Triggers and actions

Every workflow is a list of steps, and every step is a trigger (when it fires) plus an action (what it does). You set these per step in the workflow editor (Workflows).

The workflow editor in the 42min dashboard, showing a workflow's 'Applies to' event types and two steps, each with a Trigger, Timing, and Action dropdown plus the email subject/body and the available-variable chips — Each step has a Trigger (Before event / After event / On creation / On cancellation / On reschedule), a Timing, and an Action (Email to invitee / Email to host / SMS to invitee); below it, the message and the placeholders you can drop in.

Triggers

Before the event — fires a set amount of time before the meeting starts (you pick the lead time — e.g. 24 hours, or 1 hour). Won't fire if the booking is created inside that window.
After the event — fires a set amount of time after the meeting ends.
On creation — fires when a booking is made (good for "new booking" alerts).
On cancellation — fires when a booking is canceled.
On reschedule — fires when a booking is moved to a new time.

The first two are time-based; the last three are event-based and fire immediately when that thing happens.

Actions

Email the invitee — send an email to the person who booked.
Email the host — send an email to the meeting's host (you, or the assigned round-robin host).
SMS the invitee — send a text to the invitee, where SMS is enabled for your organization (it only reaches invitees who provided a phone number).

The message

For email actions you write a subject and body; for SMS you write the text. Use the available placeholders (the invitee's name, the host's name, the meeting time, the location/link, etc. — the editor lists them) so each message is personalized rather than generic.

Common pitfalls

Mixing up "after event" and "on cancellation". A follow-up scheduled "after the event" will still be sent for a meeting that was canceled or no-showed unless you branch on cancellation explicitly with its own step.
"Before event" never fires. Usually the lead time is longer than the time between booking and meeting — shorten it, or add a backup short-lead step.
Email-host steps going to the wrong person. For a round-robin event type, "the host" is whoever got assigned the booking — not necessarily the workflow's creator.
SMS without numbers. No phone on file → that step is silently skipped for that invitee. Use email if you need a guaranteed channel.

Last updated May 11, 2026.

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