Email templates let you create personalised emails to communicate with your guests at the right moment: when the booking is confirmed, before arrival, on check-in day, during the stay and after departure.
Once set up, they're sent automatically: you configure them once and Octorate does the rest. 😉
How to create a template in 5 steps
Go to Settings > Email Templates and click + Add new (or Details to edit an existing template).
Choose the Type, i.e. when the email should be sent.
Choose who to send it to and through which channel.
Choose which bookings it applies to: portals, rooms and any filters.
Write the text in each language you need and save.
Below you'll find every step explained in detail.
1. Where to find them
Click Settings > Email Templates, then click Add New. Once you've selected the type you want, a default text will load in Italian, English, French and Spanish.
The template page is divided into three parts:
Template configuration: when the email is sent and to whom.
Sites and rooms: which bookings it's sent for.
Custom text: what the guest receives and in which languages.
2. Template configuration
Enabled: turns the template on or off. If it's off, the template stays saved but isn't sent.
Type (required): this is the most important choice, because it decides when the email is sent.
Among the various types you'll find:
Booking confirmation: sent for every confirmed booking.
Booking cancelled: sent when a booking is cancelled.
Check-in today: sent on the day of arrival. Perfect for sending access instructions.
Before the stay: sent a set number of days before check-in.
After check-in: sent during the stay, for example to ask how the first night went or to offer your services.
After the stay: sent after check-out, for example to ask for a review.
Email with attachment (Rental contract): to send a document, such as the rental contract. Read the dedicated article here.
The Scheduled label next to the name means the email is sent automatically, according to the settings you choose.
When the email is sent: the days
For some types you need to specify how many days before or after the email should be sent.
With After check-in, you set how many days after arrival to send it.
With Before the stay, you set how many days before arrival to send it.
After the stay: it's always sent 3 days after.
Before check-out: you set how many days before departure to send it.
If you want it sent on the same day as the type, leave the selection empty.
🔴 Remember that the system checks your bookings at regular intervals, looking for all those that match your templates' parameters.
Other settings
Name (required): this is the name only you see; the guest doesn't see it. Choose one that tells you at a glance which template it is, for example "Access code – Check-in today".
Show quick link to this template in the booking list: you can select only one template and print it directly from the dashboard.
Send mail in this time slot: choose the time of day the email should be sent. In the
Check-in today and At check-out templates, you can select the time from which to send it. Click here for the full article.
Bookings created from: enter a date and the template will only be sent for bookings created from that day onwards.
Send only after the minimum check-in time: the email is sent only after your property's check-in start time.
👉 This is the ideal option if the email contains the access code or entry instructions: the guest receives them when they can actually use them. Click here to see how to generate an access code.
3. Who to send it to
Send to: choose who receives the email. Usually it's the Guest.
If you choose Custom, the Email field (required) appears, where you enter the recipient's address. This is useful, for example, to notify your cleaning staff or a collaborator. Click here for the full article.
CC this email: enter one or more addresses that should receive a copy of the email.
Send a copy to yourself too: turn this on if you also want to receive a copy of every email sent.
These two options only work when the template is sent by email.
NB: You can set templates to be sent to multiple users by separating the addresses with a semicolon (no space).
Which channel
Communication channel order: decide the order of the sending channels between Channel manager, Email and OctoChat by moving them with the arrows.
The system tries the first channel in the list. If delivery fails, it moves on to the second, and so on, following the order you've set.
Which bookings
In the Sites section, you decide whether to send the template to bookings from all portals or only some:
All channels: the template applies to all bookings.
Select portals: the template applies only to the portals you tick. You can use Select all, Deselect all and the search bar to help you.
Rooms
In the same way, you can assign the template to one or more rooms. In the Select rooms from the list section, choose All rooms or Select and tick only the ones you want.
With PMS Rooms, you can instead assign the template to one or more physical rooms. Click here for the full article.
👉 Assigning a template to a physical room can be essential for giving your guests specific instructions, such as the access code for that room!
🔺 Note: to select physical rooms, you must have configured the Tableau!
Filters
In the Show filters section, you can add conditions: the email is sent only if the booking meets them.
You can filter by:
Payment received (for stay and extras)
City tax
Online check-in
Arrival time
Rental contract
Cancellation policy
If you leave it on Ignore or Disabled, that filter isn't applied.
For example, you can send an email only if the guest has signed the rental contract, or send a reminder with a specific email if they haven't completed online check-in yet. Click here for the full article.
Two useful things to know:
City tax is separate from payment received: a booking can be paid and still have the tax to collect.
A fully paid booking also includes guests who have paid more than the amount due.
5. The email text
In the Custom text section, write the Subject and Content of the email.
Translate your templates into any languages you want, using the tabs at the top (IT, EN, FR, ES, DE…).
The system will recognise your guest's language and send the template in the right language. If there's no translation in their language, the email will be sent in the Default language (booking) set in Settings > Property.
Load default template: loads the text already prepared by Octorate for that type in Italian, English, French and Spanish. Our templates already include the link to the Web Concierge page. If you deleted it by mistake, you can reload the template or add the link back with the Booking (link) variable.
Variables
Variables let your message fill itself in with each booking's details: guest name, booking code, arrival date and much more. You'll find them grouped under Property, Room, Booking and PMS Rooms: click the group and choose the variable to insert.
👉 In the Property group, you can already see under each variable the data that will be inserted into the email. That way you know exactly what the guest will read.
You can customise the text however you like, including adding images, links and tables. Click the three dots … in the toolbar to see all the options.
Not sure how to insert an image? Click here.
From the booking details
In the Email section of the booking details, you can see the history of messages sent, with delivery status and recipient. Click the eye icon to read the email again.
From here you can also send one of your templates manually by clicking + Send communication, or open your templates with Template configuration.
Plus, once you've selected the template you want, you can print it from this same screen!
Linked properties and multiple accounts
You can create your templates directly from the master account by setting filters and sending portals. Click here for the full article.
FAQ:
How is the email language determined?
Octorate determines the language of email templates based on:
The booking's "Country" field: the email language is linked to the country shown on the booking. If this information is missing, the property's default language is used. You can check it in Settings > Property.
Data received from OTA portals: for example, if a portal like Expedia sends the booking with a French-speaking country, Octorate will use French to send the confirmation, even if the guest selected another language on the portal.
The email wasn't sent: what should I check?
Is the template Enabled?
Was the booking created before the date set in Bookings created from?
Are the booking's portal and room among those selected?
Does the booking meet the filters you've set?
Does the guest have an email address? If not, check the Communication channel order.
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Do you want to create email templates for your partners or providers?
Find out how!
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Do you wish to copy a template on various IDs?
Read the article!
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Click HERE for the full article on the Web Concierge.
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Talk to you soon!
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