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Automation rules: triggers, conditions, and actions

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Conversa Labs

Conversa Labs

Last updated on Aug 26, 2026

Overview

An automation rule runs actions automatically when an event happens and the conditions you set are met. It's the most direct way to remove repetitive work: assigning conversations, adding labels, sending messages, resolving conversations, moving CRM deals, or notifying external systems via webhook.

Every rule follows the structure trigger → conditions → actions:

  • Trigger: the event that starts the evaluation (for example, "conversation created").
  • Conditions: filters that must be true for the rule to act.
  • Actions: what the platform does when the trigger fires and the conditions pass.

Prerequisites

  • Admin permission to access the Automation area under Settings.
  • At least one inbox with conversations, so triggers have something to evaluate.
  • For actions that depend on other modules (CRM, Catalog, Tasks, Follow-ups), the matching module must be enabled on the account.

Step by step

If there are no rules yet, the page's empty state summarizes what automation does and lets you create the first rule without hunting for another action on the screen.

  1. Under Settings, open the Automation area and create a new rule.
  2. Give the rule a clear name and description.
  3. Choose the trigger (event). The main ones are:
    • Conversation created, Conversation updated, Conversation resolved, Conversation opened;
    • Message created (incoming or outgoing);
    • Contact created, Contact updated, Contact merged, Contact deleted — rules that act directly on the contact record, with no conversation required;
    • Orders: order registered, order status changed, order paid, order refunded and deal orders fully paid (with the Payments/Commerce modules active);
    • Contracts: contract viewed, signer signed and contract expired (with the Contracts module active);
    • Calendar — two levels, and the difference matters:
      • Booking created / rescheduled / cancelled: the customer booked, rescheduled or cancelled through the public booking page (that is, there is a booking behind it);
      • Calendar event created / rescheduled / cancelled: the appointment itself changed — including when an agent edits, drags or cancels it from the panel, or from the Schedule tab inside a conversation. An appointment that has a booking fires both levels when you change it from the panel; an appointment created straight on the calendar, with no booking, fires only the event level.
    • CRM, Catalog, and Task events when those modules are active.
  4. Add conditions. Combine fields (status, priority, inbox, labels, browser language, contact/conversation attributes, CRM fields) with operators such as equal to, not equal to, contains, or does not contain. Contact and order triggers expose dedicated conditions: city, contact type (visitor, lead or customer), blocked, order status, order gateway and order amount — plus the contact's custom attributes.
  5. Define one or more actions (see the list below).
  6. Save and activate the rule. Test with a real conversation to confirm the behavior.

Settings & options

Available actions (they vary by trigger and active modules):

Action What it does
Assign agent Routes the conversation to a specific agent.
Assign team Routes the conversation to a team.
Add label Tags the conversation with one or more labels.
Send message Sends a message to the contact.
Send email to team Notifies the team by email.
Send transcript by email Emails the conversation history.
Mute conversation Mutes the conversation.
Resolve conversation Closes the conversation automatically.
Send attachment Attaches a file to the conversation.
Fire webhook Sends the event to an external endpoint.
Add contact label Tags the contact (not the conversation) with labels.
Remove contact label Removes labels from the contact record.
Add contact note Logs an internal note on the contact record.
Set contact attribute Writes a value into a contact custom attribute.
Launch mass run Starts a mass run of a published Flow Builder flow.

When the modules are active, module-specific actions appear: move a deal between stages, assign and set value/priority in the CRM, add a product to a deal in the Catalog, create tasks, and enroll the contact in a Follow-ups sequence.

On the contact triggers (created/updated/merged) the rule runs against the contact — and now offers the whole contact-anchored catalog: beyond the contact actions (labels, note, attribute), you can create a CRM deal already linked to the contact, move a stage, create a task or appointment tied to the contact, send charges and subscriptions, enroll in follow-ups and contracts, run engagement and WhatsApp group actions (the default participant is the contact itself), fire a webhook, and launch a mass flow run. Actions that operate on a conversation (assign agent/team, resolve, send message/note/attachment, SLA, AI/Maestro, WhatsApp template) remain unavailable on these triggers because there is no conversation — use Create conversation to chain into a conversation trigger.

  • "AND" conditions: every condition must be true for the rule to act.
  • Order: actions run in the order they appear in the rule.
  • Enable/disable: you can pause a rule without deleting it.

Actions by trigger

The action list is scoped by the trigger's subject: each trigger offers every action its subject can actually run — so you build the complete rule without combinations that would never fire.

  • Conversation and message triggers (conversation created, updated, opened, resolved and message created) offer the full catalog of actions.
  • Contact triggers (created/updated/merged) offer the whole contact-anchored catalog: CRM (create a deal already linked to the contact, move a stage), tasks and appointments tied to the contact, charges and subscriptions, follow-ups, contracts, engagement, WhatsApp group actions (default participant = the contact), webhook and mass flow run. Actions that operate on a conversation are left out (there is no conversation) — chain with Create conversation.
  • Contact deleted trigger: because the record no longer exists, it offers only webhook and fully parameter-driven actions.
  • Order triggers anchor on the order's contact — every contact-anchored action is available.
  • Task, calendar, WhatsApp group, subscription, commerce, contract, engagement, CRM and ads triggers gained the full catalog their subject supports — including conversation actions when the subject has a linked conversation (for example, a task with a linked conversation or a group with the group's conversation).

When you create a new rule (or switch the trigger), the selector already comes with the first valid action for that trigger pre-selected — you never again open a new rule and find "Assign to Agent · Not available for this trigger".

If you edit an older rule that holds an action no longer belonging to the current trigger, that action stays visible with a "Not available for this trigger" tag. It is not removed: the rule is still saveable and you can swap it for a compatible action whenever you want.

Actions with no parameters

Some actions ask for no extra field because they resolve the context on their own from the trigger. They save without requiring parameters, in both Automations and Macros:

  • Cancel, pause, resume and skip step for follow-ups;
  • Send charge and cancel subscription;
  • Send product card;
  • Pause ad campaign, send conversion and tag as ad lead.

When an action doesn't apply

If an action depends on something that doesn't exist in that context — for example, a conversation action on a trigger that has no linked conversation — it is skipped and logged, without breaking the rule: the remaining actions still run normally.

Use cases

  • Channel routing: conversations created on the sales WhatsApp go to the Sales team.
  • Keyword triage: if the message contains "invoice", add the "billing" label.
  • After hours: when a conversation is created outside business hours, send an automatic message.
  • Queue hygiene: resolve conversations with no reply for a long time and notify the team.
  • CRM: when a lead's conversation is created, create a deal and assign it to the right rep.

Tips, limits & best practices

  • Use descriptive names and keep each rule focused on a single goal.
  • Avoid conflicting rules that try to do opposite things on the same conversation.
  • For actions that send automatic messages, respect channel limits (WhatsApp anti-ban best practices).
  • Test in a sandbox inbox before applying the rule to production.
  • Document for the team what each rule does — it makes future maintenance easier.

Troubleshooting

  • The rule didn't fire: confirm the trigger and that all conditions are true; check the rule is active.
  • The action didn't run: verify the referenced agent, team, or label still exists; and that the action's module (CRM, Catalog, etc.) is enabled.
  • The rule acted on the wrong conversation: the conditions are too broad. Refine the filters.
  • An action was skipped: some actions only run when there is a conversation in the trigger's context; otherwise they are logged and skipped without interrupting the rule. Prefer an action that is compatible with the chosen trigger.
  • The webhook didn't arrive: check the endpoint URL and that it responds successfully.

See also