Introduction
When creating new automations, we are faced by many, many different types of event types, many, many different potential conditions, and again, many, many different actions to choose from.
In this help article, we will look at all the actions of automations
What are actions?
Actions define what happens when an automation runs. If the event is the trigger and conditions are the rules, the action is the outcome.
For example:
Event: A learner completes Module 1
Condition: The learner is in the Belgium group
Action: Unlock Module 2
In this case, the action is the part that actually changes something for the learner — it unlocks new content.
Actions can:
Unlock or lock widgets, activities, journeys, or programmes
Send notifications to learners
Add or remove users from groups
Reward learners with badges or certificates
Action overview
Action | Description |
Unlock activity | Makes a specific activity available for users |
Lock activity | Makes a specific activity unavailable |
Unlock journey/section | Makes a journey or section available |
Unlock programme | Makes a programme available |
Unlock widget | Makes a widget visible in the discovery stream |
Unlock intake/intro | Makes intake or intro content available |
Unlock goal | Makes a goal available. Unlocks all goals sharing the same group as the goal |
Notify user | Sends an in-app and/or email notification to users |
Grant badge | Rewards a user with a badge |
Grant certificate | Rewards a user with a certificate |
Add to to-do list | Adds content to the user’s personal to-do list |
Complete activity | Marks an activity as completed for a user |
Expire activity | Expires an activity so the user must redo it |
Reset activity | Resets an activity so the learner must start over |
Add user to group | Adds a user to a specific group |
Remove user from group | Removes a user from a specific group |
Suspend user | Suspends a user, blocking login and excluding their data from reports |
Unsuspend user | Reactivates a suspended user and restores progress |
Repeat feedback survey | Periodically sends the platform feedback survey |
Add user to smart group | Dynamically adds/removes users to a smart group based on defined conditions |
Custom action | Executes a hardcoded action using event data |
⚠️ Important:
An automation without an action does nothing. Actions are always the final step that makes the automation meaningful.
Two kinds of actions
Unlock and Lock (activities, journeys, widgets and programmes) and Add user to smart group describe a state. The platform keeps them in line with the conditions and withdraws them when a user no longer meets them, for example after leaving the group or when a time window ends. Progress is kept and comes back together with the access.
All other actions (notify, to-do, badge, certificate, complete, reset, add or remove from a group, suspend) run once per user, and the automation never undoes them. Two exceptions run at every hourly check for everyone who matches: Expire activity and Repeat feedback survey.
🚧 Be careful
To unlock content after a completion, use Check periodically with Is activity set to Completed, not Activity is completed combined with Is activity in event. Unlock actions on an event automation apply to everyone who meets the other conditions, not only to the user in the event, and programme and smart group actions on an event automation do nothing at all.
Good to know per action
Lock activity: a lock wins over every unlock, also for an activity the user already completed. The activity shows as locked until you disable the lock automation.
Add user to group: this only adds. Users stay in the group when they stop meeting the conditions or when you disable the automation. Use a smart group if membership should follow the conditions.
Add user to smart group: see Using smart groups for dynamic user management for how smart groups behave, including what to check before you disable the automation.
Expire activity: this action runs at every hourly check for everyone who matches, instead of once per user. That is why re-enabling an expiry automation applies a new period to all earlier completions. Keep the conditions to the audience that should renew, because a condition that matches by accident expires completions for everyone it matches.
Good to know 👀
Keep in mind that some actions, like suspending or unsuspending users, may have a larger impact on your learners' experience and should be used carefully.
Some actions, like self-assigning to groups or granting budgets, may only be available if certain features are enabled. If you don't see an action you're interested in, you can check the Features page or contact your TinQwise contact person for more information.