication Hub documentation.
6. PDF Documents and Forms
Some actions send a document rather than a plain message. There are two of them, the guest invoice and a reminder for the personal emergency evacuation plan form.
The invoice itself is issued by the PMS, not by LIKE MAGIC. On Apaleo, for example, it is created and fetched through Apaleo's own finance API, and LIKE MAGIC delivers it to the guest. So the figures, tax lines and invoice numbering follow your PMS.
To change which documents go out, or when, raise a Support Ticket.
7. How Timing Is Expressed
Timed actions use a consistent way of expressing when:
- At exact times: run at the clock times you define (hour and minute).
- At minute(s) of every hour: run at set minutes past each hour, from 00 to 59.
- Every minute: run once per minute.
- Time range intervals: run repeatedly between a start and end time at a set interval, for example from 10:00 to 22:00 every 15 minutes.
8. Conclusion
Automated actions turn a property's operating rules into behaviour that runs on its own: messaging guests, closing folios, refreshing keys, exporting data and sending documents. The trigger, the type and the timing are set up by LIKE MAGIC per property. To change any of them, raise a Support Ticket and name the action, the property and the timing you want.