Every automation tool, from the ones that run global businesses to the one that should run your marina, is built on the same simple idea: when this happens, do that. It is called the trigger-action pattern, and once you see it, you can describe almost any marina automation in one sentence. When an invoice is overdue, send a reminder. When a reservation is booked, send a confirmation. The power is in how those simple pieces combine.
This guide explains the trigger-action pattern in plain terms with marina examples, so you can think clearly about what to automate and how the pieces fit together.
- Automation is built on one pattern: a trigger starts it, a condition filters it, an action does the work.
- Triggers are scheduled (on a timer) or event-based (the instant something happens).
- Conditions let one workflow behave differently for different records, branching into yes and no paths.
- Actions are the useful part: send an email, add a fee, tag a customer, alert staff.
- Chaining several actions after one trigger is how a single workflow does real work.
#The trigger: what starts it
A trigger is the event that kicks off a workflow. There are two kinds. A scheduled trigger runs on a timer and looks for matching records: "every day, find invoices that are three days overdue." An event-based trigger fires the moment something happens: "a payment just failed." Choosing the right trigger is most of the work, and the workflow automation guide covers how to pick.
#The condition: who it applies to
A condition is an optional filter that lets one workflow treat records differently. "When an invoice is 14 days overdue (trigger), and the balance is over 500 dollars (condition), apply a late fee (action)." The condition branches the flow: records that match take the action, records that do not are left alone. This is what keeps automation fair, so a small balance or an exempt customer is handled differently from a large overdue account.
#The action: what gets done
The action is the useful part, the thing that actually happens. Send an email, add a late fee, tag the customer, alert staff, fire off a notification to another system. A good marina automation tool offers a menu of actions you can pick from, so you are assembling a workflow rather than writing code. The most common actions cluster around communication and billing, which is why reminders and confirmations are the workflows operators reach for first.
#Chaining it together
A single trigger can lead to several actions in sequence. "When an invoice is 14 days overdue: add a late fee, then email the customer a notice, then tag them as past-due so staff can follow up." Three actions, one trigger, one workflow. Chaining is what lets a workflow do real work instead of just one thing, and it is how the reminder ladder escalates step by step.
#Building it visually
The clearest way to assemble a workflow is on a canvas, where you drag a trigger, a filter, and one or more actions and connect them with lines, so the flow reads left to right like a flowchart. That visual approach is the direction Marine OS is building: a workflow builder where an operator designs their own automations by connecting nodes, then turns them on. You do not need to be technical to read a flowchart, which is the whole point.
Marine OS is building a visual workflow builder so operators can wire up their own trigger, filter, and action flows on a canvas, then run them on top of the marina data the platform already holds. It is in early access, and operator-designed automation is part of the direction we are building toward.
Build marina automations visually
Marine OS is building a canvas where you design your own trigger-action workflows, no code required. It is in early access with a 7-day free trial, no credit card required.
7-day free trial. No credit card required.
#Frequently asked questions
Frequently asked questions
For what to build, see the marina workflow automation guide and the templates worth running.
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