Administration - Email/SMS Content

This is where you can configure the settings of any pre-stay and post-stay emails/SMS that you would like to be sent to your guests.

Simply click +Add to set up a new automated email.

.

Email Type - this can be a follow up email sent after a stay/event, pre-stay sent before a stay event or if you utilise provisional bookings, you can send a provisional booking reminder.

Email Template - whichever email type you choose this will show all templates you have in the system under this type. 

From Email - these Emails will be sent from our generic noreply@hopsoftware.com unless you have set up your own SMTP server. You can set up your own SMTP Server by going to Administration > SMTP Server.

Time Period in Days - add the number of days before/after you want the email to be sent.

Correspondence Type - if you use SMS, you can select if this apply to Email/SMS or both.

Time to Send - Select a time for the system to send the email, this a 24 hour format so 9pm would be 21.00

The tick box for Only send email/SMS if rate plan template matches enables you to select different email templates for specific rate plans if you have different ones depending on the rate plan and make sure it will only send the correct template. 

You would need to make sure you have the correct email template set up in your rate plans to utilise this.

The active tick box means the content will be active, you would choose not to tick this if you do not want this particular email to be sent currently. 

You can make it active at any time.

Overview

When sending templates, the system follows a hierarchy to decide which template to use:

1. Rate Plan + Room Type Combination
   • If a template exists for this exact combination, it takes priority.
2. Rate Plan Only
   • If no combination match is found, the system checks for a rate plan match.
3. Room Type Only
   • If no rate plan is matched, it looks for a room type match.
4. Default Template
   • If none of the above rules apply, the default template is sent.

Reservation Confirmations and Template Assignment

Reservation confirmation emails do not depend on time (i.e. they are not triggered based on when the reservation is made or the stay dates). Instead, they are determined by how the reservation is created and by the confirmation template setup in the PMS.

Confirmation emails in the PMS can be configured to automatically apply based on rate plans, room types, or even specific combinations of both. This allows you to tailor the guest experience by ensuring they receive the most relevant information for their booking.

1. Confirmation by Rate Plan Only

You can set up a confirmation email that applies whenever a guest books a particular rate plan (regardless of the room type).

Example:

You have several Dinner, Bed & Breakfast rate plans across different room types.

Instead of creating a separate template for each room you assign one Dinner, Bed & Breakfast Confirmation Email to all those rate plans.

Result: Any booking with that rate plan will trigger the same confirmation email.

2. Confirmation by Room Type Only

You can configure a confirmation email to apply to all bookings for a specific room type, regardless of which rate plan is used.

Example:

You have a lodge that has specific check in requirements 

Any reservation for that room type (no matter which rate plan was booked) will use the Lodge Confirmation Email.

3. Confirmation by Room Type + Rate Plan Combination

You can set highly specific rules by combining both room type and rate plan.

Example:

You have a Self-Catering Cottage that only applies to a certain Self-Catering Rate Plan.

You create a custom confirmation email that only triggers when that room type + that rate plan are booked together.

Result: Guests booking that exact package get tailored instructions, such as check-in procedures, kitchen details, or key collection notes.

Set Up

Select the Reservation Confirmation for the Email Type > Choose the appropriate Email Template you have set up. 

Add the rate plans / room types you wish this to be applicable to and ensure this is set to active.

Important things to note

1. Automatic Assignment for OTA and Booking Engine (BE) Reservations
   1. If a Reservation Confirmation email template has been configured in the PMS, it will automatically be applied when:
      • A reservation is created through an OTA connection (e.g., Expedia, Booking.com, etc.).
      • A reservation is created directly via the Booking Engine (BE).
   2. In these cases, the system automatically uses the pre-defined confirmation template—no manual selection is required.
2. Manual Reservations in PMS
   1. When creating a reservation manually inside the PMS (for example, via:
      • Create New Reservation form,
      • Property Groups Sales View
      • Group Reservation

You are given the option to select a confirmation template at the time of booking.

1. This ensures flexibility—for example, if you want to send a special template for group bookings or corporate clients.

1. Editing Reservations
   1. At any point after a reservation has been created (regardless of whether it came from an OTA, BE, or was entered manually), you can edit the reservation and change the assigned confirmation template if needed.

✅ Key Point to Remember:

• Confirmation emails are not linked to timing (like booking date or check-in date).
• Instead, the confirmation template is chosen automatically for OTA/BE reservations, but remains manual and flexible when you’re creating or editing reservations directly in the PMS.

Pre-Stay & Follow Up 

The same logic is applied to Pre-Stay and Follow Up email templates, the difference here is that you can specify time and days before arrival. 

You can have multiple pre stay and follow up templates, the hierarchical flow and priority is as follows for all templates. 

Important Note on Duplicates within templates

• If there are multiple templates with the same parameters, the system will send the first template that was created for that rule.

Stayover Templates

We have introduced new stayover templates this includes 

• X Days After Arrival
• Day Before Departure
• Day of Departure

Once your stayover templates have been set up in Administration > Templates you then need to set up the rules in Email/SMS Content.

Here you can set the parameters for each template and email type specifying when the email is sent. The rate plan and room types you wish the template to be sent for. 

The stayover templates can be used for handy information when the guest is in house or to note departure procedures.