Automations run actions on conversations based on rules you define. When something happens (a new conversation, a message), Commslayer checks your conditions and executes the actions.
How automations work
Each automation has three parts:
- Event — What triggers the automation (new conversation, new message, etc.)
- Conditions — What must be true for the automation to run (sender email contains "noreply", subject includes "refund", etc.)
- Actions — What happens when conditions match (add label, assign agent, send reply, resolve)
You can combine multiple conditions with AND/OR logic, and chain multiple actions together.
Events
- Conversation created — Runs when a new conversation comes in
- Conversation updated — Runs when something changes (status, assignee, labels, etc.)
- Conversation opened — Runs when a closed conversation is reopened
- Message created — Runs when a new message is added to a conversation
Conditions
Set conditions based on:
- Inbox — Which channel the conversation came from
- Email subject — Text in the subject line
- Message content — Text in the message body
- Email address — Sender's email, including partial matches
- Labels — Whether specific labels are present
- Country — Customer's location
- Status — Open, pending, snoozed, resolved
- Assignee — Which agent (or no agent) is assigned
- Shopify customer tags — Tags from your Shopify customer data
- Shopify purchase history — Whether they've ordered before, total spend
- Customer intent — Detected intent from AI
Conditions support operators like "equals", "contains", "starts with", "is one of", and "is present/not present".
Actions
- Send message — Auto-reply to the customer
- Add label — Tag the conversation
- Remove label — Remove a tag
- Assign agent — Route to a specific agent
- Assign team — Route to a team
- Change status — Set to open, pending, or snoozed
- Resolve conversation — Close and skip CSAT survey
- Change priority — Set urgency level
- Send email to team — Notify team members via email
- Send webhook — POST conversation data to an external URL
Example: Auto-reply to new conversations
Send an acknowledgment when customers reach out.
- Event: Conversation created
- Conditions: Inbox equals "Email Support"
- Actions: Send message → "Thanks for reaching out. We'll get back to you within 24 hours."
Example: Label conversations by content
Tag refund requests automatically.
- Event: Message created
- Conditions: Message content contains "refund" OR "money back"
- Actions: Add label → "Refund request"
Example: Auto-resolve by sender
Close automated notifications from no-reply addresses.
- Event: Conversation created
- Conditions: Email address contains "noreply@" OR Email address contains "no-reply@"
- Actions: Resolve conversation
Example: Auto-resolve by subject
Skip order confirmation emails.
- Event: Conversation created
- Conditions: Email subject contains "Order confirmation" OR Email subject contains "Shipping notification"
- Actions: Resolve conversation, Add label → "Auto-closed"
Tips
- Automations won't loop infinitely. If an automation changes something that triggers another automation, Commslayer limits executions to prevent runaway rules.
- Test your conditions carefully. Use "contains" for partial matches, "equals" for exact matches.
- Order matters when multiple automations could match the same conversation—they run in the order they were created.