Automation rules (sometimes called workflows) do routine community tasks for you, such as welcoming new members, tagging active posters, or awarding points. Each rule has a trigger, optional conditions, and one or more actions. You build them under Admin → Automations → Rules.
Who can do this: Owners and admins. Moderators don't see Automations. · Where: Web (admin console). · Plan: Automations, and how many rules you can have, depend on your platform plan. Without them, the page shows Upgrade to automate.
How an automation rule works
A rule reads like a sentence: When (Trigger) something happens, Only if (Conditions) these are true, Then (Actions) do this. Actions apply to the member in the trigger, such as the person who joined, posted, or RSVPed.
To build one:
- Go to Admin → Automations → Rules and click Create rule.
- Enter a Rule name and an optional Description.
- Under When (Trigger), choose the event and fill in any extra settings. Then choose How often the rule may run: Every time, Once per member, or Only once.
- Under Only if (Conditions), click Add condition for each filter. Conditions are optional; all of them must match.
- Under Then (Actions), click Add action for each action.
- Click Save rule.
If the rule changes member data (adding to a space, assigning tags, or awarding points), confirm Enable high-risk actions? to save.
Automation triggers and conditions
| Trigger | Extra setting |
|---|---|
| New member joins community | — |
| Member joins space | Space (empty = any space) |
| Member levels up | — |
| Member reaches points threshold | Points amount |
| Member completes onboarding | — |
| New post created | Space (empty = any space) |
| Post receives comment | — |
| Event RSVP | Event (empty = any event) |
Conditions can check Member tags (contains, does not contain), Days since joined and Member points (equals, greater than, less than, and so on), Trigger space, and Content type (Discussion, Question, or Article). Trigger space and Content type only appear for triggers that involve a space or a post.
Automation actions
| Action | What it does |
|---|---|
| Send system notification | Sends the member an in-app notification with a title and message |
| Add to space / Remove from space | Adds the member to a space as Member or Moderator, or removes them |
| Change space role | Sets the member's role in a space: Member, Moderator, or Admin |
| Assign tag / Remove tag | Adds or removes a member tag |
| Award points / Award badge | Gives points or a badge from your gamification settings |
| Trigger webhook | Sends an HTTP request to a URL, with optional headers, body, and Signing secret (optional). The secret is sent as-is in the X-Webhook-Secret header; the request isn't HMAC-signed. |
Each action can run right away or after a Delay of up to 7 days. Automations can't send emails, and they can't add or remove access groups. To manage access groups, see Add or remove a member's access group.
To personalize a notification title, message, or webhook body, click Insert variable. Each trigger offers its own fields, such as Username (login name) or Post title. Fields marked as an internal ID are for webhooks, not for text members read.
Start from an automation template
Templates are ready-made rules for common tasks, such as welcoming new members or thanking people who RSVP.
- Click Start from a template and pick one.
- Click Use template. The rule opens for editing.
- Fill in anything the template left empty, such as the space, tag, or badge, and check the message text.
- Click Save rule, then turn the rule on.
Installed templates start turned off, and they count toward your rule limit.
Test an automation rule or run it now
Open a rule from the list to see its details.
- Test rule with Dry Run checks the rule and fills in the message text without running any actions. Live Test runs the actions for real.
- Run now runs the rule for real, either for one member or with sample data. It produces real messages, points, tags, and webhooks.
Turn an automation rule on or off
Use the switch next to a rule on the Rules page, or the Status switch on its detail page. Turning a rule off pauses it without deleting it. Duplicated rules and rules from templates start off, so check the switch after saving.
If a required setting is missing, the rule can't be turned on and tells you what to fix, for example Pick a space for the space action.
When several rules match the same event, rules with a higher Priority run first. Each run is recorded in Execution Logs, kept for 30 days. See Review automation execution logs.
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