Understanding Automated Services in Telerivet: Service Types, Triggers, and When to Use Each

You've added a route and you're ready to build. The next step is creating a service, but the services menu offers several types, and it isn't always obvious which one fits your workflow. This article breaks down the core service types, what triggers each one, and how to choose the right starting point for your use case.

For a general introduction to what services are and how they work, see Getting Started with Automated Services.

Core messaging service types

When you open the Add Automated Service menu, Telerivet shows a Featured view by default. This is intentional: the featured types are the building blocks that cover the vast majority of messaging workflows. Start here.

Auto-Reply

An Auto-Reply service fires whenever an incoming message matches a defined condition: a specific keyword, any message, or a message that doesn't match any other active service. It sends a response immediately, without manual intervention.

This is the most common starting point. It handles the majority of simple inbound workflows: confirming a registration, responding to a HELP request, sending a menu of options, or acknowledging that a message was received.

Use Auto-Reply when:

• You need to respond instantly to any inbound message
• The response doesn't depend on stored data or external logic
• You're handling a single keyword or a small set of fixed replies

Opt-In / Opt-Out Keywords

A keyword service subscribes or unsubscribes a contact from a group when they send a specific word. It handles the response automatically, so contacts receive confirmation immediately. This connects directly to your contact groups, keeping segments current without manual work.

This is the standard mechanism for text-to-join campaigns, STOP/UNSUBSCRIBE handling, and any workflow where contacts self-select into or out of a program.

Use Opt-In / Opt-Out Keywords when:

• You're running a text-to-join campaign ("Text JOIN to 12345")
• You need STOP handling that automatically removes contacts from future sends
• Contacts should self-select into an audience segment

Poll

A Poll service collects structured responses across one or more questions. It sends each question in sequence, records the answer to a contact field or data table, and progresses based on the response. Non-responders can receive automatic reminders.

This service type powers registration intake, satisfaction surveys, beneficiary verification, needs assessments, and any workflow where you need to capture multiple data points in a structured way.

For a deeper look at how poll services work, see Introduction to Surveys and Poll Services.

Use Poll when:

• You need to collect more than one piece of information from a contact
• Responses should be stored to a contact field or data table for later use
• You want automatic follow-up for contacts who don't respond

Webhook API

A Webhook API service forwards an incoming message to your own server in real time, allowing an external system to process it and respond. Telerivet acts as the messaging layer; your server handles the logic.

This is the right option when you already have a backend system that should own the decision-making: a CRM, a payment platform, a custom database. The service passes the inbound message out, your server processes it, and Telerivet delivers whatever response your server returns.

Use Webhook API when:

• An external system should handle the logic for incoming messages
• You need to connect Telerivet to a backend application in real time
• The response depends on data held outside Telerivet

Custom Actions

Custom Actions is Telerivet's visual logic flow builder. Rather than writing code, you define a sequence of actions and conditions using a drag-and-drop interface. The service can branch based on what a contact says, update contact fields, assign contacts to groups, trigger other services, and send different responses depending on the path taken.

This is the service type that handles multi-step conversations, conditional routing, guided intake flows, and anything where the right response depends on what the contact sent. It covers a wide range of use cases without requiring any JavaScript.

For more detail on how communication workflows are structured, see Automated Services in Telerivet: What They Really Do.

Use Custom Actions when:

• The workflow has more than one step or the response depends on what the contact said
• You need to update contact data or assign contacts to groups as part of the flow
• The logic is more complex than a single auto-reply but you don't need to write code

Cloud Script API

A Cloud Script service runs custom JavaScript on Telerivet's servers as part of any triggered workflow. It can query data tables, call external APIs, apply conditional logic beyond what the visual builder supports, and write results back to contacts or records.

This is the right option when your workflow requires lookups, calculations, integrations, or logic that Custom Actions can't handle. It is also the foundation for prize code validation, fraud threshold checks, airtime disbursement, and other data-driven automation patterns.

Use Cloud Script API when:

• Your workflow requires a lookup against a data table or external system
• You need logic that the visual Custom Actions builder can't express
• The service needs to read or write data beyond standard contact fields

Voice service types

If you're building on a voice route, Telerivet offers a parallel set of service types for call-based workflows. These appear in the same Add Automated Service menu and follow the same trigger-and-action structure.

For guidance on when to choose voice over messaging channels, see Which channel should you use?.

Solution templates

Alongside the core service types, Telerivet also offers solution templates. These appear in the same menu but work differently: instead of a blank service to configure from scratch, a template is a pre-built workflow with sensible defaults and a simplified setup form. You fill in the key variables and the service is ready to go.

Templates are built at the platform level to make common automation patterns faster to deploy. Examples include a Customer Satisfaction Feedback Flow, a Request to Review service, a Send OTP Code workflow, and others. If there is a template that matches your use case, it will get you to a working service faster than building the same logic manually.

The distinction matters because templates are not new service types. Under the hood, they are the same building blocks configured for a specific pattern. If you need a solution template configured for your account, contact our solution engineers or your account manager to get started. 

Choosing your starting point

If you need to respond to inbound messages, start with Auto-Reply. If you need list management or consent handling, use Opt-In/Opt-Out Keywords. If you need to collect structured data, use Poll. If the flow has multiple steps or branches, use Custom Actions. If you need to connect to an external system, use Webhook API or Cloud Script API.

Most workflows start simple and grow. An Auto-Reply that works today can be extended with conditions using Custom Actions, or replaced with a Cloud Script as your logic evolves. Check whether a solution template already covers your use case before building from scratch.

For configuration steps, see Introduction to Services and Creating Auto-Replies in the User Guide.

Best practice tip

If you have more than one service active in a project, the order they are listed matters. Telerivet evaluates services from top to bottom and runs the first one that matches the incoming message. A catch-all Auto-Reply placed too high in the list will intercept messages that a more specific service should handle. Keep catch-all services at the bottom. See Ordering Multiple Active Services in the User Guide for more on this.

Not sure which service type fits your workflow, or building something that spans multiple types? Reach out, we can help.