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Automations FAQs

Find answers to frequently asked questions about Zanda automations. Learn about unpaid invoice triggers, tracking automated emails, and condition settings.

This article lists the frequently asked questions about the Zanda Automations feature. We will continue adding more questions here, once received. 

Does the unpaid invoices Automation sends only the last unpaid invoice? 

The unpaid invoices automation will be triggered for all invoices that meet the criteria. This means that if one client has more than one unpaid invoices with the invoice dates matching the automation criteria, they will receive a message for each of the unpaid invoices. 

Is there a way to confirm if the Automation has been sent to a client? 

If you wish to track the status of any automated emails, you can;

  • Check the client's profile under Communication > Activity. That page will show a record of all communications, including automated emails.
  • Use the Reports > Practice > Email Activity report which will list emails generated by your Zanda account and show their status (such as pending, sent or failed)

Are automation conditions set to match ALL options selected or just ANY of the selected options? 

Please bear in mind that all conditions must be met for the automation to be triggered; the list of conditions selected for one automation operates on the 'and' logic."

Are Automations triggered for Archived Clients?

Archived clients are excluded from appointment-based automations, unpaid invoice automations, and incomplete form automations. Automatic monthly statements are managed separately from those automation conditions: if automatic statement generation or emailing is turned on for the client, go to the client's profile > Billing > Billing setup and turn off Automatically Generate Monthly Statements or Email Generated Statements before archiving.

Can I set up an Automation that auto-replies to incoming text messages, like an out-of-office responder?

No. Automations are triggered by appointment and account events—New Client, Pre-appointment, Post-appointment, Recall, Unpaid Invoice, Fully Paid Invoice and Incomplete Forms—not by an incoming SMS. Zanda doesn't send an automatic reply back to a client when they text you, so it can't act as an out-of-office SMS responder.

If you'll be away (for example, on parental leave) and want to be sure client texts are still seen and handled, you have a couple of options:

  • Forward incoming replies to a colleague. In User Menu > Account Settings > Communication > Communication Options, use Forward Text Message Replies To to have client SMS replies forwarded to another mobile number so someone covering for you is notified. Non-standars appointment-reminder replies can be forwarded per practitioner under User Menu > Account Settings > Team > Practitioners > [Practitioner] > Settings. (Standard SMS charges apply to forwarded messages.)
  • Let clients know in advance. Before your leave, send a bulk SMS or email to the relevant clients letting them know who to contact and when you'll be back, and add the same note to your reminder templates.

Either way, every incoming reply still appears in the text messaging panel (the speech-bubble icon), so nothing is lost—replies are collected there for you or a colleague to action.

Why can't I find Automations in the Tools menu? Is Automations included in my subscription plan?

Automations is not located in the Tools menu. You can access it via User Menu > Account Settings > Communications > Automations.

Automations is not restricted by subscription plan, so if you can't find it, that is not because of your plan. Opening the Automations settings page does require the Setup and Configure Zanda user permission—if you see an access message when opening the page, ask your account administrator to review your permissions.

Why doesn't my online form appear in the automation's Email or SMS template dropdown?

The template dropdown in an automation's Email or SMS action lists your communication (email/SMS) templates—online forms are not listed there directly. To send an online form automatically:

  1. Add the form's merge field to an email or SMS template via Tools > Communication > Templates: click Available Merge Fields, then Links to Online Forms, and paste the merge field into the message body.
  2. Select that communication template in the automation's Email or SMS action.

For step-by-step instructions, see Sending Online Forms to Clients.

Can I attach a Letter Template to an automation email?

No. An automation's Email action only sends Email communication templates, and its SMS action only sends SMS templates—Letter Templates cannot be attached to, or sent with, an automated email. The Email and SMS template dropdowns list only their matching template type.

If you want a letter to be part of an automation, use a Task action instead. The Task action's Template field lets you associate any template type, including a Letter Template, so a team member is prompted (via the Tasks dashboard) to generate and send the letter manually. To include information or links in the automated email itself, add the relevant merge fields to your email template.