Workflows

Every time a customer sends a message, Mahana's AI reads it and tries to understand what the customer wants. Workflows let you define actions that trigger automatically when a particular intent is detected.

For example: if a customer texts asking to book an appointment, a workflow can instantly forward that conversation to your email so you can follow up. No manual checking required - it just happens.

Workflows run in addition to the AI's normal replies. You can combine them however makes sense for your business.

Each workflow has four parts:

• Name
  A label for your own reference. Something like "Appointment requests" or "After-hours auto-reply." Customers never see this.
• Trigger description
  A plain-English description of the customer intent that activates this workflow. The AI reads this to decide whether an incoming message matches. Be specific - more detail leads to more accurate triggering.
• Action type
  What the workflow actually does: send an auto-reply, forward the conversation by email, or escalate it as urgent. See the next section for details on each type.
• Customer response (optional)
  Some action types can send a text message back to the customer. This is the message they'll receive when the workflow fires.

There are three action types. Choose the one that fits what you want to happen:

• Auto-reply

  Sends a custom text message back to the customer. Use this when you want to acknowledge a message without any manual effort - for example, an after-hours response letting customers know you'll get back to them in the morning.

• Email forwarding

  Forwards the customer's conversation to your notification email address. Use this when you need to take action outside of text - such as following up on an appointment request or preparing a quote. You can optionally send the customer a text response at the same time.

• Escalation

  Marks the conversation as urgent in your inbox and sends you an immediate email notification. Use this for complaints, safety concerns, or anything time-sensitive where you need to respond right away. You can optionally send the customer a text response to let them know you're on it.

Here are three common workflows to give you a feel for how they fit together:

• "Customer wants to book an appointment"

  Action: Email forwarding
  What happens:The conversation gets forwarded to your email with a subject like "New appointment request." You can reply to the customer directly from there at your convenience.
  Customer response (optional): "Thanks! We'll be in touch shortly to confirm your appointment."

• "Customer is texting after business hours"

  Action: Auto-reply
  Customer response: "Thanks for reaching out! We're currently closed but will respond first thing tomorrow morning."

• "Customer has a complaint or safety concern"

  Action: Escalation
  What happens:The conversation is flagged as urgent in your inbox and you get an immediate email. You can also send the customer a text to acknowledge you've received their message.
  Customer response (optional): "We've received your message and someone will be in touch very shortly."

The trigger description is what the AI uses to decide whether an incoming message should activate a workflow. Writing it clearly makes a big difference in how reliably the workflow fires.

A few guidelines:

• Describe the intent, not a keyword. "Customer wants to book an appointment" is better than "appointment." The AI is matching on meaning, not on exact words.
• Be specific. "Customer is asking about pricing for a specific service" is more reliable than "customer has a question."
• One intent per workflow. If you want different actions for appointment requests vs. quote requests, create separate workflows with separate trigger descriptions.

The number of workflows you can create depends on your plan:

• Starter - up to 5 workflows
• Standard - up to 10 workflows
• Growth - up to 15 workflows
• Pro - up to 20 workflows

If you need more workflows than your current plan allows, you can upgrade at any time. See the Billing & Plans guide for a full comparison of what's included in each plan.