How to add personal and custom content to email notifications using variables

With booking email notifications, you can customize the content you send to recipients using email variables.

Read further to learn how to add customized variable content or find answers to frequently asked questions.

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Are you new to setting up and managing notifications? Read the article Setting up email notifications to learn more.

 


Adding customized content with email variables

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What are email variables?

You can include dynamic email variables in the subject and body of HTML and text messages. When you send a notification, the variable you add to the email body is automatically replaced with information from your system.


For example, you may begin the email with Dear{$CUSTOMER_NAME}. When the guest receives the notification, the system replaces the variable with whatever they entered as their name during the booking process. The email, therefore, begins with Dear Jane Smith.

Follow these steps to add variable email content:

  1. Go to the Notifications area (Configuration > Notifications).
  2. Select an existing notification or create a new one.

    Notifications list view showing booking notifications with columns for ID, name, subject, notification type, event, recipient, delivery, and status.

  3. Enter a custom Subject of the email. The subject line can include standard system email or custom variables (Configuration > Layout and Templates > Booking Form).

    Email notification setup screen highlighting the subject line input field.

  4. Fill out and select the remaining options as needed.
  5. Enter email content as HTML or Text in the Email section. You can use supported email variables in the email body, as illustrated in the screenshot below.

    Preview window of a booking receipt email with customer details, company branding, and invoice information.

  6. Select Save (or Create) after setting up the notification to save your work.

    Email editor showing sample text with variables for customer name and company name along with an embedded invoice placeholder.

 


Understanding email variables

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The following is a list of the supported system email variables:

Variable Description
{$ACCOUNT_ID} ID of the staff account used to make the booking.
{$BOOKING_ADMIN_URL} Link to the booking in your account backend.
{$BOOKING_CANCEL_URL} Direct link for the guest to cancel their booking.
{$BOOKING_DATE} Date of booking. May include a date range or time depending on the booking.
{$BOOKING_DETAILS} Details of product(s) booked as specified when setting up the product. A new line, including the product name, separates multiple products.
{$BOOKING_DISCOUNT_CODES} Name of any discount code(s) applied to the booking. Multiple codes are comma-separated.
{$BOOKING_END_DATE} Ending date of the booking.
{$BOOKING_END_TIME} Ending time of the booking.
{$BOOKING_EXTRA_DETAILS} Extra details as specified when setting up your product (Product > Advanced tab > Custom Email Notification).
{$BOOKING_GUESTS_URL} URL to the Guest Details page of the booking. You must have the Guest Forms feature enabled to use.
{$BOOKING_ID} Unique ID for the booking.
{$BOOKING_ITEMS} The name of the product(s) booked. Multiple products are comma-separated.
{$BOOKING_ITEMS_URL} URL to the individual products included in the booking.
{$BOOKING_PAY_FULL_URL} Link to the payment page for this booking. It requests the full payment from the guest even if a deposit is still owed. If no balance is due, this redirects to the receipt (BOOKING_URL) page.
{$BOOKING_PAYMENT_URL} Link to the payment page for this booking. If no balance is due, it redirects to the receipt (BOOKING_URL) page.
{$BOOKING_PDF_URL} Direct link to a PDF of the booking.
{$BOOKING_QR_CODE} Inserts the QR code into the email so you can customize its placement in the body of the notification.
{$BOOKING_QTY} Quantity booked on the invoice.
{$BOOKING_RATES} List of products booked with their respective rates from the booking.
{$BOOKING_START_DATE} Starting date of the booking.
{$BOOKING_START_TIME} Starting time of the booking.
{$BOOKING_STATUS} Current status of the booking, such as DEPOSIT or PAID.
{$BOOKING_TIME} Time the customer made the booking.
{$BOOKING_TOTAL} Total amount for the booking, including currency formatting.
{$BOOKING_URL} URL to the booking receipt, along with links to PDF and Payment pages.
{$BOOKING_URL}&view=documents Link to the 'Required Waiver Documents' page.
{$CHECKFRONT_URL} URL of your account, e.g., myaccount.checkfront.com.
{$COMPANY_NAME} Name of your company (Account > Setup > Company).
{$CREATED_BY} Where the booking comes from, e.g., staff or website.
{$CUSTOMER_EMAIL} Email address of the guest from the booking.
{$CUSTOMER_FIRST_NAME} First name of the guest from the booking.
{$CUSTOMER_LAST_NAME} Last name of the guest from the booking.
{$CUSTOMER_NAME} Name of the guest from the booking.
{$EMBED_INVOICE} Embeds a full invoice into the email. Differs depending on Text or HTML.

 


Using custom email variables

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You can use custom variables based on the custom fields added to your booking form and invoice, which are set up in the Booking Form area (Configuration > Layout and Templates > Booking Form).

For example, you can create a custom form field asking for your guest's favorite color. You can then include the email variable in the notification.

"Thank you for confirming that your favorite color is {$color}."

Once populated with the value from the booking form field, the notification sent to the guest looks like this:

"Thank you for confirming that your favorite color is blue."

To do this, you need to add the custom form field ID, in this case, color, to the template Email message field in the format of a variable, for example, {$color}.

 

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For a custom field to populate within the notification, you must set it to Show on form and/or Show on invoice within the form field settings in the Booking Form area (Configuration > Layout and Templates > Booking Form).

 


Frequently asked questions

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Where can I quickly find this feature using the menu?

  • Configuration > Notifications

What permissions do I need to use this feature?

  • Admin permissions or restricted permissions are required to manage notifications