How a journey works
A journey is an automated message sequence attached to the guest lifecycle. Every journey has two halves, and it helps to think of them separately:
Journey Settings are the filters deciding which reservations the journey applies to.
Messages are the individual messages, each with its own timing, channel and conditions.
Settings determine the audience. Messages determine the content. Set the filters first, because there is no point authoring messages before you know who will receive them.
Find it under Journeys, then Journey Settings.
The journey list, and the switch that catches everyone
Every journey is listed in the left rail. Each row carries a duplicate icon and an on/off switch, and Add new journey sits above the list. Until you select a journey, the right pane simply reads "Select a journey to manage its settings and messages".
The on/off switch is in the left rail, not in the settings pane. When a journey is on, the pane shows a banner saying so: "Journey is currently enabled. To disable, click the switch next to the journey name on the sidebar." This is the single most common point of confusion on this screen. People look for a disable control inside the settings and there is not one.
The filters
Every filter is a toggle. Switching one on reveals its controls, and leaving one off means it does not restrict anything.
In screen order:
Journey Name
Enabled Channels: "Select the channels where this journey will be active (Disable to apply to all channels)."
Length Of Stay: "Limit this journey to reservations that last for a certain number of nights." It expands to "Only apply to reservations that are [comparator] [n] nights", with comparators such as Greater Than.
Advanced Notice: "Limit this journey to reservations that are booked a certain amount of time in advance."
Stay Dates: restricts to reservations whose stay dates fall in a date range.
Booked After: restricts to reservations booked after a specific date.
Selected Listing Sets: "Select the listing sets that this journey will be applied to. (Disable to apply to all listings)"
Is Loyalty Program Member: guest has an active membership in one of your loyalty programs.
Is Returning Guest: whether the guest has stayed with you before.
Scoping a journey to some properties
Listing scoping comes in two forms depending on the journey. Selected Listing Sets works at listing set level, and Apply Journey to Individual Listing works at individual listing level. Both use the same Include or Exclude choice followed by a multi-select, with each choice shown as a removable chip and a summary line beneath.
Include restricts the journey to the listings you chose. Exclude applies it to every listing except those. Getting these the wrong way round is an easy mistake and the symptom is a journey reaching either far too many or far too few guests.
Listing sets themselves are created under Settings, then General. They are the same grouping used by upsells, damage waivers and bulk assignments.
Finish with Save Changes. Delete Journey sits alongside it.
Messages
The Messages sub-tab holds a stack of cards, one per message. Each card shows the message name, its timing in plain English such as "30 hours before check-in", and a preview of the body, with a duplicate icon and an edit pencil on the right. Add Automated Message is at the bottom.
Opening a message gives you the name, which the label states is not visible to guests, the channel under Send Message Via as Text, Email or OTA with an option to fall back to other contact methods on delivery failure, and the body, with Messaging Fields to insert template variables.
How timing is built
Timing is composed from four separate controls, not one dropdown: Duration, Unit as Days, Hours or Months, Timing as Before, After or At, and Event. So "30 hours before check-in" is 30, Hours, Before, Check In. Scheduling Type is then Fixed Time or Within Window.
The anchor Events are Booking, Check In, Check Out, Check Out Or Departure, Guest is in-house on each day of the week, Besty Damage Waiver Signed, Besty Rental Agreement Signed, Besty Check-in Form Completed, and Besty Guest Sequence Completed.
Conditions
Select Conditions adds further requirements on top of the timing, each set to True or False. Available conditions include Guest is in-house on each day of the week, Guest Likely to Leave Positive Review and Hasn't Left a Review Yet, Booked Through Direct Booking Site, Besty Damage Waiver Signed, Besty Rental Agreement Signed, Besty Check-in Form Completed, Listing Ready, Balance Paid, and Besty Guest Sequence Completed.
The rule is stated in the product as: "For each condition, selecting true will mean that the message will send if and only if both the above conditions are met, and the selected condition is true. Selecting false will mean that the message will send if and only if both the above conditions are met, and the selected condition is false."
In practice, conditions are how you stop a message going out when it should not. Listing Ready in particular links a journey to your Operations setup, so a message can be held back until the property is actually marked ready.
Checking what is about to go out
Upcoming Journey Messages, the tab beside Journey Settings, lists the messages queued to send. It is the fastest way to confirm a new journey is doing what you expect before any guest sees it, and the fastest way to spot a message scheduled against the wrong audience.
Edits apply to messages that have not yet sent. They do not retroactively change messages already delivered, and switching a journey off stops it scheduling new messages rather than recalling ones already queued.
Still Having Trouble?
Reach out via chat or at support@getbesty.ai.