How Automated Email Sequences Work
A 4-touch email sequence — instant confirmation plus 3 timed reminders — that keeps your race top of mind and increases attendance 20–40%. Fully automatic, zero setup required.
What Are Automated Email Sequences?
Automated Email Sequences send 4 perfectly-timed emails to every registrant — from the moment they register through the day before your race. Each email is stage-appropriate, personalized, and designed to reduce no-shows:
Confirmation
Instant · After registration
Branded confirmation with order details, QR code, and cross-promotedraces. Sent the moment a registration is completed.
7-Day Reminder
Excitement · One week before
Builds anticipation with a checklist: save the email, add to calendar, invite friends. Sets the tone for the week ahead.
3-Day Reminder
Logistics · Three days before
Practical prep with directions (Google Maps link), QR code reminder, and arrival time. Helps athletes plan logistics.
1-Day Reminder
Day-of · Tomorrow
Urgent details with a step-by-step check-in guide: open registration, show QR at door, enjoy the race. Last-minute essentials.
How the System Works
The entire sequence is fully automatic. You publish a race, people register, and the emails handle themselves:
Registration Complete — Confirmation Sends Instantly
The moment someone registers for a race, they receive a branded confirmation email with their QR code, order summary (registration types, quantities, prices),race details, and optionally cross-promoted races from your community.
Daily Cron Job Checks for Upcoming Races
Every day at 9 AM Eastern (2 PM UTC), a background job scans all published, non-cancelled races. For each reminder stage (7-day, 3-day, 1-day), it identifies races within that window and finds registrants who haven't received that reminder yet.
Personalized Emails Sent in Batches
Each email is personalized with the athlete's first name, your race title, date/time formatted in the race's timezone, venue with a Google Maps link, and your race director name. Emails are sent in batches of 50 via Brevo for reliable delivery.
Each Send Is Tracked — No Duplicates
After each successful send, the registrant's reminder column is timestamped (reminder_first, reminder_second, or reminder_third). This ensures each person receives each reminder exactly once — no duplicates, even if the cron runs multiple times.
See Each Email Stage
Walk through each stage — from instant confirmation to the day-before reminder.
Subject: You're going to Mountain Trail Ultra 50K!
To: maya@example.com
Hi Maya, your registrations are confirmed! Here are your order details:
Includes QR code + cross-promoted races
What Each Email Includes
Race Details Block
Every email includes your race title, formatted date and time (in the race's timezone), venue address, and race director name.
Google Maps Link
Venue addresses are automatically linked to Google Maps. Athletes can get one-tap directions from any reminder email.
QR Code & Registration
Confirmation emails include the order QR code. All emails link to a "View Your Registration" page for easy access.
Timezone Formatting
Dates and times are formatted using the race's timezone setting. No confusion for athletes in different time zones.
Email Subject Lines
Each stage uses a distinct subject line that matches the tone and urgency of the moment:
Long race titles are automatically truncated at 40 characters in subject lines to ensure readability across email clients.
Troubleshooting
Reminders not sending for my race
Check that your race is published (not a draft) and not cancelled. Also verify that the race's start_time is in the future and within the reminder window. The system only sends to races on Pro or Enterprise plans.
Athlete says they didn't receive a reminder
Check the registrant's reminder columns in the database. If the column is NULL, the reminder hasn't been sent yet (the cron may not have run for that window). If timestamped, the email was sent — check spam folders or Brevo delivery logs.
Wrong time shown in the email
Ensure your race has the correct timezone set. The system uses the race's timezone field to format dates. If no timezone is set, it defaults to America/New_York.
Confirmation email not including cross-promotions
Cross-promotions require the race director's promotion settings to be enabled (promote_others_enabled). Check user_promotion_settings for the race director. Also, there must be eligible races from other race directors to promote.
Frequently Asked Questions
Want the full feature overview?
See interactive demos, pricing details, and use cases for Automated Email Sequences on the feature page.
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